I'm constantly amazed at how well these old movies from the 40s and 50s conveyed mood, time and space. They didn't have the CGI effects we have today to generate backgrounds so they used what they had. I think it looks more genuine than the stuff today. London's Whitechapel is an icky, smoky, dark, dank and shallow place in the 1880s. The narrow streets and sense of everything pushed together gives the whole movie a sense of claustrophobia.Sir Cedric Hardwicke and Sara Allgood play the Bontings, who open their home to Mr. Slade (Laird Cregar), the lodger of the title. He is a pathologist who carries a black medical bag, goes out at odd hours, and is kind of creepy. Merle Oberon is the Bontings' niece, Kitty, who is a stage dancer at a local theater. Lastly, George Sanders (The Saint/The Falcon) plays Scotland Yard detective Warwick.Mr. Slade's behavior becomes more and more suspicious as the Ripper killings continue and the locals are in a frenzy. The Ripper murders are handled pretty gently with only shadows and off camera screams. Nothing on camera (I think its actually more effective to imagine the murders anyway) and they play with a lot of the facts of the murders in terms of timing and level of savagery.The movie is ambiguous as to whether Slade IS the Ripper. Was he the actual Ripper or was he just "working" during the same time as the Ripper. The movie leaves that up to the audience. I preferred that to a tidy wrap up.At a crisp running time of 90 minutes plus, the cast and crew did a marvelous job of conveying the sense of fear and distrust that the ripper murders engendered. The only drawback for me were the tepid musical numbers they shoehorned in for Ms. Oberon. She has an amazing voice, but the dance numbers were so cheeky and lame (by today's standards) that it dragged down the picture for me. I kept imagining Madeline Kahn's Lili Von Schtupp from Blazing Saddles every time Ms. Oberon did one of her two dance numbers.Watch this with the lights out and a storm raging for added effect. Its a fear borne from mood, not on screen scares. Top notch.

Adapting the novel by Marie Belloc Lowndes, 17 years after Hitchcock had done so well with his silent film version, director John Brahm here creates a literate, exciting, spooky Victorian era thriller. During the time of Jack the Rippers' bloody reign of terror, a man who identifies himself as "Slade" (Laird Cregar) rents some rooms from an older couple named the Bontings (Cedric Hardwicke, Sara Allgood). He keeps odd hours, and supposedly needs the space to perform some sort of "experiments". Ellen Bonting (Allgood) comes to suspect that this eccentric gentleman "Slade" might in fact be The Ripper. This new tenant soon develops a fixation on Saras' comely niece Kitty Langley (Merle Oberon), a musical performer.The cast is tremendously good in this kind of setting, and the story, as told by screenwriter Barre Lyndon and director Brahm, is efficient and entertaining. It moves along quite well - even though it gives Oberon an opportunity to strut her stuff in two numbers, these are over fairly quickly. Lyndons' script has some noticeable themes to it, such as the cleansing power of water, and of the supposed "evil" that can be found in the most beautiful of women. The sets, the costumes, and the superior black & white cinematography by the talented Lucien Ballard all add substantial value to the production. It's as wonderfully atmospheric as so many other b & w horror films from the 30s and 40s. Some of the best moments actually take place when the score cuts out and we're left with ambient sound on the soundtrack. Brahm was one filmmaker who really knew how to generate suspense.Cregar is excellent in the title role. Even though we're never in any real doubt as to "Slade"s' identity, he dares to invite some sympathy for this deluded, deranged character. He makes all of his scenes riveting. Oberon is enticing as the young woman who will become his object of desire. The dapper, elegant George Sanders is fun as the Scotland Yard detective in charge of the case. Hardwicke and Allgood are fine as the landlords, and he's the one who urges some calm and reason while her imagination starts going wild. Aubrey Mather, Queenie Leonard, Doris Lloyd, David Clyde, Helena Pickard, and Frederic Worlock are all fine in support.Well worth a look, especially if one is partial to the genre films of this era, and / or they have a fascination for any Ripper-related story.Same story filmed again nine years later as "Man in the Attic", with Jack Palance in the lead.Eight out of 10.

"The Lodger" is not a history lesson and is based very, very loosely on Jack the Ripper. I say this because as a retired history teacher, I've noticed that a lot of folks think many film characters are real...and Mr. Slade and his odd proclivities are based on some real events as well as a lot of fiction.When the film begins, London is all in a panic due to the murders by Jack the Ripper. During all this hubbub, the ever-odd Mr. Slade (Laird Cregar) arrives at the home of two folks (Sara Allgood and Cederic Hardwicke). He wants to rent a room and seems like a pretty normal guy...initially. However, through the course of the film, you see more and more of the weird and peculiar aspects of Slade and folks start to add up all the weird details and think he might just be that serial killer.This film works pretty well because it sets an excellent creepy mood and Laird Cregar really was terrific as the creepy lodger. Too bad he died so young, as he sure had a great screen presence! Worth seeing.

This is a fictional tale of Jack the Ripper. It takes place in London in 1888. Jack the Ripper (Laird Cregar) is hiding out under the name Mr. Slade. He kills actresses only. He's renting two rooms from an elderly couple. Then he meets their young niece Kitty (Merle Oberon) who happens to be a dance hall girl. Will he kill her or can he be stopped? VERY atmospheric with excellent direction by John Brahm. He makes great use of light and darkness and shoots this almost like a film noir. It looks great even though it was made on a low budget. The acting is great. Cregar is tall, imposing and menacing as the Ripper...but you also feel sorry for him. Oberon is excellent as Kitty. It's short (84 minutes) and well-done. Only one complaint (and it's minor)--You know Cregar is the Ripper from the very beginning so it robs any sense of mystery the story might have had. Still it's well worth seeing.