The Man in My Basement is a mind-bending thriller that digs deep into fears, race, and guilt. Corey Hawkins stars in this film as a guilt-ridden man severely down on his luck when a mysterious stranger makes a lucrative offer. Anna Diop also stars as an ambitious historical curator who seeks to make history. They had a chance to discuss with The Nerds of Color how their characters process their dilemmas and what they learned from filming this adaptation.
The film, based on the novel of the same name by Walter Mosley, follows Charles Blakey (Hawkins) who is severely in debt and behind on his home’s mortgage payments to the tune of $65,000. This home has been in his family for eight generations, yet he also struggles to find employment due to previous accusations of theft. Anniston Bennet (Willem Dafoe) mysteriously arrives at his doorstep with a tempting proposition – he will pay Charles $1,000 per day for 65 days in exchange for living in his basement. With some minor hesitation, Charles agrees. However, once he sees that Anniston has reconfigured the space into a prison cell, things take a chilling turn.
While dealing with Anniston’s peculiar behavior, Charles is haunted by memories of his abusive uncle and the guilt he possesses as the facilitator of his sick uncle’s death. I was curious about how one can reconcile this large burden of guilt when it’s at the expense of an abusive family member. When chatting with Hawkins about his character’s sense of guilt, he stated that “forgiveness is ultimately where we’re ultimately trying to get through.”
As the film progressed, I was also intrigued by Narciss Gully’s (Diop) relationship with Charles. Initially, her character seemed turned-off by Charles’ clear obsession with money. But suddenly, she’s interested in him romantically and in a way that seems to contradict her overall attitude towards him. Narciss offers to help curate Charles’ family heirlooms that he’s found throughout his home. Notably, he has within his possession three African masks that hold significant value and offer some perspective on the arrival of some of the first Africans in the Northeast. Diop discusses the “ambition to Narciss” and how “the appetite for African-American history and knowledge and antiques and such was not there the way that it has been in recent years.” While she develops an attraction to Charles over the course of the film, it becomes clear that her professional ambitions cloud her judgment of character, as she seems to ignore concerning traits depicted by him.
In the end, Anniston commits suicide in the basement, leaving a note behind that explains how he finally came to terms with his life of murderous crimes that were at the expense of minorities across the world. Charles seems to make peace with his own guilt, while recognizing that his actions aren’t at the same extreme of Anniston’s confessed crimes. Charles buries him in the backyard cemetery, and his house is transformed into an official African American Museum, offering daily visiting hours through which he can generate an income through admission fees.
I left the film wondering if Charles could’ve found peace without this experience thrust upon him by the troubled Anniston. While Charles did admit to killing his uncle through his conversations with Anniston, was that really all it took for him to process his guilt and no longer be tormented by it? As our conversation with Hawkins and Diop explores, forgiveness of others and oneself can be the very factor that provides peace.
You can watch our full interview with Corey Hawkins and Anna Diop here.
