I'm hardly ever in the right mood to watch silent movies, but as a self-declared cinephile, you should make some necessary exceptions. The earliest work of Alfred Hitchcock, for example, since he undoubtedly is one of the (if not THE) most important director of all times. Admittedly I don't worship the Master of Suspense's entire repertoire, but I am extremely fond of his horror/thriller movies dealing with psychopathic murderers, and thus "The Lodger" ought to be considered as mandatory viewing. I can only concur with what I've read in numerous reviews, namely that Hitchcock's preferences for macabre tales, mentally burdened lead characters, pitch black humor and unorthodox plot twists are already clearly noticeable here in this primitive story inspired by the Jack the Ripper case. Visually and stylistically, young Alfred's creative mind also was already far more advanced than the technological possibilities of that era. It's abundantly clear that he wanted to do so much more with his cameras, lighting effects and sound, but the film industry simply wasn't ready or equipped yet. How frustrating that must have been. Anyway, as said, the story is a slightly more polished re-enactment of the Ripper murders that kept London under siege at the end of the 19th century. Instead of prostitutes, the killer is exclusively targeting "fair-haired" girls and for some reason he's only prowling the streets on Tuesday evenings. When a mysterious and deeply introvert young man applies for the room she has for rent, the landlady slowly begins to suspect that he might be wanted killer. After all, he often covers half of his face with a scarf, just as how witnesses described the killer, and he shows a lot of interest for the beautiful fair-haired daughter Daisy. Hitchcock demonstrates his vision and talents through maintaining a continuously unsettling atmosphere, a couple of genuinely tense sequences and a few stunning (especially for 1927) camera angles. The finale, illustrating a relentless manhunt by a furious mob, is truly astounding and certain themes from the denouement would later grow out to be director's trademarks. Acting performances are always difficult to judge in silent films, but I must say I was perplexed by the appearance of Malcolm Keen. He's supposed to be the honest police detective, but his eyes and charisma are far more evil and menacing than those of any serial killer I've ever seen!
