Movies: We Strangers (2024) by Anu Valia: A Clean Slate Becomes a Haunted Promise
- dailyentertainment95
- Sep 13
- 5 min read
When Cleaning Gets Too Close to Souls
We Strangers is a drama directed and written by Anu Valia in her feature debut. Set in Gary, Indiana, it centers on Rayelle “Ray” Martin (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), a house cleaner who takes a new job inside an upper-class household and, on a whim, tells her client she can channel the dead. That small lie escalates into a strange power dynamic where Ray becomes a spiritual confidant, drawing secrets, desires, and tensions out of her clients. Between cleaning jobs, she tries to juggle caring for her mother, maintaining friendships, and holding onto her own identity. The film premiered at South by Southwest in March 2024 and was released theatrically in August 2025; its runtime is 80 minutes.
Why to Recommend Movie: Sharp, Strange & Emotionally Resonant
Kirby Howell-Baptiste’s powerful lead turn — She carries the film with subtlety, portraying Ray’s moral ambivalence, exhaustion, and longing with nuance. Her performance allows both empathy and critique to coexist in Ray’s decisions.
Explores class, identity, and the weight of expectations — Ray’s lies about spiritual connection are less about deception and more about longing for agency and voice among people who overlook her. The film uses her job as a cleaner to examine what it means to serve and to see when you are unseen.
Atmospheric visuals and thoughtful sound design — Charlotte Hornsby’s cinematography and the film’s use of color, reflections, mirrors, and diffuse lighting underscore duality (public vs private, seen vs invisible). The soundscape—ambient traffic, vacuum whirs, television psychics—builds tension in ordinary spaces.
Social relevance in contemporary America — The film addresses themes of assimilation, economic precarity, race, and class in small-town or overlooked industrial American settings. It feels timely in a moment where labor, identity, and belonging are under public scrutiny.
Balance of satire, surrealism, and character study — It mixes humor, eeriness, and relational drama in a way that keeps the viewer off balance. The spiritual lie is both absurd and consequential, offering commentary without preaching.
Where to watch: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/we-strangers (US), https://www.justwatch.com/ca/movie/we-strangers (Canada)
Link IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt21824868/
About movie: https://westrangers.film/
What is the Trend Followed: Rising Voices of Invisible Labor & Surreal Domestic Drama
We Strangers is part of a growing trend in indie cinema focusing on the emotional lives of domestic and service workers—people whose labor and stories are often invisible—and blending that with surreal or speculative elements.
Films are increasingly giving voice to workers (cleaners, caregivers, gig economy) whose relationships with elite clients expose hidden power dynamics.
Surreal or magical realism angles (clairvoyance, spiritual claims) are used not as gimmicks, but to reveal inner truths or suppressed emotions.
Stories set in overlooked or struggling American towns (like Gary, Indiana) draw attention to not just race and class, but also regional heartbreak and resilience.
Director’sVision.dd Valia’s Quiet Mirror to Truths We Hide
Valia draws on her own experiences growing up in and around Gary to anchor Ray’s emotional reality; the film isn’t abstract, it’s grounded in place, in observation, in the strain of being “in the middle.”
She stages delicate scenes (Ray cleaning, listening, lying lightly) alongside more surreal or heightened moments (readings, visions), letting the film rhythm shift—comfort, disquiet, wonder—without losing coherence.
The lie about supernatural ability becomes a narrative tool: not only to explore external power but internal conflict; Ray’s growth comes from understanding what lies cost her, emotionally and relationally.
Themes.dd Truth, Illusion & the Cost of Belonging
Identity vs. Performance — Ray’s assumed medium role forces her to perform for clients, to exist partially in lie, raising questions about what parts of ourselves we suppress or adapt for others.
Power and Voice — Through the small lie, Ray gains a kind of influence over people who otherwise do not see her; the film examines both how that power is used and what it demands in return.
Class and Assimilation — Ray works inside homes of privilege, cleans surfaces others live in; her struggle is partly about being both inside and outside, serving others while wanting autonomy.
Mental health and labor fatigue — The burden of emotional labor, of holding others’ secrets, and suppressing one’s own needs takes a psychic toll; the film lets Ray’s exhaustion accumulate until she must confront it.
Key success factors.dd What Makes We Strangers Stand Out
Strong ensemble and lead performance — Howell-Baptiste is persuasive; supporting performances (Maria Dizzia, Sarah Goldberg, Tina Lifford among others) add texture and realism to Ray’s world.
Style that elevates content — The visual motifs (mirrors, reflections), ambient sound, and set design intensify the sense of dual identities and hidden worlds. The filmmaking details do more than decorate—they amplify conflict.
Emotional stakes rooted in real struggle — The tension between needing money, caring for family, maintaining self-respect, and the moral ambiguity of lying create conflict that feels urgent and relatable.
Satirical edge without losing human warmth — The film has moments of dark comedy and absurdity that critique privilege and spiritual exploitation, but it never loses sight of Ray as a person, not just a symbol.
Awards & Nominations.dd Festival Debut, Growing Recognition
We Strangers made its debut at South by Southwest in March 2024 and has since played at multiple festivals. It has drawn praise for Valia’s direction and Howell-Baptiste’s performance in reviews, though as of now it has not accumulated major mainstream awards. Critics agree it’s a powerful first feature pointed toward more.
CriticsReception.dd Ambitious, Uneven, but Memorable
RogerEbert.com (Toussaint Egan) praises Valia’s ambitious drawing of class, race, and the emotional labor of cleaning, while noting that some narrative threads don’t fully land. He admires the thematic richness but finds the climax muted.
Variety (Stephen Saito) calls the film aesthetically striking, commending its sharp portrait of privilege and Ray’s navigation of closeness and distance with clients.
Screenrant praises the film as “smart, interesting, and honest,” especially valuing how it captures both the dignity and weariness of Ray’s work, though also noting pacing dips.
Overall summary: Critics recognize We Strangers as a strong debut—ambitious in its ideas and tone, with a standout performance—but they also point out that some elements feel underexplored or stretched thin.
Reviews.add Haunting, Sharp, & Full of Doubt
Strengths: Emotional authenticity, rich visual style, compelling lead performance, and social relevance. These qualities make the film linger in mind and conversation.
Weaknesses: The plot sometimes meanders, especially in the second act; some characters feel less developed; the ending is emotionally satisfying but less dramatic than setup seems to promise.
Overall: We Strangers is not flawless, but it is urgently felt. It’s a film that invites reflection on who we are when nobody’s watching, and how small lies can carry large consequences.
Movie Trend: Labor, Lies & the Invisible Narrator
We Strangers belongs to a cinematic thread that spotlights the invisible labor force—cleaners, caregivers, gig workers—while blending speculative or surreal elements to expose power imbalance. It reflects trends in indie film that center marginalized protagonists who mediate between worlds (the seen and unseen).
Social Trend: Seeking Voice & Value in Marginal Lives
The film resonates with social conversations around class disparity, race, and the emotional toll of servitude. It gestures toward debates about who gets to speak, who gets heard, and how people on society’s margins carve meaning from what might seem like merely survival.
Final Verdict: A Quiet Indictment, a Tender Portrait
We Strangers is not a loud film, but it leaves a strong impression. Anu Valia delivers a debut that’s thoughtful, compassionate, and provocatively flawed. It’s a film for viewers who appreciate character over plot, nuance over neat resolutions, and stories that make you think about the unseen costs of everyday life.
Comments