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The Lodger - Hitchcock's "First" Film by Renée T. Rossow Although he had served as director or assistant director of several previous films, Alfred Hitchcock always referred to The Lodger (A Story of the London Fog) as "the first true 'Hitchcock movie.' " When interviewed by François Truffaut in 1962, he stated: 'The whole approach to this film was instinctive with me. It was the first time I exercised my style. . .the work in Britain served to develop my natural instinct, and later it enabled me to apply new, offbeat ideas. But the technical know-how. . .dates back to my work on The Lodger. As a matter of fact, the techniques and camera precepts that I learned then have continued to serve me ever since." The film also marks the beginning of Hitchcock's famous cameo appearances, which began (he claimed) as a practical measure. He felt that the "screen rectangle" needed to be completely filled; the budget would not accommodate the hiring of another extra, so he stepped into the scene himself. (Hitchcock actually makes two appearances in The Lodger; first-time viewers will enjoy the hunt.)
Based on the successful novel of the same name by Marie Belloc Lowndes, the plot of The Lodger is simple. A psychopathic killer, whose victims are always young blonde women, is on the loose in London. The murders occur only on Tuesday evenings. A landlady begins to wonder if her new lodger (Ivor Novello) is the murderer. It is on this uncertainty that the suspense turns—Hitchcock's concern is not with the murders themselves, but with the observation of the characters and the way in which the story unfolds, even in the most ordinary settings. He felt that he had found his niche in the creation of suspense and tension through visual means. "Suspense," Hitchcock said, "as opposed to mystery, is giving information to an audience in order to make them worry. Whereas mystery is merely withholding information."
The film opens with an extremely close shot of a young blonde woman screaming in terror, then cuts to a lighted theatre marquee advertising a musical play: "TONIGHT Golden Curls." A crowd gathers as the police arrive; there is a sense of alarm and confusion. The blonde woman has been murdered. A triangular piece of paper bearing the words "THE AVENGER" is found on the body and a witness describes a man she saw leaving the scene; he was tall, wore a scarf which covered the lower half of his face, and carried a black bag. News of this latest murder spreads quickly across the city. Cut to a reporter telephoning the news wire service, then to a teletype machine, then to a busy city room filled with reporters. The presses roll, the newspapers hit the streets. A newsboy, delighted to be selling so many papers, says by way of a title, "Always happens Tuesdays—that's my lucky day." Cut to an electric sign such as one might see on a building in Times Square, where news of the latest murder is "running", then to a radio broadcaster, then to a series of listeners; each face dissolves into a new one as the disturbing news sinks in. Hitchcock, ever the observer of human nature, shows us their various reactions: shock, anxiety, open-mouthed disbelief, morbid curiosity. Cut to a dressing room, where the chorines of Golden Curls are removing blonde wigs and stage makeup. As they read the latest newspaper, the authentic blondes are frightened; this is the seventh such murder to occur. One of them stares worriedly at her reflection in the mirror, running her hands through her blonde hair. Then she shrugs it off and laughs as one of the chorus girls , disguised as "The Avenger", pretends to attack her. Cut to the interior of an exclusive London fashion house. A young attractive blonde, "Daisy Bunting" (portrayed by an actress known only as June in the credits) is momentarily distracted by the shouts of the newsboys as she prepares to model a garment. None of the other models and certainly none of the patrons, pay the least attention to the commotion outside. Afterwards in the dressing room, one blonde covers her hair with a cloche and attaches false black curls so that only the dark ringlets are visible. A "bleached blonde" is jokingly swearing off the peroxide, and brunettes are unconcerned about the whole matter. Having singled her out, Hitchcock follows Daisy home, where her mother (Marie Ault), father (Arthur Chesney) and would-be fiancé "Joe Betts" (Malcolm Keen) are waiting in the family's kitchen—it's a scene of cozy domesticity. Betts is a Scotland Yard detective who will later be assigned to the serial murder case. In the film's first ten minutes, Hitchcock has quickly set the tone, has introduced all the characters except "the lodger" without wasting a shot, and has used fewer than ten titles. He was a firm believer in the use of storyboards for advance preparation, and this technique, combined with his talent for storytelling in visual terms, accounts for the success of this, and later films.
The title character, portrayed by Ivor Novello, does not appear until about 15 minutes of the film have elapsed. Our first glimpse of him is at the door of the Bunting boardinghouse. He is tall, carries a black bag, and a scarf covers the lower part of his face—the audience begins to worry. Mrs. Bunting is taken aback momentarily, but her earnest need of rental income overcomes her apprehension. The lodger slowly removes his hat and scarf and politely inquires about the room for rent. As he does so, the landlady's trepidation disappears completely. The stranger is exceedingly handsome; his attire and deportment clearly classify him as a gentleman in the woman's mind. But he is startled to an extreme degree by the sound of a loud crash in another part of the house (Mr. Bunting has fallen off his chair). The lodger's reaction to Daisy's subsequent laughter has a disquieting effect on the viewer. When he is shown to his room, he cannot bear to look at the portraits on the walls, of which Mrs. Bunting seems very proud; he turns them so they face the walls, causing his landlady to become indignant rather than suspicious. She deems it an eccentricity on his part. However, the audience worries increasingly—the subjects of all the portraits are lovely blonde women.
More: http://members.aol.com/Novello/lodger.html
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