The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog / Downhill Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		5.0

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog / Downhill Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 27, 2017

Alfred Hitchcock's first British film "The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog" (1927) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. Also included as a bonus feature is a new restoration of Downhill a.k.a. When Boys Leave Home (1927). The supplemental features on the disc include a new video interview with composer Neil Brand; new video essay by art historian Steven Jacobs; new video interview with film scholar William Rothman; archival interviews; and more. The release also arrives with an illustrated leaflet featuring essays on the two films by critic Philip Kemp and technical credits. With English intertitles. Region-A "locked".

The arrival

A serial killer is terrorizing the streets of London. He kills young and beautiful fair-haired girls, typically late at night, when the fog comes down. The police have been trying to catch him, but are yet to figure out who he is. They call him The Avenger.

Some time after the latest murder, Mrs. Bunting (Marie Ault) rents a room out to a lodger (Ivor Novello). Her initial impressions are that the young man is a true gentleman. She finds it rather strange that he does not talk much, but likes the fact that he immediately agreed to pay her a month’s rent in advance.

Daisy (June), Mrs. Bunting’s daughter, also likes the lodger. In fact, she likes him a lot more than she should -- at least this is what Joe (Malcolm Keen), Daisy’s biggest admirer, who also happens to be a detective, thinks. There is something about the lodger that just isn’t right, like the way he looks at Daisy.

As time goes by, the lodger and Daisy become good friends. Concerned that they could become lovers, Joe constantly tries to push them away from each other. When Daisy warns him to stop embarrassing her, Joe gets a search warrant, hoping to prove that the lodger is not the type of man she should be spending time with.

When Joe and his buddies enter the lodger’s room, he panics. Joe isn't surprised. He knew it all along -- the lodger is a dangerous man, a bad man, someone who has something to hide. Now Joe can almost see Daisy coming back to him, thanking him for showing her that she was wrong. He can almost feel Daisy’s warm lips touching his lips.

One of Joe’s buddies brings a bag. In it there is a gun and a map of the places where The Avenger has killed before. This is the proof. The lodger must have been waiting for the perfect moment to kill Daisy. He is a monster. He is The Avenger.

Based on the novel by Marie Belloc Lowndes, The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog was Alfred Hitchcock’s third film and his first British film. The novel was adapted by Eliot Stannard, who worked closely with Hitchcock until the late ‘20s (their final work together was on The Manxman), and screenwriter and editor Alma Reville, who married the director in 1926.

The film has two different identities. The first profiles it as a love story about two people who meet and become attracted to each other under some unusual circumstances. There is plenty of melodrama but eventually the focus of attention convincingly shifts from the relationship between the lodger and Daisy to the mysterious serial killer.

The second identity is that of a suspense thriller with various dark overtones. Hitchcock’s attempts to misdirect the viewer are quite easy to spot, but they are not yet as convincing as they are in his later films.

There are some obvious gothic overtones in the film as well. The heavy fog, the dark and cold streets, and especially the manner in which the lodger is filmed -- very much reminding of the manner in which Jack the Ripper is typically filmed -- create and sustain a rather unusual for a Hitchcock film atmosphere.

Restored by the BFI National Archive in association with ITV Studios and Network Releasing, The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog is complemented by a brand new chamber score composed by Neil Brand and performed by the Orchestra of Saint Paul's. This is a quite dark and tense score than is substantially different than the one that award-winning DJ and producer Nitin Sawhney composed for the European presentation of the restoration. (The same score was also used for theatrical screenings).

*Also included on this release is a new 2K restoration of Hitchcock's feature film Downhill a.k.a. When Boys Leave Home (1927), which was completed by the BFI National Archive in association with ITV Studios and Park Circus Films. The film tells the story of a student (Novello) whose life spins out of control after he makes an impulsive decision, and is presented here with a brand new piano score composed by Brand.

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog / Downhill Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in aspect ratios of 1.33:1, encoded with MPEG-4 and granted 1080p transfers, Alfred Hitchcock's The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog and Downhill arrive on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

Please note that the screencaptures that are included with our review appear in the following order:

1. Screencaptures #1-15: The Lodger
2. Screencaptures #17-31: Downhill

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog: Criterion present the same lovely 2K restoration of the film that was initially introduced by British label Network Releasing in 2012. (You can see our review of the Region-B release here). There really aren't any meaningful discrepancies to address in our review. The film looks healthy and fresh, and more often than not it actually boasts some quite impressive depth. (This year the film celebrates its 90th anniversary and it is pretty remarkable that after all these years there is such a fine presentation that folks can enjoy at home). Grain is retained and exposed as best as possible. Just about all traces of aging have been eliminated. What remains are a few very tiny scratches and the type of small blemishes and lines that are typically better to leave on the restored master rather than try to fully eliminate with digital tools and in the process affect the integrity of the film. Image stability is very good.

Downhill: If I had to guess I would say that either the exact same team that restored The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog also worked on the 2K restoration of Downhill or some of the same people were consulted, as the quality of the presentation is practically identical. In fact, it appears that the elements that were accessed during the restoration process were in better condition because occasionally depth and even fluidity can be marginally better (see screencapture #17). Some of the indoor footage also has slightly better nuances that create the impression that overall image balance is also more convincing. This being said, from time to time it is easy to tell that time has left its mark because in a couple of areas even with optimizations some minor but noticeable density fluctuations remain. On the other hand, Downhill also looks very healthy. There are only a few tiny flecks and scratches that remain for the same reason such are also present on the The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog. A wonderful restoration.

(Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog / Downhill Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: Music LPCM 2.0 for The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog and Music Dolby Digital 2.0. for Downhill. Both films have original intertitles.

The two scores Neil Brand composed for these films have studio masters so rather predictably the quality of the audio tracks is excellent. Even the lossly track that is offered for Downhill sounds terrific as the piano score basically has more modest chamber qualities. There are no audio dropouts or other digital anomalies to report.

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog / Downhill Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Downhill (1927) - presented here is a new 2K restoration of Alfred Hitchcock's film Downhill a.k.a. When Boys Leave Home, starring Ivor Novello, Ben Webster, and Norman McKinnel. The restoration was completed by the BFI National Archive in association with ITV Studios and Park Circus Films. The film tells the story of a student (Novello) whose life spins out of control after he makes an impulsive decision, and can be viewed with a brand new piano score composed by Neil Brand. (91 min, 1080p).

• William Rothman - in this new video interview, film scholar William Rothman discusses the exact period in which Alfred Hitchcock directed The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog, the film's main thematic and stylistic qualities and how later on they evolved and shaped up the director's style (with great comments about what Hitchcock referred to as the Art of Pure Cinema), the personalities of the main characters, some of the erotic overtones that can be detected, etc. The interview was recorded exclusively for Criterion in 2017. In English, not subtitled. (33 min, 1080p).

• The Bunting House - in this new video essay, art historian Steven Jacobs discusses the important roles space and architecture have in The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog, and some of the unique ways in which Alfred Hitchcock uses them to enhance the film's dark atmosphere. There is also interesting information about the camera movement and the obvious influence German Expressionism had on the film's tone and appearance, as well as the evolution of the director's style during the years. The essay was created exclusively for Criterion in 2017. In English, not subtitled. (18 min, 1080p).

• Neil Brand - in this new video interview, composer Neil Brand discusses the particular feel/vibe that he was looking for while creating the new orchestral score for The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog, as well as how important it is for the music to be able to guide and coexist with the film's ever-changing moods. (There are some great comments about the type of harmonic changes that he was forced to make precisely so that he can manage these moods better, or at least as well as he interpreted them). The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2017. In English, not subtitled. (23 min, 1080p).

• Alfred Hitchcock and Francois Truffaut - presented here are archival excerpts from a 1962 interview in which Alfred Hitchcock discusses The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog and its structure with French filmmaker Francois Truiffaut (Day for Night). In English, not subtitled. (27 min, 1080p).

• Alfred Hitchcock and Peter Bogdanovich - presented here are two excerpts from archival interviews from 1963 and 1972 in which Alfred Hitchcock discusses his early career and the evolution of his style and work with Peter Bogdanovich. In English, not subtitled.
  
  1. Excerpt One (20 min, 1080p).
  2. Excerpt Two (21 min, 1080p).

• The Lodger Radio Play - Alfred Hitchcock directed this thirty-minute radio adaptation of Marie Belloc Lowndes' novel The Lodger for the July 22, 1940, pilot episode of the CBS Radio series Suspense. The adaptation features Herbert Marshall as Mr. Sleuth and Edmund Gwenn as Robert Bunting. In English, not subtitled. (31 min, 1080p).

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring essays on The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog and Downhill by critic Philip Kemp and technical credits.

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog / Downhill Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Criterion are marketing The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog as a standard release, but it is actually a very impressive double-feature release. In addition to the recent 2K restoration of The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog, it includes an equally impressive 2K restoration of Alfred Hitchcock's feature film Downhill (again with Ivor Novello). It is also worth mentioning that both films are presented with brand new scores by Neil Brand. As usual, there is a nice selection of new and archival supplemental features. I especially enjoyed the exclusive new video interview with Neil Brand in which he discusses in great detail the type of work that he did while creating the score for The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.