Laird Cregar is positively dynamite in the titular role. Virtually every scene he appears in is effectively stolen by his quiet yet confident persona as he brings his twisted character to life. Certain filming techniques and shots are very Noir-esque here and help paint an effective picture of 1880s London.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zr3uRysVZ5w
https://archive.org/details/TheLodger1944

Surprisingly, the quality on Youtube is actually better ..