The Visitor is a 2024 British film directed by Bruce LaBruce. The film, starring burlesque actor Bishop Black in titular role, is a new interpretation of Pier Paolo Pasolini's 1968 allegorical film Teorema, depicted in explicit sex scenes.[1][2]
| The Visitor | |
|---|---|
 Teaser poster | |
| Directed by | Bruce LaBruce |
| Screenplay by |
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| Based on | Teorema by Pier Paolo Pasolini |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Jack Hamilton |
| Edited by | Judy Landkammer |
| Music by | Hannah Holland |
Production company | A/POLITICAL |
| Distributed by | Best Friend Forever |
Release date |
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Running time | 101 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
It was selected in the Panorama section at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival where it was screened on 17 February 2024.[3]
Synopsis
editThe Visitor is a British-set reimagining of Pier Paolo Pasolini’s 1968 film Teorema. Pasolini’s enigmatic protagonist, known to everyone as “the visitor”, arrives at the house of an upper-class family and seduces each family member one after the other. When he suddenly departs, he leaves behind an emptiness for which the rest attempt to compensate in different ways. In Bruce LaBruce’s The Visitor, it is a refugee who washes up in a small suitcase on the banks of the River Thames in London. He is one of several identical-looking men who simultaneously emerge from suitcases in other locations around the city. Dressed in the guise of a homeless man, he arrives at the house of an upper-class family and gets to know the maid. When she passes him off as her nephew, the family invites him to also work for them as a live-in servant. The guest makes love with each of the residents of the house one after the other, depicted in explicit sex scenes. Each member of the household experiences a radical sexual and spiritual transformation.
Cast
edit- Bishop Black as The Visitor
- Macklin Kowal as The Father
- Amy Kingsmill as The Mother
- Ray Filar as The Daughter
- Kurtis Lincoln as The Son
- Luca Federici as The Maid
- John Foley as Homeless Man
Production
editThe film is produced by A/POLITICAL[4]
Release
editThe Visitor had its world premiere on February 17, 2024, as part of the 74th Berlin International Film Festival, in Panorama.[5][6][7]
In January 2024, Brussels-based Best Friend Forever acquired the sales rights of the film.[4]
Reception
editCatherine Bray writing in Variety said, "Jack Hamilton’s camera stays close to the squelchy action throughout, to the extent that you may find yourself wondering whether there was a line in the budget for tissues and lens cleaner, or perhaps some sort of splatter guard."[8] Serena Seghedoni reviewing at Berlinale for Loud And Clear Reviews awarded 3.5 stars and wrote, "It’s a revolutionary movie, in the sense that it subverts what we’re used to seeing in film, in more than one way."[9]
Muriel Del Don reviewing the film at Berlinale for Cineuropa wrote, "Transgressive and proud of it, Bruce LaBruce shows us, with his latest powerful film, that he has lost none of his subversive energy."[10]
David Opie of IndieWire, reviewing at Berlinale, graded the film A and wrote, "Brilliantly depraved... It’s hard to imagine anyone better suited to sticking two middle fingers up at contemporary Britain than LaBruce, and it’s even harder to imagine anyone else doing so with such disruptive, subversive glee."[11]
Accolades
edit| Award | Date | Category | Recipient | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berlin International Film Festival | 25 February 2024 | Panorama Audience Award for Best Feature Film | The Visitor | Nominated | [5] |
| Teddy Award for Best Feature Film | Nominated | [12] |
References
edit- ^ "Sexual Anarchy In Kennington". Nasty Magazine. 23 October 2023. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
- ^ "The Visitor". Best Friend Forever. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
- ^ Abbatescianni, Davide (17 January 2024). "The Panorama strand of the Berlinale to open with Levan Akin's Crossing". Cineuropa. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
- ^ a b Leffler, Rebecca (17 January 2024). "Best Friend Forever takes on Bruce LaBruce's edgy Panorama title 'The Visitor' (exclusive)". ScreenDaily. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
- ^ a b Goodfellow, Melanie (17 January 2024). "Berlinale Unveils Full Panorama, Forum & Generation Line-Ups With New Films By Nathan Silver, Levan Akin, André Téchiné & Bruce LaBruce". Deadline. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
- ^ Scott Roxborough (17 January 2024). "Middle East, Gender Politics in Focus in Berlin Sidebars". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
- ^ "The Visitor". Berlinale. 6 February 2024. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
- ^ Catherine Bray (17 February 2024). "'The Visitor' Review: Bruce LaBruce Is Back with a Spunky Call-to-Arms Loosely Inspired by 'Teorema'". Variety. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
- ^ Serena Seghedoni (18 February 2024). "The Visitor Review: Loving Bruce LaBruce's "Alien"". Loud And Clear Reviews. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
- ^ Muriel Del Don (19 February 2024). "Review: The Visitor". Cineuropa. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
- ^ David Opie (18 February 2024). "'The Visitor' Review: Provocateur Bruce LaBruce is Back with a Brilliantly Depraved Family Affair". IndieWire. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
- ^ Gregory Coutaut (3 February 2024). "Les films en compétition pour le Teddy Award 2024" [The films in competition for the Teddy Award 2024]. Polyester (in French). WordPress. Retrieved 10 February 2024.
