Last weekend, I watched and reviewed Spike Lee’s 21st-century crime masterpiece, 25th Hour, a film that connected the post-tragedy New York City to the rehabilitation of a prisoner as he ponders his life over the course of his final twenty-four hours of freedom. Purely by chance, I watched a film that may be entirely different in regards to plot, but is thematically very similar to 25th Hour, and actually prompted me to consider doing a critical analysis of a set of post-9/11 films, about the reconstruction of New York City after the tragic events of September 11th, 2001 (but that’s a subject for another time). The film I am referring to in this instance is The Visitor, a small and intimate independent film that covers a lot of thematic ground, and despite its very humble, unassuming premise, it makes some profound statements – not only on the world-shaking tragedy itself but also around the self, being a film of self-reflection and a commentary on the relationships we form with individuals around us, particularly those that enter our lives entirely through chance. The Visitor is one of the most human films of its kind, and it is undoubtedly an extraordinary film that takes a bold and resonant stance on many issues.

Professor Walter Vale (Richard Jenkins) is a lonely middle-aged college instructor who has been teaching the exact same economics course at a university in Connecticut for twenty years. A bitter curmudgeon, Walter does not get along with many people, and his only solace is found in attempting to learn the piano as a tribute to his late wife, a highly successful and renowned pianist. When he has to present on a paper he co-authored with a colleague on her behalf in New York City, he finds his previous hometown, in the years succeeding the World Trade Center tragedy, a radically changed city, and is chagrined to find a pair of illegal immigrants living in his apartment under false pretenses. The people who Walter previously considered unwelcome strangers actually prove to become a valuable part of his life, with Tarek (Haaz Sleiman), a Syrian musician and his girlfriend Zainab (Danai Gurira), who makes and sells crafted jewelry at a nearby market, becoming important factors in Walter’s growth as a person. However, when Tarek is arrested and faces deportation, Walter needs to find a way to save him, if such a possibility even exists, which is not entirely easy in a city still recovering from a tragedy.

Richard Jenkins has always been an unheralded actor, a hard-working character actor who has toiled in thankless supporting roles for decades, being a consistently wonderful, albeit underappreciated, cinematic and televisual presence. What motivated Tom McCarthy to cast Jenkins, who had not previously been seen as a leading man before, in a film that would have been tailor-made for someone like Jack Nicholson, Robert De Niro or any of their contemporaries is unknown, but it strikes me as being a gesture of pure genius, the same that resulted in Peter Dinklage’s incredible performance in McCarthy’s previous film, the terrific The Station Agent. Jenkins is superb in The Visitor, playing a character that is grumpy but not despicably nasty, unsociable but not misanthropic. He is a widower longing to find some meaning in his dreary existence, and the result is not a deep hatred of the world around him, but rather a bleak, banal and nihilistic vision of society, one where he does not quite fit anymore. Walter Vale sees the world in different shades of grey, and it is only when an uncomfortable chance encounter occurs that he finally can see the exuberant beauty of the human condition. It is a performance that does not require much from the actor, other than a deeply humane understanding of the nuances of the character, and the ability to be self-reflective and capable of showing the introspective journey of the character. Jenkins certainly does, and his performance, while familiar, is terrific. As I have said countless times before, kudos to independent filmmakers who allowing for a platform for hard-working character actors like Jenkins, giving them films and performances for them to showcase their talents in a way mainstream cinema does not always allow. The Visitor rests almost solely on the shoulders of the lead, and Jenkins is admirable in his dedication to the role.

However, Walter Vale is not the only important character in the film, and there are some pivotal supporting performances in this film that aid Jenkins’ character in his emotional and physical travail and journey towards a spiritual rebirth of sorts. Haaz Sleiman plays the Syrian refugee Tarek who is, besides Walter, the most significant character in the film. An optimistic musician, he makes the best out of every situation, and when a major problem occurs, he does everything he can to stay positive. Sleiman is exceptionally charismatic and endearing in the film, and his deeply meaningful performance lingers as a pleasant specter throughout. He may be seen as only a narrative tool used for the central progression of Walter, but he is undeniably charming and adds so much nuance to the character. Danai Gurira (who is having quite a breakthrough moment with her performance in two major Marvel Cinematic Universe films this year, Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War) has perhaps the most fascinating characters, the Senegalese refugee who is far more scared of the consequences of her presence in a country that wants people like her out of it than her boyfriend. Zainab is a complex character, and whether be in her moments of fiery defiance and anger towards the circumstances she and Tarek find themselves in, or in the more quiet and emotionally-charged moments (such as the scene on the Staten Island ferry, where she remembers how she and Tarek experienced the city, including one very heartbreaking moments that comments directly on the tragedy that is a major theme of this film), Gurira is marvelous. Finally, Hiam Abbass, who only appears midway through the film, makes a huge impact as Tarek’s mother who is worried for the safety of her son. Despite being a late entry into the film, Abbass makes the most of the character, and through even the smallest moment of serene fear, she brings out the humanity in the character. The supporting cast of The Visitor is truly astounding, and each works exceptionally well in being important elements of the film.

The Visitor is a very moving film, which one can credit to it being a post-9/11 film, a film that tells the story of a city recovering from a tragic event. However, much like other films set in the city in the years following the attacks, it does not focus on the political aspects of the event or the warfare that occurred around it. Rather, it is a film that shows the social impact, and the shifting mentality of the period, one that still persists stronger than ever today. The Visitor allows us access into the post-tragedy period through the eyes of two different sets of individuals, the man who used to call the city his home, and those that now call it their home. There are many correlations between Walter and his visitors – they all came from places where there was tragedy lingering, and found their solace somewhere else. However, they are forced to return to face the tragic atmosphere of their true homes – Walter being forced to present a paper in a city that he once knew, but no longer seems to, and Tarek forced to return to the war-ravaged, famine-struck country that he left not for preference, but out of necessity. In a way, The Visitor is a film about an odyssey back to a place called home, one that has changed considerably through the violent actions of others, but also to the mentality that changes, not merely because of shifting public perception, but because of fears and anxieties. The attacks are not a major theme in this film, but the memory and the way forward inform much of what this film attempts to say – and it is not easy to show such a world-changing event from such a warm, endearing perspective. Kudos to Tom McCarthy.

The Visitor is such a cathartic experience because through all the despair, there is an undercurrent of inescapable optimism that conveys the idea that regardless of what separates us – age, race, religion, political beliefs, sexuality – we are all drawn together by our participation in the singular experience of being human. The Visitor may be about difficult issues, but it is a heartwarming, meaningful and relentlessly humane film, showing that even the most dire of circumstances allows for bright optimism. The Visitor is not a particularly bombastic film, but it finds its value in its restraint, showing the intricate and delicate relationships formed between individuals. Tom McCarthy has a wonderful capability of extracting the most beautiful nuances of humanity out of his characters, and The Visitor is not an exception. It is a wonderfully complex and meaningful film, and in spite of its depressing overtones, it is not a eulogy to the past, but rather a celebration of the present moment, and the individuals that reside within it.