The Man in the Basement (film)

The Man in the Basement is a 2023 French thriller drama film written by Marc Weitzmann, Philippe Le Guay and Gilles Taurand, directed by LeGuay and starring François Cluzet, Jérémie Renier and Bérénice Bejo.

Plot
A Jewish couple sell their house to a former history teacher, only to discover he was an anti-Semitic conspiracy theorist.

Cast

 * François Cluzet as Jacques Fonzic
 * Jérémie Renier as Simon Sandberg
 * Bérénice Bejo as Helene Sandberg
 * Jonathan Zaccaï as David Sandberg
 * Victoria Eber as Justine Sandberg

Production
The film was shot in Paris.

Release
The film was released in New York City on January 27, 2023.

Reception
The film has a 79% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 14 reviews. Calan Panchoo of Film Threat rated the film a 6 out of 10. Glenn Kenny of RogerEbert.com awarded the film three stars.

Hannah Brown of The Jerusalem Post gave the film a positive review and wrote, "All the actors are good here, among them Renier, who starred in a number of films by the Dardenne brothers(...)But the movie really belongs to Cluzet and the vile character he portrays."

Gary Goldstein of the Los Angeles Times also gave the film a positive review, calling it "a gripping, smart and timely film that’s part thriller, part domestic drama and all cautionary tale."

Beatrice Loayza of The New York Times gave the film a negative review and wrote, "Somewhere in The Man in the Basement there is a smart psychodrama sharpened by political urgency, but what we get is a middling think piece that too quickly loses momentum — and peters out by the end."