The Visitor (2007/I)

Director:

Thomas McCarthy

Guionista:

Thomas McCarthy (screenplay)

Release Date:

18 abril 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Frase comercial:

Connection is everything

Plot:

A college professor travels to New York City to attend a conference and finds a young couple living in his apartment.

Awards:

3 wins

Comentarios de los usuarios:

The Visitor Movie Review

US Showtimes:

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Cast

Richard Jenkins	...	Walter Vale
Haaz Sleiman	...	Tarek Khalil
Danai Jekesai Gurira	...	Zainab (as Danai Gurira)
Hiam Abbass	...	Mouna Khalil
Marian Seldes	...	Barbara
Maggie Moore	...	Karen
Michael Cumpsty	...	Charles
Bill McHenry	...	Darin
Richard Kind	...	Jacob
Tzahi Moskovitz	...	Zev
Amir Arison	...	Mr. Shah
Neal Lerner	...	Martin Revere
Ramon Fernandez	...	Cop #1
Frank Pando	...	Cop #2
Waleed Zuaiter	...	Omar
Deborah Rush	...	Upper Eastside Woman
Ashley Springer	...	Student
Laith Nakli	...	Nasim
Jacqueline Brogan	...	Waiter
Walter Mudu	...	Ronald Cole (as Walter T. Mudu)
Yevgeniy Dekhtyar	...	Slavic Man
Earl Baker Jr.	...	Lester James
Walter the Dog	...	Sprinkles the Dog

Dirigida por
Thomas McCarthy

Créditos del guión
Thomas McCarthy		(screenplay)

Producida por
Omar Amanat	....	executive producer
Michael London	....	producer
Patty Long	....	line producer: additional photography
Chris Salvaterra	....	executive producer
Mary Jane Skalski	....	producer
Jeff Skoll	....	producer
Ricky Strauss	....	executive producer
Bergen Swanson	....	line producer
John Woldenberg	....	executive producer

Música original por
Jan A.P. Kaczmarek

Fotografía por
Oliver Bokelberg

Montaje por
Tom McArdle

Casting
Kerry Barden
Billy Hopkins
Suzanne Smith

Diseño de producción por
John Paino

Dirección artística
Len Clayton

Decorados
Kim Chapman

Diseño de vestuario por
Melissa Toth

Departamento de maquillaje
Marc Boyle	....	hair stylist: Los Angeles
Stacey Panepinto	....	key makeup artist
Leah Rial	....	makeup artist: Los Angeles
Lora Scrignoli	....	hair department head
Kami Steele	....	assistant makeup artist

Dirección de producción
J.M. Brown	....	unit production manager: Los Angeles
Jonathan Ferrantelli	....	post-production supervisor
Jared Goldman	....	production manager

Ayudante de dirección
Nicholas R. Bell	....	second assistant director
Anthony Blanco	....	second second assistant director
Mariela Comitini	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Jamie Arbuckle	....	set dresser
Jacqueline Brogan	....	artistic consultant
Craig Charland	....	art production assistant
Olivia Dunn	....	art intern
John El Manahi	....	scenic painter
Eric Friedewald	....	lead person
Sean Haines	....	on-set dresser
Glenn Lloyd	....	art department coordinator
Miles Michael	....	set dresser
Kevin L. Raper	....	graphic artist
Niquan Riley	....	props
Brendan K. Russell	....	art department production assistant
Courtney Schmidt	....	assistant property master
Alexis Weiss	....	property master

Departamento de sonido
Jamie Baker	....	sound editor
Damian Canelos	....	sound mixer
Marko A. Costanzo	....	foley artist
David Flynch	....	sound editor
Lewis Goldstein	....	sound re-recording mixer
Heather Gross	....	sound editor
Ruth Hernandez	....	sound editor
Paul Hsu	....	sound re-recording mixer
Paul Hsu	....	supervising sound editor
Frank Kern	....	sound editor
George A. Lara	....	foley mixer
Eric Milano	....	adr recordist
Cate Montana	....	sound editor
Adam Sanchez	....	boom operator
Gabriel Sanders	....	boom operator
John Sember	....	boom operator
Sara Stern	....	assistant sound editor
Lila Yomtoob	....	sound editor

Visual Effects
Stephen Gaconnier	....	visual effects producer
Mike Nuget	....	digital cleanup artist (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Rik Andino	....	grip
Joe Belschner	....	additional dolly grip
Carter Bissell	....	best boy electric
Ryan Cheresnick	....	additional electrician
Dylan Crawshay-Williams	....	grip
Alexander Engel	....	electrician
John Frisbie	....	rigging gaffer
Rob Harlow	....	second key grip
Theodore N. Hellmuth	....	dolly grip
T.J. Hellmuth	....	dolly grip
Sarah L. Hendrick	....	additional second assistant camera
Kevin Kilcher	....	additional electrician
Ludovic Littee	....	first assistant camera
Adam Lukens	....	best boy grip
Adam Lukens	....	grip
Mike 'Electric' Mervilde Jr.	....	best boy grip
Smokey Nelson	....	gaffer
Aaron Randall	....	additional dolly grip
Meg Schrock	....	electrician
Meg Schrock	....	generator operator
Jaime Segschneider	....	second assistant camera
Elizabeth Stern	....	additional grip
Walter Strafford	....	additional grip
Matthew Walker	....	key grip
JoJo Whilden	....	still photographer
Casey Wooden	....	grip

Casting Department
Jessica Kelly	....	casting assistant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Erin Byrne	....	additional costumer
Leah Katznelson	....	assistant costume designer
Rebecca McCabe	....	wardrobe supervisor: additional
Colleen McTigue	....	key costumer
Emily Mraz	....	costume intern
Diana Pappas	....	costume production assistant
Amy Pickering	....	wardrobe supervisor

Editorial Department
Kate Abernathy	....	assistant editor
Joe Gawler	....	digital opticals colorist
Ali Muney	....	assistant editor
Patricia Sztaba	....	negative matcher
Stan Sztaba	....	negative matcher
Daniel Triller	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Mariusz Glabinski	....	music editor
Mary Ramos	....	music supervisor
Marek Szpakiewicz	....	musician: cello solo
Marek Szpakiewicz	....	orchestrator

Otros miembros del equipo
John A. Accardo	....	production assistant
Lucie Bourgeau	....	production secretary: Los Angeles
Nicole Bukowski	....	accounting clerk
Hil Cato	....	assistant to production lawyer (as Hilary Stabb)
Matthew B. Chamberlin	....	location manager: additional photography, Los Angeles
Craig Charland	....	office intern
Rachel Connors	....	script supervisor
Chandra Cummin	....	assistant: Mary Jane Skalski
Charlie Dibe	....	assistant production coordinator
Jeph Duarte	....	location manager
Sky Gewant	....	additional production assistant
Dan Gloeckner	....	key set production assistant
Audra Gorman	....	location scout
James Granger	....	production secretary
Jonathan Gray	....	production counsel
Travis Huber	....	location scout
Brendan Kehoe	....	location assistant
Sara Lane	....	production accountant
Ben Logan	....	craft service assistant
Kristen Mink	....	assistant location manager
Karen S. Neasi	....	product placement
Darin J. Patterson	....	additional production assistant
Elizabeth Pellegrini	....	production coordinator
Dana Penrod	....	production assistant
Jamie Ellen Rush	....	production assistant: first team
Gus Sacks	....	office intern
Weiman Seid	....	unit publicist
Lara Sfire	....	production assistant
Luke Tomalin Sherman	....	unit production assistant
Ivy Shyu	....	assistant: Thomas McCarthy
Collin Smith	....	location manager
Marny Smith	....	office intern
Sharon Steinhauser	....	business and legal affairs
J.P. Summerskill	....	payroll accountant
Vivian Tong	....	production assistant
Tom Yeager	....	location manager

Thanks
Juliana Farrell	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• Groundswell Productions
• Next Wednesday Productions
• Participant Productions

Distributors

• Halcyon Pictures (2008) (UK) (theatrical)
• K5 International (2007) (non-USA) (all media)
• Overture Films (2007) (USA) (all media)
• Overture Films (2008) (USA) (theatrical)

Efectos especiales

• Janimation

Other Companies

• Chapman / Leonard Studio Equipment  cranes
• Chapman / Leonard Studio Equipment  dollies
• Dolby Laboratories  sound mix
• Fat Dot  unit publicity
• K5 International  international sales
• Post Factory NY  post-production facilities
• Sylvia Fay/ Lee Genick & Associates Casting  extras casting
• Tandem Sound  sound post-production
• Varèse Sarabande  soundtrack

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for brief strong language.

Duración:

Canada:103 min (Toronto International Film Festival) | USA:108 min

País:

USA

Idioma:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sonido:

Dolby Digital

Clasificación:

Canada:PG | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Groundswell Productions

Soundtrack:

Salsera

The Visitor Movie Review

With a highly inventive introduction to cheerfully mismatched characters, The Visitor is a daring look at the hopelessness of unfortunate immigration circumstances. Superbly acted and beautifully scored, the film doesn't back down from its touching subject matter and realistically tragic events, but instead infuses them with aptly-timed comic relief and the persuasive power of music and romance.

Bitter and bored college professor Walter Vale (Richard Jenkins) travels to his New York apartment after being forced to attend a conference on global economization. Immediately he discovers a couple living in his home, and out of kindness and the appeal of company, he invites them to stay. Tarek Khalil (Haaz Sleiman) plays the drums, and soon gets the unsociable Walter to take up the instrument. Tarek's girlfriend Zainab is slower to acknowledge Walter's hospitality, but eventually warms to his presence.

When Tarek is arrested at the subway and taken to a detention center for illegal immigrants, Walter shows estimable concern for his newfound friend. Weighing his teaching job back in Connecticut against helping a man he's known for less than two weeks, Walter hires a lawyer to aid in Tarek's release. When Mrs. Khalil arrives to find out what's happened to her son, Walter finds himself rediscovering romance as well as what is truly important in his life.

Great care is taken to create sympathy for Tarek and Zainab, even though they are chiefly at fault for their uncertain positions. They've done nothing wrong in the eyes of the viewer, and its best that it stays that way – for the law they break is too complex to designate as morally right and wrong. The Visitor unflinchingly demonstrates the bleakness of their situation, and ensures that their story represents the likely majority of factual examples. The mocking sign "Know Your Rights" at the detention center foreshadows the unfortunate prejudices and consequences of an unsympathetic law. In the end, Walter's self-realization and inner revelations are the solace that must outshine his visitor's discouraging plights.

Richard Jenkins' acting is phenomenal, even though his role is to remove a wide array of emotions from his weathered face. Offering many scenes of comedy relief and the amusing rediscovery of long-abandoned romance, Jenkins delivers a wholly believable character that is relatable and easily liked. His distaste for his work and his discontent with life gives his eventual recognition of purpose even more of a cinematic edge. And being a mismatched companion and an unlikely friend lends to further depth and appeal. Though Tarek and Zainab are the first visitors and Mrs. Khalil after that – truly Walter is the visitor to their world – one he was previously completely oblivious to.

Part romance, part comedy and many parts drama, The Visitor presents moral conflict with the faceless evils of uncaring laws and heartfelt bonding between a weary, lonely man and a free-spirited musician. While the film slows in a few spots, the constant interjection of humor safely guarantees that audiences won't lose interest. The Visitor is an uncommonly sincere film that manages to mix harsh realism with crowd-pleasing entertainment.

- Mike Massie