The Lodger

It's a tad bit slow - me, mister complaining about pacing in an almost 100 year old movie. Some of these people were alive when Jack the Ripper was being gross. A lot of great visual touches throughout - the lodger pacing near the start as the landlady and co look up is so good! Hitchcock the original foot horny director.

After another lady vanishes in a frenzy, a mysterious stranger takes board at a house, but is he the notorious psycho or the wrong man? As he looks out from behind a torn curtain through the rear window, downstairs they're spellbound with suspicion, but hesitant to dial m for murder until there isn't a shadow of a doubt. And then, wouldn't you know it, he, uh, he has to walk somewhere and the direction of that somewhere is north by northwest. Yeah, that didn't go on too long.

Alfred Hitchcock considers this his first real picture, and in a sense you get to see many of his future tropes: scary stairs, dark lighting, blonde women, suspense, montages, and inept cops. Still, it's an early work, so the story is jagged and the technical aspects sometimes a bit off. But experiencing the paranoia of a serial killer from a ground level is cool. However, as a silent movie from close to 100 years ago, it's more suited for film students than a mass audience.

Alfred Hitchcock's third film, a silent, is an enjoyable film. It's also (I believe) the first of his films that features his ever-recurring theme of being wrongly accused. His style is still in its infancy, and it's not anything spectacular, but he already showed a very good understanding of how to shoot a suspenseful scene.

Hitchcock is recognizably Hitchcock right out of the gate, at least as a visual storyteller; borrowing bits and pieces from the Germans to build tension in a story that honestly shouldn't have the legs to work as well as it does. Peel away Alfie's clever editing, double exposure, depth of field etc and you're left with an overlong story with flat characters, but as a lesson in what silent movies could do, it's remarkable.

The one picture from Hitchcock's silent days anyone much particularly cares for. A lot of that has to do with the subject matter, I'm sure, but the actual film does have style, thanks to some very clever camera setups and a peculiarly playful sense of timing. The cast is good, even if the acting method is more than a bit dated and extremely unsubtle. Then again, a little cheesiness is not necessarily a bad thing in this sort of suspense picture.

Not bad, but severely dated.

A little slow but worth watching for Novello's performance and the glimpse of early Hitchcock.

So elegant, strange and kinda kinky -- same handcuffs used by police officer to toy with his love interest are used to imprison the lodge guest in the end while he's chased by an angry mob. A marvelous showcase how Hitch conveyed his German Expressionism to tell mystery stories -- we just get to know the killer by other people's eyes, from the lodger's suspenseful, hesistant, nearly menacing gestures to the lodge's owners fears, from the police officer to the victims laying dead on the streets.

A little boring

The earliest feature I have, from a collection of (probably public domain) Hitchcock features, and it's Hitchcock at his Hitchcockiest. I've honestly only seen a few of his films before this (Psycho and Rebecca are just about all I can think of right now), so it was a delight to see one of his earliest. He had such a unique way of telling a story, especially for the 20's. Brilliant cinematography and the suspense still holds up even 91 years later (that number alone is crazy to think about).

Full form Hitchcock, detailing a serial murderer's grip on public imagination with suggestive mise-en-scene borrowed from the German expressionists, glimpses of that cheeky sense of humor, eroticism equating sex with death, leeriness for authorities who miscarry justice, and indeed a bit of heavily contrived plotting.

This Hitchcock fella has some work to do if he wants to make it in the business.

Solid early Hitchcock thriller with some beautifully creepy imagery (the shot of the lodger pacing from beneath his feet is particularly memorable). It's a bit long in its full 98-minute form; too much time is spent developing the characters, including the over-the-top policeman character, but once the story gets going, everything gets very ominous and exciting, thanks to Hitchcock's eye for visuals and great performances from Ivor Novello and June Tripp.

Hitch's most famous silent is arguably also his best, with a wonderfully ambiguous lead performance from Novello, both chilling and pitiable. Climactic mob attack and persecution is a thrilling set piece, and careful build of the character of the Lodger keeps the viewer invested in the drama. A shame (but forgivable) that the ending is such a cop-out.

Tight early Hitchcock dives right into red herrings, wrong men, and seductive blondes.

The beginning of the Hitchcock Style. The visual touches were all a nice treat.

One of Hitchcock's very first movies, his first suspense film, and the first of many "wrong man" films. A few interesting stylistic touches, and it keeps you guessing, but it's poorly paced. Probably could have been 30-40 minutes.

One of Hitchcock's first. Not worth seeking out, though.

Pretty German Expressionist, with a distinct touch that already feels Hitchcockian. But the story is so generic and dull I found it hard to care enough to properly appreciate the technique. Recommended only if you’re crazy about Hitchcock – or possibly if you really understand the language of silent film, I can’t say I do.

Alfred Hitchcock referred to "The Lodger" as the first true "Hitchcock" film. A movie that helped shape the modern-day thriller genre. Hitchcock explores religious imagery and themes of mistaken identity, obsession of blondes and fear of authority. Hitchcock plays the viewer brilliantly with his touches of suspense, surprise, mystery and romance. Considered by some critics as Hitchcock's greatest silent film. "The Lodger" is Hitchcock's first thriller, his first cameo and his first masterpiece.

I thought this seemed familiar; apparently, I watched the 1944 remake two months ago. This one is a little more of a slow-burner, without quite as much creepiness as the later one. But it's still a visual treat, with some creative camerawork and artistic intertitles (and, of course, a quite risque bathroom scene). Fav scene: The Lodger's entrance into the house.

Much better than it had any right to be. Hitchcock might be mute, but he's as identifiable as ever here.

By his third film, Hitchcock has many of his recurring themes in place. His obsession with blondes and the idea of an innocent man accused are both in play here. It's a really visually engaging silent outing with a lot of clear German expressionist influences.

84.50

Very Fritz Lang. Interesting to see how influenced he was by the German school in the early years.

silly and badly acted, but it features a primitive form of his "wrong man" plot device and an array of his visual trademarks, plus it's an early demonstration of his capacity for building a mood to fever pitch, albeit heavily indebted to the german expressionists. would be better if not for the somewhat inexplicable studio interference on behalf of norvello's crystal clean image - a film about the irresistable allure of the dark instead of how appearances can be deceiving and jealousy moreso.

84.000

It's good, but a slight disappointment considering that I usually love Hitchcock and this is often considered to be his best silent. The plot is just too straight-forward and some of the acting very unnatural, especially on Novello's part. Still, it's fairly well done, having many of Hitchcock's famous trademarks and clever directing

A very spooky performance by Ivor Novello as "The Lodger", and a fine film by the up-and-coming Alfred Hitchcock. Throughout the film I'm left wondering who this strange lodger could be. This film features Hitchcock's first cameo appearance. It's about three minutes into the film and he's in a newspaper office working a telephone, his back to the camera. He did the cameo only because the actor who was supposed to play the part failed to appear on the set. The rest is history.

Ivor Novello's performance, and Hitchcock's clever direction, make this film. What they do with the lodger character in building him up amongst the increasing panic surrounding Jack the Ripper is superb, and capped off with a great ending. The rest is ok, but more of a mixed bag, from the dull overacting policeman/boyfriend to the sometimes awkward pacing. The central core makes these parts easy to overlook, though.

This was the first black and white film I ever got attached to.

79.750

Very good one and, probably, the best of young Hitchcock.

So pretty and glowing...

Very watchable. Contains a great deal of suspense and a good amount of pathos towards the final section (although the ending itself is a bit of a cop-out). Novello is awesome as the lodger - his entrance is like something out of a gothic horror. Some nice touches by Hitch, too; interesting camera angles and dark, moody lighting make it quite atmospheric in places.

Hitch's third film as Director. The first of many to use the wrong man theme and the first Hitch cameo.

Made above average by the well-placed religious imagery.

"One of Hitchcock's earlier efforts that was hacked around a bit to take out some of the more ambiguous psychological elements by the editor but still retains the old Hitch charm."

amazing