My take: A simple Jack the Ripper story with a bit too much singing for my taste.
Rating: 1 out of 4 stars
The Lodger was based on a book by the same name. Apparently, the book never directly referenced Jack the Ripper. This film calls out Jack the Ripper in the first scene and hangs its hat on that fear and history to drive the plot.I can’t say that I particularly liked that approach.
Poster for the 1944 version of The Lodger
The 1944 version of The Lodger is about a family who rents a room to a strange man named Slade. This lodger stays out at odd hours of the night, gets spooked easily by coppers, and always seems to be disposing of things. All of this happens directly in parallel to a series of murders committed in nearby Whitechapel by the serial killer known as Jack the Ripper.
The direct reference to the Whitechapel murders resulted in my continually comparing and contrasting this story with the real facts behind the Jack the Ripper case. It was an utter distraction to what would have been a pretty decent story. It is likely also the reason why the original novel and other adaptations (including one by Hitchcock in 1932) avoided tying this story to that of the infamous London killer.
The biggest flaw is that Jack the Ripper in this film kills actresses. The real Jack the Ripper killed prostitutes. I’m not sure if it was a way for the movie studio to avoid directly addressing the sexual undertones in the killings or if it was an excuse to add in pointless, annoying song and dance numbers (the lead lady in this story is a musical comedy star and actress).
Regardless, I would recommend this movie to people who like classic crime movies. Other than that, you can feel free to skip it.
I got the movie from Netflix’s DVD service. Here is the trailer on YouTube:
Leave a Reply