Made in 2001 and starring Johnny Depp, Heather Graham, and Ian Holm. The film is based upon the graphic novel of the same name by Alan Moore. It focuses on the notorious Jack the Ripper murders which took place in London’s Whitechapel in 1888.
Jack the Ripper
In 1888’s Whitechapel, the poor live in squalor, with women being forced into prostitution to avoid starvation. One such woman is Mary Kelly (Graham) who works the streets with a small group of other women all of whom spend their time just trying to get by. One of their number, Ann Cook, is kidnapped and soon afterwards another of them, Martha Tabram (Samantha Spiro), is gruesomely murdered. The murder is horrific event by the standards of Whitechapel, and it draws the attention of Police Inspector Frederick Abberline (Depp).
Ann is found in an asylum having been lobotomised, whilst Abberline seems to be the only person who believes that the killer is an educated individual well versed in surgical techniques.
Mary Kelly’s group seem to be the killer’s primary targets and one by one they are hunted down and viciously slaughtered. Abberline struggles to find the killer before he can strike again, but his task is made harder by interference from his superiors and his own addiction to opium.
Grisly Whodunit
The Jack the Ripper murders have received a huge amount of attention both at the time and in later fictions, simply because the identity of the killer was never publicaly known. Over a hundred different suspects have been presented, and conspiracy theories run wild. In From Hell the audience follows both Abberline and Kelly as they attempt to discover the identity of the killer before Jack completes his work. There is a healthy dose of conspiracy thrown in just for good measure which provide the reason for the murders.
It is obvious right from the outset that From Hell is not for the faint hearted or for those without a strong stomach. The murders are very grisly with the special effects being used to create the injuries inflicted upon the victims by the killer. The identity of Jack is kept as secret as possible, however, there are occasions when Jack speaks and so sharp-eared audience members will twig who the killer is. The audience is also full aware of the killer's identity by the end of the proceedings with no mystery left by the time the credits roll.
Acting wise, as usual Johnny Depp is on fine form this time as the opium addicted physic detective who is struggling to find the murderer. The supporting cast are made up of familiar faces including Robbie Coltrane and Jason Flemyng, who also suit their roles as Abberline’s assistant and killer’s stooge respectively.
The Jack the Ripper murders were and are so intriguing because the identity of the killer will ultimately never be known. Television shows, both fiction and documentaries, along with various film adaptations continue because the murders are shrouded in mystery. In From Hell the audience glimpse a wider conspiracy that explains why the murders happened, and why the public will never know the truth about what took place in Whitechapel.
Gruesome whodunit that is well worth a watch.
- From Hell
- Starring Johnny Depp, Heather Graham,Robbie Coltrane,Jason Flemyng and Ian Holm
- Written by Alan Moore (graphic novel), Terry Hayes and Rafael Yglesias (Screenplay)
- Directed by Albert Hughes, Allen Hughes
- Running time: 122 minutes
- 3/5
Christopher Sharman - In 2009 I self-published my first novel entitled The Darkness Saga: The Light (currently available at amazon.co.uk) which has been ...
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