Quick Movie Reviews
Rating of
3.5/4
mitchellyoung - wrote on 12/23/2011
The Visitor is a quiet film that stirs a lot of emotions with very little. Richard Jenkins gives one of the best performances of his career - a subtle masterpiece of acting, in that he is playing a man who has essentially cut off his emotions. There isn't any neat Hollywood ending or sweeping soundtrack or contrived and witty dialogue...just real people living and interacting in real and believable ways, and it works powerfully.
Rating of
2.5/4
Amyaronson - wrote on 07/18/2011
This is a quiet, intimate indie film that I like to sum up as a "nice movie." It is touching and sad, lonely and warm. Like Frozen River, this movie explores issues in illegal immigration and American politics. Richard Jenkins is fantastic, and I'm glad I've seen him in so many movies lately. Also, it made me want to play the djembe, so that's cool.
Rating of
3.5/4
donkeyknight - wrote on 05/03/2011
How good it feels to extend a helping hand and get swept up into the beat. How alive! The pace of this movie is very slow, but it let's you feel the awkwardness and hesitation. We are so blest to be born in this country. When did we forget we are an immigrant people?
Rating of
3.5/4
woody - wrote on 01/29/2011
This beautiful movie is a study in contrasts: white New Englander/non-white Middle-Easterner and Senegalese; academia/arts and crafts; classical music/drum circles; lack of engagement/social connectivity. The disengaged white academic at the center of this goes through a transformation, and in the process makes human connections for the first time in years. Or you could say, he goes from being the type of person who wouldn't like this movie to the type who would. The cast is great all around, and help to keep the story from being overly sentimental.
Rating of
3/4
TommyL31 - wrote on 04/17/2009
This was a really great and touching movie. I had really high hopes and it may not have met all of them but it was still a very good movie. I think the characters were very compelling and it was really a meaningful story of a developing nations professor coming face to face with illegal immigrants from developing nations. I think the movie offered some interesting thoughts on academia and what happens when it meets reality. This movie is worth a view.
Rating of
4/4
patjohnson76 - wrote on 10/22/2008
It is amazing how films as small as these can pack such a huge emotional punch and connection. It just goes to show you don't need A list actors or bombastic special effects to make a film work; if you have a good story with easily identifiable characters you can make a film work. While Richard Jenkins is the standout here as a man finding himself at a crossroads, all 4 main characters add a sense of realism and emotion that makes for a great viewing. Hopefully Jenkins' peformance is remember come awards-season time.
Rating of
1.5/4
Alex - wrote on 10/18/2008
I see why many people may like this movie. It is well acted and well paced. The subject matter I didn't care for and I didn't really care for the characters. If subject drama is your thing, check it out. If not stay far away. Yawn...
Rating of
4/4
goodfellamike - wrote on 10/18/2008
A wonderful, nuanced drama with quietly intense performances from its four principal characters, particularly the underrated Richard Jenkins; what begins as the study of a mundane man becomes a warm-hearted and affecting look at post 911 attitudes; unseemingly at first, these strong characters grow and become something rather special. I found myself astonishingly caught up in this simple, sublime and not altogether happy tale that never once feels manufactured or phony. Final Grade: A
Rating of
3.5/4
Allison - wrote on 07/05/2008
A beautiful, inspiring movie about a man who wants to add meaning to his life. He finds it in a very strange way.
