Ripper!

Rating: 8/10 (16 February 2014)

Legendary bewhiskered comic creator Alan Moore has famously distanced himself from all cinematic adaptations of his work, never happy with the end results. It's a pattern that started in 2001 with From Hell, a speculative account of the infamous Jack The Ripper case, directed by The Hughes Brothers and starring Johnny Depp and Heather Graham. In bringing the graphic novel to life, alterations were made by the film-makers to both characters and plot—changes that were substantial enough to incur the wrath of Mr. Moore.
However, while I can fully appreciate how Moore feels (no artist likes to have their work messed around with), I believe that the film is still a very accomplished and entertaining piece that more than warrants merit. A wonderfully realised, bold and bloody take on an oft-told tale, From Hell benefits from confident direction, great production values, and solid performances from a terrific cast, with Hollywood stars Depp and Graham both taking a good stab (pun intended) at the London accent (while they're not perfect, they're more than serviceable) while Robbie Coltrane, Ian Holm, Jason Flemyng and a whole raft of other talented players do their utmost to ensure an authentic East End flavour overall.
The plot, although heavily revised, holds together very nicely and remains utterly fascinating, pointing the finger of suspicion at both the Freemasons and the Royal Family, making the whole thing a blast for conspiracy theorists and republicans alike. To Moore, I say 'so what if this isn't exactly what you had in mind—at least it's not as bad as what Snyder did to 300'.