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The Movie: "One day men will say I gave birth to the 20th century." -- Dialogue by Jack the Ripper During a 10 week period in the fall of 1888, the WhiteChapel district of London was the site for the gruesome murders of 5 women. The murders were deemed linked by the authorities at the time as the killer left a trademark on each of their bodies. After the 5th murder Jack the Ripper disappeared into the shadows and was never heard from again. He was never caught, thus the mystery of his identity has never been solved. Over the years that followed and even to this day there have been many theories to who he was. Some authors claim he was a troubled member of the royal family or was a foreigner with a hatred for prostitutes.The fact that there is still doubt over a hundred years later speaks to the magnitude of the event.Hollywood has also capitalized on the events and made countless features, TV movies and TV episodes with Jack the Ripper related story lines. It was through an episode of Disney's children's cartoon "Duck tales" that I was first introduced to Jack albeit in a very toned down matter. The subject matter fascinated me but it would not be until many years later that I would find myself back in his world. Over the summer I began seeing a trailer for a feature film starring Johnny Depp and Heather Graham entitled "From Hell"; it was dark and moody and most of all it dealt with Jack the Ripper. Suddenly my interest was reborn and I counted down the days until the films release. "From Hell" follows the story of opium-addicted inspector Frederick Abberline (Johnny Depp) whose primary asset is the ability to see his victims deaths in his slumber and Mary Kelly (Heather Graham) and a group of her unfortunate friends who work the streets. Mary and her friends are in debt to a slum lord who warns them to pay or they will be harmed. The group of five has been reduced to four as Anne Chapman, also known as Dark Annie, has managed to make a better life for herself by marrying and having a child. Anne often leaves her daughter in Mary's company and does so one day. Anne is never seen again. One night Polly is out working but she fails to return to meet with her friends after work. Her body is found brutally murdered later that night. Inspector Abberline is assigned to the case and the girls meet him at the funeral. He warns that they could be in great danger and that should stay off the streets. Sadly, they don't take his warning seriously and before long another one of their group is murdered. After the death of the second girl, a pattern starts to appear that leads Abberline to believe that the killer may have knowledge in the art of medicine and surgery. He goes to consult the new surgeon but that surgeon won't give him the time of day. Instead, the surgeon's mentor, a Sir William Gull (Ian Holm), offers to help him with the medical side of his investigation. Meanwhile, Mary has decided to help Frederick with the investigation and the two begin to develop feelings for each other. Abberline is still sure that the killer must have knowledge of medicine and surgery but the Police commissioner urges that the investigation focus on butchers or other savage men. The chase is on to stop the mysterious man or men before he can reach Mary, who is marked as his final victim. "From Hell" is directed by Allan and Albert Hughes, who are credited under the name "The Hughes Brothers" and is a vast departure from their previous work. The Hughes Brothers, thus far in their careers, have focused on urban related cinema with 199'3 "Menace II Society" being their debut film. This film however, is set in a time long ago and far away from their native Detroit, but yet still comes across quite well under the two directors. The dark, mysterious, atmospheric tone of the picture is the film's biggest asset. The visual style and flair is jaw dropping. Filmed entirely on location in Prague and the Czech Republic, the film's look is that of a dark and surreal London where there is more darkness then light and you never know who or what could be lurking behind the corner. This is not a beautiful London - in fact, it's quite the opposite. There has been also been some controversy surrounding the violence and gore in the picture. The film has been rated "R" by the MPAA and it does earn that rating for a number of reasons. The story of Jack the Ripper is a dark and somewhat morbid tale that isn't for the kids, and to tell it accurately there is a need for violence and gore. That said, the film does not have as much violence and gore as I was expecting. The death scenes are shot in a very rapid MTV style with quick cutting and flashing lights which, depending on how you look at it, either makes it more or less violent. I tend to think these short bursts of violence are more shocking then longer sequences of sustained violence. It's meant to hit the viewer as a shock and in the case of this viewer it succeeds. Gore is used sparingly but there is a lot of blood in the film. It's not a bloodbath by any means but there is a fair amount of it present on the dead corpses. Apparently footage had to be trimmed from the film to receive the "R" rating and that it was of a even more graphic nature. This footage is rumored to appear on an upcoming DVD edition of the film. The performances in "From Hell" are top notch and they really add to the overall tone and feel of the movie. Johnny Depp, fresh off his role in the George Jung biopic "Blow", appears here as Scotland Yard inspector Abberline. There's no doubting that Depp is a talented actor and his appearance in any motion picture is a welcome addition. His portrayal of an inspector whose mind is enhanced by the drug opium is right on the money, giving off the right vibes to be taken seriously and still be attractive to the ladies. Heather Graham, who isn't someone who you'd expect to appear in a period piece like this, actually really surprised me in her role. Graham brings forth compassion and regrets her place on the streets and dreams of a time when her she can live this life behind to her character. Mary Kelly is an important character in that she's what ties the usual emotionless Abberline into a life where he not only wants to find the killer for work but also to save the girl. Graham is an actress who is a beauty but doesn't always bring a convincing performance to the screen. Her work in Paul Thomas Anderson's "Boogie Nights" still remains my favorite performance of her career but this is a very nice surprise considering what I was expecting. Also noteworthy is that the normally blonde Graham sports lovely red locks for her role. Ian Holm, who will be seen in two of the three upcoming "Lord of the Rings" features, brings a level of complexity to the character of Sir William Gull, an acclaimed surgeon who no longer practices due to a medical condition. Why is he so eager to help Abberline and is he on the level are some of the questions you'll be asking yourself. Robbie Coltrane who is probably best known to American audiences as Zukovsky from two of the last Bond films is on hand to lighten things up a tad with his character Sergeant Peter Godley who is Abberline's immediate superior. Godley cracks a number of jokes surrounding the circumstances and while it may seem a tad out of place you'll be glad that there is at least some humor. Coltrane will also be seen in a larger role in the upcoming "Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone". Despite the ultra cool visual style and the excellent cast the film does run into one major problem which can be best described as a lack of character development. The film doesn't really develop the characters at all. We are always looking at their actions from a distance and can't fully grasp the meanings of their actions. This distance really effects how the film interacts with the viewers. The source for "From Hell" is a graphic novel of the same name by acclaimed writer Alan Moore (The Watchman) and Eddie Campbell. The graphical novel format lends itself to rich imagery the likes of which have been achieved on the screen. The gothic and almost surreal look keep this film cloaked in darkness for the majority of it's 2 hour running time. "From Hell" had the opportunity to be a great film but it falls just short of that marker. The amazing visuals, interesting story line and excellent cast really make this dark, disturbing film worth viewing. The lack of character development keeps the viewer from becoming fully immersed in the material is what really keeps this film from becoming all that it could be. Still, The Hughes Brothers have constructed a dark film with jaw dropping sets and images that is well worth a look. A good film that's just missing that one touch to push it over the top. Recommended. Movie Rating : 8/10 Reviewed October 22 by Mark McLeod |