The Lodger

Released Feb 14, 1927

1 hr. 31 min.

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

Drama

List

96%

26 Reviews

Tomatometer

76%

2,500+ Ratings

Audience Score

When a landlady (Marie Ault) and her husband (Arthur Chesney) take in a new lodger (Ivor Novello), they're overjoyed: He's quiet, humble and pays a month's rent in advance. But his mysterious and suspicious behavior soon has them wondering if he's the killer terrorizing local blond girls. Their daughter, Daisy (June), a cocky model, is far less concerned, her attraction obvious. Her police-detective boyfriend (Malcolm Keen), in a pique of jealousy, seeks to uncover the lodger's true identity.

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Matthew B

The Lodger is famously known as the first truly Hitchcockian movie made by the great director. Alfred Hitchcock had included some of his familiar themes and methods in earlier films, but The Lodger brought them all together for the first time. In contrast to earlier dramas and comedies, The Lodger was a thriller, a genre in which Hitchcock was to excel. The story contains many of the elements that Hitchcock was to often use in the future. There are blondes, and scenes of women screaming, reflecting the peculiar obsessions of its director. The story is about murder, a perennial Hitchcock theme. The Lodger is even notable for containing the first of Hitchcock's famous cameos. The story concerns a serial killer in the style of Jack the Ripper. He calls himself the Avenger and leaves a ‘V' as his mark, but it is never clear what he is avenging. His target is young blonde women, and he kills them on Tuesday nights. We are not told much about how he kills the women, but it is implied that the murders are particularly nasty. Into the film comes The Lodger, Jonathan Drew (Ivor Novello). From this point onwards, the movie's atmosphere becomes darker and more uncertain. This is reflected in the unusual camera angles, low lighting and endless fog, which add to the sense of menace. Here Hitchcock owed a debt to the German Expressionist movies made by F W Murnau and Fritz Lang, not to mention The Cabinet of Dr Caligari. It seems strange to think now that the distributors of The Lodger were reluctant to release the film at all because they had a low opinion of it. In the event, it proved to be a big success. The Lodger may be a little rough around the edges, but it is still the best of Hitchcock's silent films, and an important advance in the development of the familiar style that audiences would come to know and love. Few directors share Hitchcock's gift for making an art form out of building up suspense. In The Lodger we see for the first time the loving detail and gift for composition that seemingly lends significance to almost every shot in the movie. Behind the humour and accessible thrills in Hitchcock's best movies lies an understanding of the dark areas of the human heart. I wrote a longer appreciation of The Lodger on my blog page if you would like to read more: https://themoviescreenscene.wordpress.com/2019/01/28/the-lodger-a-story-of-the-london-fog-1927/

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/28/23

Full Review

Luca D

The ending was so good and I love how open ended it was for being a silent film. The descriptor "gripping" definitely describes this movie well. It was very eerie yet in a romantic way. Would definitely recommend to silent film buffs or maybe someone trying them out for the first time.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

04/11/24

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Robert B

The crucifixion scene was a bit much.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

06/10/23

Full Review

Georgios M

An entertaining silent that showcases young Hitchcock's talent.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/05/23

Full Review

Dick C

Nothing can be made further by "It is possible that this film is the finest British production ever made". by Bioscope... My most favourite filmmaker, Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock KBE does this silent motion picture to his best, The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog basing on the 1913 with same name novel by Marie Belloc Lowndes with the pay, "Who Is He?" co-written by Belloc Lowndes.about a Jack the Ripper-like serial killer in London...

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/09/23

Full Review

andres s

Very clever little paper animation at the beginning. Wow, holy shit this movie is old. And it shows too. You can see it in the clothes they wear, the cars they drive and just the whole look and aesthetic of it all. That scene shot from inside the car while it was moving is probably the first time that was ever done considering this movie is from 1923. We can already see the effect the news has on people even back then. Is it me or were people just ugly as fuck back then? Lmao. Like I think the only attractive person I've seen so far is that one blonde curly haired girl. This dude is creepy. You know, for being a serial killer, he's dapper af. The man can dress. Oh wow, my mans was wrongly accused the whole time. So he wasn't the Avenger all along killing the girls. He was in fact trying to catch the killer so that he could avenge his sister and complete his dying mother's wish. I don't understand the style with old silent movies from the 20's like Dr. Caligari and this one that use different tints of color like oranges, blues, and greens for different scenes. I feel like it takes away from the experience and kind of looks crap. Why can't they just film the movie in black & white? It would look so much better. They literally use the same suspenseful melody in the Incredibles that they do in this movie. I normally don't really care for silent movies, but for some reason I stuck it out with this one. I think it was the good storytelling and acting. I mean even though we can't hear what they're saying, (which annoys the hell out of me) their actions and their acting conveyed for what the script demanded. Pretty good movie and an interesting glimpse into how Hitchcock started out.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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Alfred Hitchcock

Director

Ivor Novello

Jonathan Drew (The Lodger)

Malcolm Keen

Joe Chandler

June Tripp

Daisy Bunting, a Mannequin

Marie Ault

The Landlady (Mrs. Bunting)

Arthur Chesney

Her Husband (Mr. Bunting)

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Kevin Maher

Times (UK)

Hitchcock's most underrated movie.

Rated: 5/5

Jun 2, 2015

Full Review

London Evening Standard

Even with its obvious debt to German Expressionism, The Lodger has Hitchcock hallmarks. It's the master's first film to suggest a certain kind of fun and games as well as thrills.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 10, 2012

Full Review

Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

This restoration of Hitchcock's 1926 silent melodrama offers a gripping prehistory not just of his own work, but the Hollywood thriller itself.

Rated: 5/5

Aug 9, 2012

Full Review

Irish Times Staff

Irish Times

The Lodger is a first-rate film, even if Ivor Novello sometimes overdoes the part.

Dec 15, 2023

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Alfred Hitchcock had already directed a couple of films before helming The Lodger, but this is the movie that was commonly called (even by the Master himself) "the first Alfred Hitchcock picture."

Rated: 3/4

Nov 8, 2021

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

The tale unfolds swiftly and with plenty of twists, as well as with the mystery of the stalker's identity kept a secret until the very end.

Rated: 8/10

Jul 27, 2020

Full Review

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Synopsis

When a landlady (Marie Ault) and her husband (Arthur Chesney) take in a new lodger (Ivor Novello), they're overjoyed: He's quiet, humble and pays a month's rent in advance. But his mysterious and suspicious behavior soon has them wondering if he's the killer terrorizing local blond girls. Their daughter, Daisy (June), a cocky model, is far less concerned, her attraction obvious. Her police-detective boyfriend (Malcolm Keen), in a pique of jealousy, seeks to uncover the lodger's true identity.

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Screenwriter: Marie Belloc Lowndes, Eliot Stannard, Alfred Hitchcock
Distributor: Video Yesteryear, Grapevine Video
Production Co: Gainsborough Pictures
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 14, 1927, Original
Release Date (Streaming): May 22, 2017
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Academy (1.33:1)

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