MovieChat Forums > Le locataire (1976) Discussion > Polanski at his best. Nerve-racking, uns...

Polanski at his best. Nerve-racking, unsettling expereince.


Entire movie is nerve-racking experience. Not exactly frightening but unsettling and leaving us disturbed.

Every time I watch this movie, it makes me think from different angle.

I read some where that it was Roman Polanski's experiment and he did not liked it much. Still I rate this movie more than his other classic works like Rosemary's baby and Repulsion which are also dealing with loneliness and psychological issues.

This film would have been incomplete without Sven Nykvist. This was the first time Sven working with Polanski and he nailed it. This is one the best photography and camera work by him. Use of Jimmy Jib in opening credit scene is astounding and notable. It's single uncut shot where camera moves slowly showing every window in apartment and finally tenant entering as if birth of human being, soul(Tenant) entering in body(Apartment). Marvelous job. Unlike Sven's earlier work with Ingmar Bergman where he has used extreme closeup and bright colors to lit up the actors, here in Tenant he kept the tone dark and shot the sequences in low light, still manages to show every single visual detail of the background.

Regarding screenplay - Though I have yet to read original novel but watching movie, I feel Polanski and Gerard's screenplay must have justified the Roland's novel. Original story is ambiguous and so does the movie script. Every time we watch, we can change our conclusion. It's unclear and confusing. Entire premise of Apartment and tenant is symbolic representation of Body and Soul. Movie mainly deals with Protagonist's paranoia. How his loneliness and weak mind absorb his identity and transform him to psychologically disturbed person. Location plays vital role in his loneliness. And who else knows better than Polanski how to use location and camera.

All actors have played their part very well. It was Polanski's smart move to chose himself as the main character. His face and physical stature fits the role perfectly.

Only single scene which I am yet to understand is Slap of kid ??? May be that shows how much he is disturbed.

If you really like movies dealing with mind game / psychological issues, this one is for you.

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"Only single scene which I am yet to understand is slap of a kid???"

Well, for one thing, look at his terrible TEETH. And the kid's mouth opens up like a big, black hole, much reminiscent of Simone Shoule's when she screams from under the bandages in her hospital bed. But mostly yeah I think it's to showcase - in a typically Polanski'an bizarre manner - that Trelkovsky was just about ready to go over the deep end entirely.



"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan

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Oh that makes sense. Well I saw movie again and I completely agree with you. Good keen observation.

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Not nerve-wracking to me in the slightest. Rosemary's Baby is far more unsettling than this boring tripe.

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I don't think it's his best, but this definitely is a great film. Shelley Winters was great in a supporting role.

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This is quite a demented film, showing a man’s descent into mental instability. I wouldn’t call this a fun film, but it is certainly a well-crafted film. The ambiance is very much like Rosemary’s Bay, Repulsion, Ninth Gate, for obvious reasons (same director!).

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