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The Lodger is recognized as being the first authentic Hitchcock film. During his sojourn in Germany, Hitchcock was given the opportunity to see films by such masters as Fritz Lang and F.W. Murnau. The influence of the UFA Studios in the stylized settings, the lush atmosphere, the mastery of light and shade and the confident editing. Aside from further establishing his name as a talented director, The Lodger also marked Hitchcock’s first appearance on screen. In later years, his cameos became as much a part of his films as the plot. Eagle-eyed viewers can spot Hitchcock twice in this movie; with his back to the crowd in an office, and as one of the crowd members towards the end. Ironically, his debut happened by chance – the screen needed to be filled with extras for a newsroom scene, and Hitchcock was there merely to fill the numbers. After completion, the motion picture’s distributor felt that it was too highbrow to be released, and brought in Ivor Montagu to re-cut the film. When The Lodger was finally issued to the public in 1926, it was a huge commercial and critical success in both Britain and Europe, hailed as “the best British production ever made”. At the young age of 27, Alfred Hitchcock had arrived as a filmmaker. This “story of the London fog” is about a lodger (Ivor Novello) whose mysterious behaviour causes a landlady and fellow tenants to suspect him of being Jack the Ripper. Daisy Bunting (June Tripp) is unaware of the real danger she may be in as she falls hard and fast for the stranger. Daisy’s boyfriend Joe Betts (Malcolm Keen), an ambitious detective, is assigned to the Avenger case, and vows to out a rope around the newcomer’s neck.
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