Movie Review: Man in the Attic (1953)

Synopsis: In 1888 London, Helen Harley agrees to rent her attic to Mr. Slade, a research pathologist who comes to her door unannounced. Slade is a reliable renter and seems to be developing a romantic interest in Helen's niece, Lily. However, he has some eccentric traits that make Helen suspect Mr. Slade might actually be the notorious serial killer, Jack the Ripper.

Who's in it? The movie stars Jack Palance, Constance Smith, Frances Bavier, Byron Palmer and Rhys Williams.

Review: I came across Man in the Attic on Amazon Prime Video last night and since was a movie I had been wanting to watch, I quickly added it to my list. I wound up watching it this morning before heading into the office and it turned out to be an entertaining film.

Helen (Bavier) was a character that reminded me a lot of Aunt Bee from The Andy Griffith Show, and not just because she was played by the same actress. She had a quirky way about her, which made it hard to take her premonitions and deductions seriously, even when they did make some sense. As a result, it was difficult to tell if she was correct about Mr. Slade (Palance) or it was just an overactive imagination. 

Palance played his role brilliantly as well. From the moment he started turning around portraits in his room "because he didn't like being watched," it was clear there was something a bit off about him. Plus, when he went out of his way to keep Helen from knowing if he was left-handed and started burning some of his possessions, it was enough to draw some suspicion on him without giving a definitive answer about whether or not he was a murderer. There were times when it seemed as though he was even toying with his landlord.

At the same time, there was also plenty of reason to think he was being unjustly accused. This was especially true when his backstory about being a pathologist that worked late at night being accurate, giving him an alibi and a character witness.

I was a bit undecided about the addition of Lily (Smith) at first. The interactions between him and Helen were the main part of the movie and I was concerned this part of the plot would sidetrack the film from that. However, it did add an intriguing element because it was unclear if it was a budding romance or if Lily was going to be his next intended victim. At minimum, she was a bit of a wildcard because it was unclear if she would start suspecting him too or if her love would blind her to the evidence against him, even as he became more enigmatic.

The ending was a bit unexpected, which I'll consider a plus. It offered both a solid conclusion to the film while still leaving enough loose ends to keep a few doubts about Mr. Slade's guilt/innocence. Considering Jack the Ripper's identity remains a mystery even today, I couldn't have thought of a better way to end it.

Final Opinion: This is a good movie with a great cast of characters. I enjoyed watching it and would recommend it.

My Grade: A