The Lodger (2009 film)
| The Lodger | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Directed by | David Ondaatje |
| Produced by |
David Ondaatje Michael Mailer |
| Written by |
Marie Belloc Lowndes (novel) David Ondaatje |
| Starring |
Alfred Molina Rachael Leigh Cook Hope Davis Simon Baker |
| Music by | John Frizzell |
| Cinematography | David A. Armstrong |
| Edited by | William Flicker |
| Distributed by | Stage 6 Films |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Lodger is a 2009 mystery/thriller film directed by David Ondaatje and starring Alfred Molina, Hope Davis and Simon Baker. It is based on the novel The Lodger by Marie Belloc Lowndes, filmed previously by Alfred Hitchcock in 1927, by Maurice Elvey in 1932, by John Brahm in 1944, and as Man in the Attic (1953) directed by Hugo Fregonese.
Plot
The film follows two parallel stories, one being about a troubled detective (Molina) who plays a cat-and-mouse game with an unknown killer and the other being about an emotionally disturbed landlady and her relationship with an enigmatic "lodger" (Simon Baker).[1][2]
Cast
Storyline 1:
- Alfred Molina as Chandler Manning, the troubled detective[1][2]
- Rachael Leigh Cook as Amanda, his daughter[1]
- Mel Harris as Margaret, his wife[1]
- Shane West as Street Wilkenson, his rookie partner[1]
- Philip Baker Hall as the Police Chief
- Lancer Dean Shull as the Internal Affairs Officer who suspends Chandler Manning from his duties.
Storyline 2:
- Hope Davis as Ellen Bunting, the emotionally disturbed landlady[1][2]
- Donal Logue as Joe Bunting, her husband[1]
- Simon Baker as Malcolm Slaight, the mysterious stranger who becomes their "lodger"[1]
Release
The film premiered on January 23, 2009 in limited release in New York and Los Angeles,[3] and was released on DVD on February 10, 2009.[1]
Reception
The film drew negative reviews from most critics. The consensus on the website Rotten Tomatoes is "An accomplished cast can't save a derivative suspense flick that manages to confuse and bore rather than thrill." The audience poll showed that 70% of the respondents disliked the film.[4]
Writing in Variety, John Anderson stated "The Lodger seems intended to leave its audience as baffled as the London police were in 1888. Never mind that it rains constantly along Ondaatje’s Sunset Strip, or that the melodrama arrives like a monsoon. What needed to be a taut, structurally sound psycho-thriller instead malfunctions from the start."[5] Joe Neumaier wrote in The New York Daily News, "If you think you're tired of tedious thrillers, this B-movie has a cast that looks like they slept right through it... Filled with second-rate Brian DePalma twists, noirishly blurred lights and usually solid actors mouthing potboiler brine, The Lodger resembles bottom-shelf '80s dreck."[6] Robert Abele wrote in The Los Angeles Times, "This strained, empty effort doesn't work as homage or update, and in its darkly violent sensibility has neither the glamour of Brian De Palma's referential nightmares or even the narrative fuel of the serial-killer-obsessed procedurals that dominate TV."[7] Ben Walters attacked the film in Time Out, writing " the real crime is the travesty writer-director David Ondaatje perpetrates on Alfred Hitchcock".[8]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Turek, Ryan. "The Lodger Redo Goes to DVD". Shocktillyoudrop.com. Retrieved 2012-08-06.
- 1 2 3 Tatiana Siegel (2007-10-25). "Molina, Davis join 'Lodger' redo". Variety. Retrieved 2008-10-21.
- ↑ Turek, Ryan (2008-12-23). "Lodger Goes Theatrical in January". Shocktillyoudrop.com. Retrieved 2012-08-06.
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