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From Hell (Single-Disc Edition)

From Hell (Single-Disc Edition)

List Price: $14.98
Your Price: $11.24
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Whoa!
Review: All I could say after watching this movie was, whoa. It's extremely intense piece of cinema that keeps you guessing until the end. I wish the ending wouldn't have been so sad but the rest was really good. Johnny Depp excels as Inspector Abberline, bringing with him his fantastic looks and charm. Heather Graham does an absolutely wonderful job and you love her all through the movie. I watched this at my home by myself and I found that is the best way to see it, so you can think about what's happening and it's easier to take the gore when your not hearing people gasp or groan. All in all this was a great movie and I don't think it should have gotten all the bad press that is did.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: A Bloody Mess
Review: What a waste. Jack the Ripper is one of the most gory and horrifying peroids in London's history and a great subject for a movie.

Unfortunately this treatment fails on all levels. Despite a good cast the acting is consistently terrible and even though there are some creepy scenes I felt I was watching an Andrew Lloyd Webber production.

I couldn't tell if this was supposed to be a comedy or a gothic drama or a horror movie. As it turns out it is a bit of all three with some cartoonish aspects thrown in for good luck. After sitting through this rubbish I almost died laughing at the ending. scoody doo, where are you?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: wonderful atmosphere
Review: Half way through this movie I thought "hey, I know this story, I've seen this film before". And I was right, this is a remake of a seventies movie with Michael Caine. And you know what? I didn't care. I still loved 'From Hell'. Because of the wonderful atmosphere of London of the 1880's. Because of the constant solid acting of EVERY actor, from Depp's wonderful Abberline and his Shakespeare-spouting sidekick, to Abberline's superior who-knows-more-than-he's-willing-to-tell to the terrified coachman-of-the-Ripper. But it's Ian Holm that takes the prize. I loved 'The Lord of the Rings', but if I have one gripe about it's that scene where Ian Holm's Bilbo changes fleetly in a Ring-grabbing monster. Well, look at 'From Hell' Peter Jackson, and you'll see that Ian Holm doesn't NEED special effects to change into a monster. The man's such a powerful actor, he can change from a benign dottering old family doctor to an obsessed mad Ripper-from-Hell in SECONDS. Without CGI! Bravo Ian!

Wether I would recommend the movie on video or DVD however... I still think it looks best on the Big Screen.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Scary..atmospheric....well done
Review: Since no one really knows the identity of the Ripper,it is always interesting to see the take authors and directors have on the subject. I found this film to be well-acted, and quite scary.Johnny Depp continues to excel in roles that are unusual,and he seems made for them.The sets are moodily authentic and show the horribly demeaning way women were forced to exist in the poorest section of London. The DVD contains extra material which make the price worthwhile.I recommend this film to all who enjoy a serious mystery and who can handle the necessary gore.(BTW: Another excellent Ripper film is "Murder by Decree," with Christopher Plummer and James Mason as Holmes and Watson.)

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Nice historical piece but bad whodunnit
Review: Since no person currently alive probably knows the true identity of Saucy Jack, it automatically becomes open season for any writer who wants to tell the story. Not that knowing the facts ever gets in the way of the Hollywood version anyway. Even when they have them, it's still a toss-up as to whether they will be used. So if you are going to even attempt watching "From Hell", you have to accept that much of what you'll see is fabrication.

With that in mind, I'll only give away that this slant on the story declares that more than one person had knowledge of who was responsible, and in that case, was also responsible themselves. Believe me, I'm not giving away that much, as it gets a lot more complicated than that. It's as good a guess as anybody's, so I don't fault them for the direction they chose. However, I don't buy it because if it went the direction they chose, the mystery would probably have been solved by now.

However, the movie does have more going for it, although it is far from a great one. A lot of effort was made to give the viewer a feel of what it was like to live in those times. The filthy living conditions of all but the wealthy are covered, although I suspect they were in reality a lot harsher. The plight of hookers at the time (and yes, the term existed then), is covered, even though you have Heather Graham looking much too gorgeous. You see that opium use was practiced, but on the other hand, Johnny Depp is so stoned throughout it, you wonder how he gets any work done. And they cover how anti-Semitism played a big role in the paranoia about the killer.

So good for for one viewing, but not a keeper.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Very Good, Stylish but Not Great
Review: This film just misses being a classic. The effects are fabulous so if effects were all, it would have made it. And Johnny Depp does his usual first class acting job. Some are complaining that his accent wasn't authentic but I could hear and understand every word he said which I probably couldn't have if he'd used a genuine Cockney accent. I think the factor that causes this film to just miss classic status is that the villain is just too far over the top. This weird thing they do to his eyes, for one, is way too offputting. I imagine special lenses were inserted into his eyes for this effect. It is the one effect I could have done without. This is the story of a detective (Depp) on the trail of Jack the Ripper as he murders prostitutes in Victorian England with Jack being the villain of the piece. Heather Graham does a nice job playing one of the prostitutes.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Ripping Good Movie!!
Review: This movie is getting far too much bad publicity! Many people are saying it is senselessly gory, that it lacks a true plot, and that the music lacks intensity. Yes, this is a gory movie, NO, it does not lack plot or motivation. if you were to study the actual case of Jack the Ripper, you will find that this story is very close to what is actually known, minus a few Hollywood tricks of the trade. As far as music goes, this is an awesome, powerful soundtrack. It could be compared to that of Wojciech Kilar's score of Bram Stoker's Dracula.

This is a well directed movie. The Hughes bros. have done a first rate job with costume, setting, and characterization. Johnny Depp is great, as is the rest of this cast. This is a far cry from Menace II Society and American Pimp, and shows that the Hughes bros. have a talent for making good movies in any genre.

This movie is all-around great! The plot is well created and well implemented by the actors. The music flows well from scene to scene. The gore is NOT overdone, in fact, it is meticulous in its delivery, not showing too much, yet not holding back. This needs to be done in order to show the viewer the ferocity in which these murders were executed.

This is a love story, with a sick twist. This is NOT a Halloween style "chop'em up" flick. If you are looking for a gore-fest, rent "Bad Taste", or "Dead Alive." This is an intellectual thriller and deserves a lot better reviews than what it has received thus far. It gives insight to the many questions that were unanswered at the time. I felt that this movie left a lot to the imagination, but then again, didn't Jack the Ripper do the same???

This text refers to the theatrical release

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Johnny Depp Was Here!
Review: One can't help but notice a pattern in films in which Johnny Depp is cast. He's become known for his roles in dark, quirky, eccentric films, in which he plays dark, quirky, eccentric characters.

If you were less than thrilled by any of the other recent films in which Depp has played, you probably won't feel any different about this one. In this film, he plays an opium addicted detective on the trail of the famous London killer. His opium habbit induces visions which bring him ever closr to the killer. (Ooooh! Wieeerd!!!)

Heather Graham plays (surprise!) a hooker with a heart of Gold who becomes a sort of love interest for Depp. As for the killer's identitiy, the film takes a conspiracy theorists point of view. I won't spoil it, but let's just say that its not an unfamiliar scenario, as it involves big wigs who are killing hookers to keep them quiet about a "dark secret."

What's puzzling is the fact that real Brittish actors went along with this film, which is an exercise in "Britain Bashing." The hookers are portrayed not just as victims of a crazed killer, but of a patriarchal, racist, and anti- semitic culture. You can almost hear someone screaming out loud, "Damn those brits to hell!"

At any rate, this is one most people can easily make up their minds about. One need only consider their opinion of Graham and Depp. If you loved 'em in those other flicks, then you'll love 'em in this one too. The reverse is also true, but that goes without saying.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Fictional Trash
Review: I'll be the first to admit that making a movie about Jack the Ripper would be a daunting task. Theories on the identity of who he (or she) actually was range from a complete unknown killer, to a woman, to the royal conspiracy theory, and everything in-between. But this adaptation falls miserably short of exploring any of this and instead concentrates on the royal conspiracy idea. I wasn't expecting a documentary. However, there were over twenty viable suspects in the case and this movie focuses on one idea and would have us to believe it to be written in stone (not even a trailer at the end indicating that it is one of many solutions).

From Hell, the movie, is based on the book of the same name, which is based on the Stephen Knight's 'JACK THE RIPPER: THE FINAL SOLUTION'. It is a fascinating theory but has little merit as far as being factual. For example: contrary to the movie, grape stems were only found at one murder scene (days later, probably not connected to the crime), the victims are portrayed as being friends (there is no evidence that they even knew each other), Abberline was not a drug addict, nor did he die soon after the murders. There are many other 'errors', which I won't elaborate on, but is sufficient to say that this is not an accurate portrayal of actual events.

Enough of the history, on to the movie itself. I have one good thing to say about the movie; the sets for eighteenth century London are very good. Okay, I said ONE good thing. Now the bad. If impersonating directors were a crime, the Hughes brothers would be put away for life. The directing, casting, and editing in this film are awful. It is about two hours long, probably should be closer to three to get every thing in. In fact, the editing makes it feel like a three-hour film with an hour's worth of footage arbitrarily cut out. They do a poor job of introducing the characters and the acting is sub par. I'm a fan of Johnny Depp, but he stumbles through this as if he were actually smoking the opium of his character. Heather Graham as a prostitute is not far fetched :) but in every scene she looks as if she has just had a luxurious bath, picked up her laundry from the cleaners, and maybe had a manicure. Hello! she is a 'whore' in 1888 London. How can you spend so much time/money/effort on the details of the set and miss the obvious things.
In my opinion, the motivation of this film is basically to make a movie, loosely base the storyline on a popular subject, throw in a couple of well known actors, sell it and make some money. If you want a fictional thriller, watch something where the production company doesn't have to pretend to base events on fact. If you're interested in the real facts of the case, read Sugden's 'Complete History of Jack the Ripper' or Rumbelow's 'The Complete Jack the Ripper'. If you're looking for a really good Jack the Ripper movie, sorry, it hasn't been made yet.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This was certainly different....
Review: I've seen a lot of movies on "Jack the Ripper", but this one certainly was different because it was so gorry. Johnny Depp and his co-star was excellent in this film. I was so enrossed in this film., I missed making popcorn or eating any lunch. The scenes in White Chapel took care of my appetite.

One thing that impressed me about this movie is that it was so accurate right down to the cockney accent of the street walkers. Most of the movies based on this character were white washed in some way. More than just the real "Jack the Ripper" was missing.

I only recommend this movie to people with strong stomachs.


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