Stylish, but empty

Rating: 6/10 (13 November 2014)

With lamplights cutting a swath through fog-shrouded streets, 'From Hell' certainly does a good job of creating the grim, dreary atmosphere we'd expect from a Jack the Ripper tale. Where it ultimately fails is in the story itself.
Fictionalizing the characters and events surrounding the White Chapel murders to the point of absurdity, it then delves into an outlandish conspiracy involving everything from the Royal Family to the Freemasons. This only serves to undermine the horrific events, and as a result the movie is never once frightening despite copious amounts of gore. Also absent is the hysteria that gripped White Chapel and sensationalistic press coverage that fueled it.
Though watchable thanks to some fine performances by Depp, Coletrane and Holm, 'From Hell' lacks the tension and scares necessary to make it all that it could have been.