The Man in My Basement

Charles Blakey’s (Corey Hawkins) life is falling apart. He’s lonely, he can’t find work, and he’s boozing way too much and about to lose his family’s Sag Harbor home. When a mysterious white man, Anniston Bennet (Willem Dafoe), offers to rent his basement for a hefty sum, a hesitant Blakey acquiesces despite serious doubts, especially about the decidedly odd accommodations Bennet requests.

While prepping the room for his tenant, Blakey discovers some mysterious heirlooms, possibly African tribal masks, which hint at a history he knows absolutely nothing about. An antiques buyer (played by Nanny’s Anna Diop) is able to fill in the gaps while embodying a compassionate counterpoint to his apathetic views.

The mask discovery is not the last disturbing revelation in Nadia Latif’s unnerving adaptation of the novel by fabled mystery writer Walter Mosley. The Man in My Basement’s uncanny elements make it closer to the world of genre fiction than the hard-boiled Los Angeles of Devil in a Blue Dress, the big-screen adaptation the author is best known for.

As Charles is drawn into his tenant’s bizarre world, reality and childhood terrors converge and he discovers that just because something is hidden or buried doesn’t mean it’s gone or even truly forgotten.

A bold debut, anchored by Dafoe and Hawkins’ intense performances, Latif’s The Man in My Basement could not be more timely. In an increasingly polarized and blinkered world, it’s incredibly powerful to see these two very different men confront evil in its purest form.

ROBYN CITIZEN