The Lodger (1944)
Directed by John Brahm

Film Review

Alfred Hitchcock's The Lodger (1927) may well be the most celebrated adaptation of Marie Belloc Lowndes' identically named novel about the infamous 19th century London serial killer Jack the Ripper but John Brahm's equally stylish remake gives it a good run for its money.  A German-born émigré, Brahm was very much influenced by German expressionism of the 1920s and 30s, and this shows in all of his finest films made in Hollywood in the 1940s, none more so than his chilling version of The Lodger, a superbly atmospheric period piece.  With its fog-wreathed London streets and shadowy interiors, all laden with brooding menace, this is a film that chills the blood and has all the qualities of an unravelling nightmare.

With the possible exception of Merle Oberon, whose acting skills are hard to detect without the aid of an electron microscope, The Lodger is supremely well cast.  George Sanders may nominally be on the side of the angels (as a driven Scotland Yard detective) but he still manages to bring something roguish to his portrayal, and you can't be entirely sure he is taking the role seriously.  Cedric Hardwicke and Sara Allgood make an effective team as the husband and wife who take in the lodger and end up constantly arguing over whether he is or is not the madman who has made a habit of slicing up actresses the length and breadth of Whitechapel.  The real star of the film is, however, none of the above, but Laird Cregar, who steals the film as the mysterious lodger, bringing a potent mix of poignancy and spine-chilling menace to his unforgettable portrayal of a twisted psychopath haunted by an incurable sense of loss.

Cregar would subsequently work with Brahm on another period thriller, Hangover Square (1945), apparently playing a similar character to the one he plays here.  Tragically, that was to be Cregar's last film appearance, as he died shortly after completing work on the film from a heart attack brought on by the stress of having to lose weight.  The almost feminine gentility of Cregar's manner and voice made a striking contrast with his bear-like physique, and so he was an ideal casting choice for the tortured monster role.  Although we have no doubt that Cregar is the killer throughout (this is the main point of departure from Hitchcock's film, which sustains the mystery right to the final reel), we are compelled to sympathise with him and see him more as a victim of tragic circumstances than a murderous fiend.  In the most memorable sequence, in which the lodger expresses his undying love for his lost brother, Cregar pulls on our heartstrings with such force that you wonder if they will snap.  Equally, his scenes with Oberon have a devastating poignancy and reveal to us not a monster but a soul in bitter torment.

A lavish production by the standards of its day, John Brahm's The Lodger doesn't just confine itself to the streets of London, it also takes us into the glamorous world of the Victorian music hall, with the Palace of Varieties providing a suitably grand setting for the dramatic denouement.  Lucien Ballard's expressionistic cinematography not only creates atmosphere, it also heightens the drama in key scenes, particularly those in which pandemonium suddenly erupts following yet another Ripper carve up.  Low and high camera angles are used generously to ratchet up the tension and confusion, whilst helping to reinforce the ambiguity surrounding Cregar's shifty, doubled-edged character.  The only film which John Brahm subsequently made which can rival The Lodger in both its visual impact and narrative perfection is his 1946 film The Locket, one of the most ingenious and exquisitely crafted of all classic American films noirs.  Today, Brahm is best remembered for his frequent contributions to the classic American TV series The Twilight Zone and (ironically) Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

Film Synopsis

Whitechapel, London, in the 1880s.  In desperate need of cash so that they can keep up appearances, Mr and Mrs Bonting are forced to rent out one of their rooms to a lodger.  The man who takes the room introduces himself as Mr Slade and claims to be a student of pathology.  The lodger's strange manner immediately arouses Mrs Bonting's curiosity and she soon begins to wonder if he might be Jack the Ripper, a serial killer who has already slain several young women in the area.  When Slade starts to show an interest in their niece Kitty, an aspiring young actress, the Bontings ally themselves with a Scotland Yard detective, Inspector Warwick, who is confident he can uncover the true identity of the Ripper...