Hitchcock's 'The Lodger' with live accompaniment, Barbican

On 1 June, the Barbican gives Hitchcock's earliest silent thriller 'The Lodger' a very special showcase: complete with live accompaniment and a programme of shorts. 

For the perfect rainy half-term activity this Sunday, head to the Barbican Cinema, where Alfred Hitchcock’s first silent thriller, The Lodger (1927) will be playing with live accompaniment from the Guildhall School’s extraordinary Electronic Music Studios. 

The film is part of the Anxiety Arts Festival: appropriate, as Hitchcock’s first thriller characteristically runs us ragged with suspense. Based on a story by Marie Belloc Lowndes, ‘The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog’ centres on the household of Mr and Mr Bunting, who suspect that their new lodger is maniacal serial killer ‘The Avenger’. 

Unlike Hollywood thrillers today, this traditional silent thriller is suitable for a younger audience. Rather than relying on blood and gore, Hitchcock builds tension carefully, before releasing it in brilliant moments of art-deco hysteria. Full of blonde show girl types, and shadowy characters the stellar cast, includes the incomparable Ivor Novello (composer, actor, entertainer).  The live accompaniment by the Guildhall School promises to elevate further one of Hitchcock’s earlier works. 

The programme also includes a selection of other short silents, contemporary to The Lodger, directed by Walter Ruttmann and Lotte Reiniger. Seen together, this collection will showcase the vibrancy of the European film scene in the 20s, offering a wonderful overview of cinematic technique and style at that time.