The Lodger (1944)
Directed by John Brahm

WILLIAM FRIEDKIN SAYS: ''There've been many movies about Jack the Ripper, but I think this one's the best. It's not so much about the investigation as it is a possible indication of who this might have been. Laird Cregar is the Lodger, a guy who did not live in the East End of London [where the murders took place] but took rooms there. Because he bore the appearance of a gentleman, he was able to walk the streets looking for prostitutes without being questioned. He'd kill these women for no particular reason. Cregar's performance is so good that you get a sense of a warped mind that otherwise seems to function quite normally when he's not killing. It's absolutely classic.''