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Alfred Hitchcock's The Lodger |
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Written by Simonne Michelle-Wells
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Tuesday, 26 August 2008 |
 Left - Evan Kennea, Conductor/Director of Ensemble Vertigo
Alfred Hitchcock's 1927 silent film classic The Lodger: A
Story of the London Fog might just have been unwatchable for me on Sunday night
at Luna Leederville without the affecting music score of Joby Talbot (composed
in 1999) and the wonderful live performance of it by Ensemble Vertigo. This
event was the winter concert of the Musica Viva Ménage program, whose aim is to
take chamber music out of the concert hall and into informal inner-city venues using
local talent, and this sold-event event did just that. (It’s also kind of cool
that the group shares a name with one of Hitchcock’s films, don’t you think?)
Before Hitchcock fans seek me out and lynch me for my
‘unwatchable’ comment, let me defend myself. Yes, The Lodger has been described
as uncompromisingly arty for a British film of that time, and obviously is
essential viewing for Hitchcock fans. But its drawn out telling of a simple
story means that, without the aid of dialogue, the film tends to drag. (Hitchcock
himself admitted that he needed to hone his editing skills a bit.) Furthermore,
I had to forcibly remind the feminist in me to keep it all in historical
perspective, particularly during the shot of the landlady on her hands and
knees scrubbing the floor as her husband reclines in an armchair next to her,
reading the paper as he blows the smoke from his pipe into her face.
So, the film is certainly not without its flaws - Hitchcock
was still young and inexperienced when he directed it - but of note to film
buffs is the fact that it’s the first time Hitchcock dealt with the subject of
murder. The film is based on a book of the same name, which was the first to
offer a solution to the mystery of the Jack The Ripper killings. Fans also
appreciate that The Lodger is Hitchcock’s earliest film that now survives in
its entirety, that Hitchcock considered it his first true film, and that in it
he makes his first cameo appearance, something that became a famous trademark
of his work.
Despite the flaws (and me being no film expert), even I can
see the progressiveness of this film. Hitchcock was clearly experimenting with
cinematic technique, particularly double exposures, and there are some
wonderful point of view shots and great use of graphics and titles. Apparently Hitchcock,
along with the star of the film, was unhappy with the forced happy ending, and
if you look closely at the end you can see Hitchcock’s repudiation of this. Clearly
Talbot looked closely too, because the score at the end would no doubt make
Hitchcock proud: it rises to a dramatic crescendo that drips with suggested
malevolence and suspense.
This partnership of Musica Viva Ménage and Luna Cinemas was
a fabulous idea. It was certainly a privilege to watch a film with the talented
Perth musicians
of Ensemble Vertigo, ably conducted by Evan Kennea, providing the atmosphere.
Talbot’s score is by no means simple, and the musicians performed it extremely
well. The music is full of uneven pauses, multitudes of trills, and even a
segment that requires the whole ensemble to play a series of glissandos (sliding
scales – downwards in this case) when the lodger meets the heroine, Daisy.
Kennea did a remarkable job of conducting to a click track, and there were many
moments of perfect synchronisation with the images.
There was a wonderful exchange between the piano and violin during
the press room scene (where Hitchcock cameos) and it’s hard to imagine the
scene working without it. There are several recurring melodic themes in the
score, including a wonderful theme for Daisy, which also appeared to represent
femininity in general in the film: it’s pretty and sweeping, but not without a
slightly sinister undertone. Interestingly, the murders of the women are
silent; the images of their open-mouthed screaming left to speak for
themselves.
This long and complex score would be hard work for only eight
musicians, who between them generated a remarkable variety of sounds. To sit
back with a complimentary glass of wine and watch a cinema classic with a live
soundtrack is a damn fine way to spend a Sunday evening, if you ask me.
Alfred Hitchcock's The Lodger
Accompanied by Ensemble Vertigo
Venue: Luna Cinemas 155 Oxford St, Leederville
Date/Time: 6:30pm Sunday 24 August
Tickets: $25/20
Visit: musicaviva.com.au
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