The Lodger - A Story Of The London Fog details
| Format: | PG DVD |
|---|---|
| Starring: | Ivor Novello, Marie Ault, Arthur Chesney, Malcolm Keen |
| Director: | Alfred Hitchcock |
| Genre: | Drama - General |
| Studio: | INTERGROOVE |
| Name | Discs | |
|---|---|---|
The Lodger - A Story Of The London Fog |
PG Feature |
DVD Information
| Run time: | 1 hour 53 minutes |
|---|---|
| Rental release: | Currently unavailable |
| Main languages: | English |
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Most helpful review
What a poor way to treat a classic
By Tom Ruffles from Cambridge , 06 Sep 2006[Highly rated reviewer]
Hitchcock has been poorly served by the distributors here. This is a fine film with tremendous atmosphere and a lingering sense of menace. The shots of Novello taken from underneath, walking on the floor above, and hanging from the railings at the end are both superb - this is probably Novello's best film work, including The Rat.
But the treatment is appalling! The London Fog is far foggier than it need be because of the inept transfer and the music is off the shelf and stuck on anyhow with no feeling for mood or rhythm. I can sympathise with those who couldn't watch it to the end because they have been poorly served.
Eureka can do wonders with a film like this,but even if there is no money for that kind of restoration (though I find that hard to believe) there should be a law against this kind of release. Pat Hitchcock should complain!
In the meantime, turn down the volume and try to ignore the fuzzy image, it's a great story, told with skills picked up by Hitchcock from the Expressionists in Germany, and containing a superb performanace by Novello, full of ambiguity.- Was this review helpful to you?
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(13)good film poor dvd
By itstinks (681 reviews) from North of Reading , 10 Apr 2008The film is interesting and it is always amazing when you realise how much of the dialogue you can make up in your own head based on the characters expressions and story context. The directing is very pacy as the film starts with a body of a girl being found and immediately fills in the background, it shows that Hitchcock had an interest in putting young blondes in danger from his early days. The acting is varied and can be quite OTT at tiems but is acceptable. The print quality is poor and the soundtrack is very unoriginal, why they used 'Land of Hope and Glory' near the start is beyond me. The shot of Ivor Novello through the ceiling is pure genius.- Was this review helpful to you?
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Interesting Hitchcock
By Steamcarrot (18 reviews) from East Yorkshire , 13 Mar 2007While it s Hitchcock’s 3rd official film as director, it is the start of the Hitchcock legend as he steps into suspense thriller for the first time. Based on Mrs Belloc Lowndes book, The Lodger is a Jack-The-Ripper type story with Ivor Novello playing the titular character who may be the killer. While the film has some dull, slow patches and can be somewhat primitive, even for a silent, this can be put down to how silent films are perceived these days, especially British ones. However there are many fine moments that make the film undeniably Hitchcock, a remarkable feat giving more credence to the ‘Hitchcock-the-auteur’ argument. Certainly the theme of a wrongly suspected man creeps up again and again in Hitch’s work. (The fact that Novello ends up innocent is not what Hitch wanted. He was after a more ambiguous ending, but the studio insisted.) Other motifs that have direct parallels with later features can be glimpsed from time to time. At one point Novello tries to get into the bathroom knowing full well that Daisy is having a bath, a scene about vulnerability that was taken a stage further in Psycho with the shower scene. And this is where the main interest comes from in The Lodger, watching the Master’s early work and see the nucleus of ideas that would pop up again in future films. This is by no means a bad film but it could have probably been improved by knocking 20 minutes off the running time. Novello, it has to be said, plays his part well – but then he would, wouldn’t he? For trivia fans, this is the first film Hitch appears in as a cameo, in fact he appears twice, once near the beginning sitting in a chair in the reporters office and once at the end as part of the angry mob – apparently, I never spotted him.- Was this review helpful to you?
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Great film but very poor dvd remaster
By a customer from Muswell Hill, London , 27 Dec 2006Good early Hitchcock - but a very poor dvd copy. The print used was badly damaged and poorly transferred and the added music track crassly chosen and randomly placed.It's unbelievable that dvds this bad are sold or rented...- Was this review helpful to you?
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hitchcock
By mark leather from secret hideaway , 28 Sep 2006A classic by alfred hitchcock.- Was this review helpful to you?
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Even Tesco don't care!
By Tom Ruffles from Cambridge , 07 Sep 2006I notice that the illustration accompanying the synopsis is actually that for Sabotage, not The Lodger. Carelessness all round, I'm feeling very sorry for this film.- Was this review helpful to you?
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