Hannibal Lecter, Eat Your Heart Out (a bad pun, but I could not resist).

Rating: 8/10 (17 June 2002)

Well, the Hughes Bros. really have their stuff together in their latest movie, From Hell. When I originally saw the movie at the theaters I gave it a `7'; but not that I have scoped it out on DVD I believe an `8' is more in order for what is surely the new definitive Jack The Ripper movie. The directors (and writers, for that matter) took the least plausible `Ripper Theory' and turned into to something that is very much believable. For what it is worth, as a child, I read up quite a bit on the Whitechapel murders, and although I espouse I different belief in what happened in London in 1888; nevertheless, From Hell, took enough turns to make me second-guess my theory. The imagery in From Hell was top-notch all the way, and while Heather Graham's Irish accent was abysmal (as well as about half of her acting), Johnny Depp was aces, as always. If you ever get a chance to check out the deleted scenes on the DVD release, you will notice that the Hughes Brothers intended the movie to be a bit more seedier then what we saw in the theatrical release. From Hell was pretty dark as it is, nonetheless, I wish they had kept some of the more grittier scenes and thus showed more of the underbelly of 19th Century England. The deleted scenes are fun to watch. For the most part, however, the Hughes Brothers did not pull any punches, and what we see in From Hell really is a parallel to our present day sub-cultures of alcohol, drugs, prostitution, thievery, and basic skullduggery. The Hughes Brothers did their research into the Jack the Ripper mystique more than any other filmmakers to date (and I have seen them all the Ripper movies). Down to the last cobblestone of Mitre Street, and the paint on the buildings-even the way each victim was mutilated, and how they lay in the street-taking every jot and tittle from the original police and forensics reports, this movie makes the grade. I really can't say why I did not give it a higher rating. Something was missing from the flick, but I don't know what. Nevertheless, if you want a good, solid movie, with lots of fiends and villains, history and mystery, you can't go wrong with From Hell.