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The Visit with Billy Dee Williams
By Carla Robinson
As The Visit winds its way from theatrical to video release, it’s a good
time to take a look at this noteworthy film through the eyes of one of its stars, the
consummate Billy Dee Williams.
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© 2000 Urbanworld Films
Henry (Billy Dee Williams)
in The Visit |
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The Visit introduces us to Alex Waters
(Hill Harper), a young man held captive in both a physical and an emotional prison.
He’s serving a twenty-five year sentence for a rape he vehemently denies committing,
but his claims of innocence fall on deaf ears where his father, Henry (Williams), is
concerned. To Henry, Alex has lived recklessly, bringing the dire circumstances that mark
his life upon himself. It’s merely a case of the chickens coming home to roost. What
Henry doesn’t know is that Alex is dying of AIDS and is tentatively, haltingly,
seeking the path of redemption. Henry’s challenge is to open his heart and forgive
his son, and himself, before it’s too late. |
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Williams turns in a performance that masterfully elevates
the material. The beauty of his portrayal is that he often uses an approach that is as
soft as pashmina wool to get across Henry’s hardness. In fact, Williams’ Henry
is much like a lion before the pounce: contained, stealthy, lovely even. But even while
wooing us, he makes the hair on our neck stand on end. Williams is proud of his
performance, but he gives the glory to Jordan Walker-Pearlman. At a press conference, he
spoke about the writer/director in high terms. “Because of the diverse life he’s
led, he brings a kind of sensibility and a kind of dynamic to storytelling that I think
can really set a precedent,” Williams said. “And I think this film is certainly
an example of that.”
Walker-Pearlman’s sensibility, coupled with the dynamism of the story, drew Williams
to the project. When he read the script, he was captivated by its redemptive theme.
“It’s about people rediscovering this whole idea of spiritual love,” he
said. “It’s a deeply visceral, highly emotional experience that I have not seen
in terms of the African-American experience.” Williams went on to address typical
cinematic handling of the Black family by adding, “Usually when we talk about
families we talk about everybody around the food, and that’s only on a certain
level.” The actor feels The Visit paints a more compelling, universal picture, which
he gauges by his own response to the film, “Every time I see it, it destroys
me.”
Williams never had any misgivings about Henry. From the outset, he understood that the
character was no Heathcliff Huxtable, and he drew on his own upbringing to connect to the
difficult patriarch. His own father was affectionate, yet old-school, and he “used
him as a reference, and much of myself in the way that I’ve dealt with my kids.”
Williams explained that at Henry’s core lies a complex web of guilt and frustration,
born out of love. “He feels there’s something he did not impart, otherwise, his
son would not have found himself in that dilemma.”
M
July 2001
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