The film opens in Connecticut. Professor Walter Vale is teaching one university course in Economics per term and working on another book when he is required to travel to New York to present a paper that he co-authored. Walter, unwilling to upset the repetitive balance of his life, is resistant but ultimately has no choice. He must present the paper. We soon discover that he only put his name on the document as a favor to the other author and is made uncomfortable at the prospect of presenting to a field of experts, but this is incidental. He seems most upset at leaving his home and interacting with people he does not know. He is living his life while he waits to die.

The film unfolds quickly. A few brief scenes reveal Walter’s personality because he does not seem to have one, but when he arrives at an apartment he keeps in New York, he enters a dangerous trap. A young couple is living in the apartment. Walter walks into the house, opens the bathroom door and is stunned by a woman’s scream. Seconds later, he is in the clutches of her angry boyfriend. The couple has been duped by a false landlord and now discover that they must leave what they thought was the safety of a nice home. With no close friends in the city, they are on the streets. Walter, unwilling to help at first, discovers that the couple has no place to turn and reluctantly invites them into his home, a gesture of kindness that would soon give Walter his life back. At first, the girl, Zainab, is hesitant in her communications with Walter, but her boyfriend, Tarek, is an extrovert with an enthusiasm for life. He begins to teach Walter how to play the bongo and escorts him around the city to listen to various drumming acts. One afternoon, Tarek is mistakenly arrested as the two travel home from a session, and he enters the system as an illegal immigrant, scheduled for deportation. At this point in the film, Tarek has won the hearts of the audience. Nothing in his manner is dangerous. He is one of the more likable characters in film this year. He adds to the rich culture of New York City, as does his girlfriend selling Senegalese jewelry on the streets, and he is the type of person anyone would love to have as a neighbor or co-worker, but he does not belong in America. Policy dictates that he must leave, despite escaping from the oppression of Syria.

Tarek’s mother, Mouna, arrives from Michigan, and Walter, by now convinced that he is meant to help Tarek, comforts the women and, feeling a bond with her, becomes determined to do what he can to help Tarek. He brings her to the detention centre where Terek is being held and she waits for him in a coffee shop across the street. Tarek does not want her to stay, but she is determined to wait in New York and she accepts Walter help. She does not know him, but she believes in his sincerity.

So who is Walter? Is he America’s everyman, caring and willing to help when he sees someone in trouble, or has he reached a point of crisis in his life, enlivened by his experiences with Tarek, looking for adventure and determined to feel young again. We don’t know how Walter viewed aliens before he met Tarek’s family. As an economics professor, he would understand that countries rely on immigration to fill gaps in the talent pool but he probably knows that America does not see aspiring musicians as potential contributors to American commerce. Now that Walter has entered a holding center, he sees the mistreatment undoubtedly prevalent in detention facilities throughout the nation and the emotional torture felt by the detainees. Walter does not grasp the meaning of the phrase, “The American Dream.” Only immigrants who escape poverty and repression in their home nations truly understand the term. Tarek, his mother, and Zainab know its meaning, even in their humble lives on the big city streets of America, and their experiences show Walter that he should relish the freedom living in America provides him. As the film unfolds, we see changes in Walter, and passions that were hidden at the film’s opening. Jenkins, in an Oscar nominated role, gives a subtly moving performance as Walter, and in the end, we see Walter as simply a good man, doing his best to be happy.

Side Note: Living in Toronto, and experiencing the vast mix of culture produced from its diverse citizenship, reminds me every day of Canada’s important position in the world. We have given the word a place with we different races can grow together, while infusing the best cultural elements from our homelands. My one regret is that Stephen Harper has been elected as our Prime Minister. Time will tell if his economic policies will help Canada and I hope they do, but for me, he is a man whose fatal flaw is his disregard for the Arts. Perhaps he should watch a movie like The Visitor. He may find that he has a heart after all.