The Lodger, published in 1913, is based on the Jack the Ripper murders, it is about a London family who suspects that their upstairs lodger is a mysterious killer known as 'The Avenger'. The novel was the basis for four movie adaptions. The first was the silent film version directed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1927, it was followed by several remakes. The film was remade by Maurice Elvey in 1932, John Brahm in 1944, as ""Man in the Attic"" in 1953, and once again by David Ondaatje in 2009.