The Visitor

We haven't been to a movie almost forever - well since we left for Thailand in February. J wanted to go to a movie. The Visitor got the got the highest rating (4*) and had a bizarre enough description in the Anchorage Daily News that we decided to go.

A man sleepwalking through life discovers a way to open his eyes with the help of a Syrian man, his Senegalese girlfriend, an African drum and the myriad depths of friendship.

I guess that's all true, but Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.) also play a big role in this. Anyone with an interest in immigration issues should see this movie. While it doesn't have anything good to say about ICE, it also raises some uncomfortable truths about the immigrants in the movie as well. But basically it tells the story from the perspective of the immigrants.

As a movie, it was a gem.

There were no actors - well, yes, there were. What I mean is that they were all totally the characters they were playing. The camera work was sublime. So much of what we needed to know unfolded naturally. Partly this was through the scenes the writers offered. Partly this was beautiful camera work and editing. We learn a lot about Walter in the scene in the office with the student. We learn his academic discipline through a poster at the conference.

I don't know how much longer it will be in Anchorage.