Room To Let

2629. ROOM TO LET (1949-England). With JIMMY HANLEY. The scenario of this subtly chilling crime drama opens in turn-of-the-20th-century England. It tells the intriguing story of Mrs. Musgrave, a wheelchair-bound widow who has advertised a room to let in her boarding house, it is rented by an eerie and mysterious character named Fell, who claims to be a doctor. Mrs. Musgrave at first is delighted to have him as her new lodger because he offers her three months’ rent in advance, allowing her to pay off some bills. However, Fell quickly proves to be the strangest of characters. He is eerily quiet and insists on taking his meals alone in his room. He protests the presence of Curley Minter, an ambitious young reporter and longtime family friend who is courting Mrs. Musgrave’s daughter. To Curley’s way of thinking, “Doctor” Fell is exerting a sinister influence on the Musgraves, and he senses that the women are in grave danger. The reporter becomes convinced that Fell is a maniac who had recently escaped from a mental hospital. Notwithstanding, perhaps the lodger is no mere lunatic on the lam. Could he in fact be the notorious Jack the Ripper? The suspense slowly builds to a shattering crescendo in this cleverly plotted and neatly ironic Victorian chiller. 54 minutes. Crime Mystery Suspense