Man in the Attic (1953)

Director:

Hugo Fregonese

Writers:

Marie Belloc Lowndes (novel)
Barré Lyndon (writer)

Release Date:

23 December 1953 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

The Life...The Loves...The Crimes of Jack the Ripper!

Plot:

London, 1888: on the night of the third Jack the Ripper killing, soft-spoken Mr. Slade, a research pathologist...

Plot Keywords:

Jack The Ripper | Pathologist | River | Period Piece | Doctor

Cast

Jack Palance	...	Slade
Constance Smith	...	Lily Bonner
Byron Palmer	...	Insp. Paul Warwick
Frances Bavier	...	Helen Harley
Rhys Williams	...	William Harley
Sean McClory	...	Constable #1
Leslie Bradley	...	Constable #2
Tita Phillips	...	Daisy (the maid)
Lester Matthews	...	Chief Insp. Melville (as Lester Mathews)
Harry Cording	...	Detective Sgt. Bates
Lisa Daniels	...	Mary Lenihan
Lilian Bond	...	Annie Rowley
Isabel Jewell	...	Katy

Runtime:

82 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

USA:Unrated (DVD) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | West Germany:16 (nf) | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #16755) | Sweden:15

Company:

Panoramic Productions

Quotes:

Slade: Sometimes I walk close by the river. The river is like liquid night flowing peacefully out to infinity.

Movie Connections:

Remake of The Lodger (1944)

Soundtrack:

YOU'RE IN LOVE

Disappointing

Curiously tepid re-telling of the Jack the Ripper legend. Jack Palance certainly looks the part. With his rictus-like face, long lean body, and sinister smile, he's the most unusual of figures. However his Ripper comes across as more neurotic than menacing. As his scenes with Smith suggest, he's emotionally vulnerable, soft-spoken, even with a slight unmasculine lisp and a rampant mother-fixation. Now this is an interesting interpretation of the serial killer. Still and all, it works against Palance's appearance and the menace the role needs. In short, it makes for an interesting psychological profile, but not for the imposing personality that would stir an audience. Palance certainly can't be accused of overplaying the role.

There's also too little of the glistening cobblestone streets and alleyways that create the needed background gloom. Likely the budget didn't allow for much of that atmospheric embroidery. Then too, director Hugo Fregonese does't appear to have a stylish feel for the material, which he films in a pretty straightforward unimaginative manner. What the movie does have is a gorgeous Constance Smith in a lively and compelling performance. Whatever happened to her. With her looks and talent, she should qualified for A-list parts, but her career looks a little mysterious, petering out in Italy in the late 50's.

Anyway, it's a good chance to scope out the early Jack Palance in a performance that unfortunately falls short of his absolutely spine-chilling gunfighter in the classic Western Shane (1953).