Whats the best JtR movie?

[Abby Normal]

and/or the most accurate?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

[Phil H]

A few quick thoughts:

Simply seeing a trailer of the 1959 (Hammeresque) offering (Jack the Ripper) scared the hell out of me as a lad of about 10. It was that that intrigued me as to WHo jack was. (In the early 1960s it was even conceivable - at least to my innocent mind - that he might still have been alive!)

When I eventually saw the whole film much later (c1980s I guess0 I was hugely disappointed. Same for A Study in Terror which came out when i was too young to be able to see it.

I rate the Michael Caine TV mini-series from 1988 highly for its design and pre-production (look at the reconstructions of the Buck Row cottages and other murder scenes). Hugh Fraser as warren is supposed to have worn Warren's own dress tunic in one scene.

But the eventual denouement is an anti-climax (and from internal evidence, I suspect NOT the one originally planned - they filmed 4).

I'd suggest that my favourite is probably "Murder by Decree" (Plummer/Mason) although I disagree totally with the conspiracy theory I think the mood, performances and handling the best I have seen of its kind.

I have just purchased the 1973 TV series with Barlow and Watt as a result of the advert on this site, and have watched the first two episodes. I have not seen any of it in over 35 years. It wears well and despite new evidence having emerged - it holds up MUCH better than i had anticipated. OK its dated, but i commend it to those who do not have it.

Phil

[JosephDurham]

Having seen three Jack the Ripper films, I think that "From Hell" is the best. And no, I am not a Johnny Depp fan.

Joseph

[bolo]

Hello Abby, all,

I've seen the 1976 Jack the Ripper with Klaus Kinski, the 1988 TV miniseries with Michael Caine, Murder by Decree, From Hell and a few B-movie productions with "Ripper" in the title.

Most of them are more or less enjoyable but also historically inaccurate, except for a few crime scene sets and costumes here and there. My favorites of the lot are Murder by Decree and the BBC miniseries with Caine, at least in terms of entertainment value.

Other than that, I have yet to see a Ripper movie that tries to stick to the facts as closely as possible.

Regards,

Boris

[belinda]

There really aren't any accurate Jack The Ripper movies.

There are some good Ripperesque ones though

Murder By Decree
Jack The Ripper (Caine 1988)
Study In terror
Time After Time


Great user name

[Abby Normal]

Thanks all!

i am going to have to check out Caine 88 and Murder by Decree

[sdreid]

I believe I've seen all that have been mentioned so far and wouldn't call any of them bad although some are mediocre.

Some good watches, my view, that haven't been mentioned yet:

Pandora's Box (1929)

Phantom Fiend (1932)

The Lodger (1944)

[belinda]

The original silent Alfred Hitchcock version of The Lodger is one really worth seeing too.

[sdreid]

I have that one Belinda and plan to rewatch it next week.

One I want to see but haven't - Room to Let.

[Jane Coram]

Hi,

I agree totally with Phil H. I think that the sets in the Michael Caine Jack the Ripper were superb, and the actual reconstructions of the murder sites were so good that they really couldn't have been bettered. Other than that a fair bit of hokum as long as you forget you know anything about Jack the Ripper.

Murder by Decree was certainly the best overall as a film -- again if you forget it's about Jack the Ripper and just take it as a Sherlock Holmes offering. I just love the interaction between Plummer and Mason, especially the pea incident, and how poor old Watson deals with the amorous prostitute. A sheer delight.

Time after Time, I love because it's just daft and well executed.

A Study in Terror was hilariously awful.

And Johnny Depp's scrummy. That deals with From Hell nicely.

Hugs

Janie

xxxx

[bolo]

Jane,

some sets in the Caine movie are really very good while others aren't all that great, like Mary Kelly's room, which seems to be a constant problem for Ripper movie makers, none of them got it right so far as far as I remember.

From Hell I found genuinely awful at first, now I like it as a spine-chiller but still rate it as a major step back in ripperological terms. Depp as Abberline is a miscast in my opinion. I like his work, don't get me wrong, but he simply does not come across as a credible LVP inspector.

Regards,

Boris

[Phil H]

Jane, it's wonderful to see you still on Casebook. We interacted about five years ago, and i still treasure your reconstruction of the face of MJK - superb!

Do you still do your incomparable art-work?

Lovely to see you well, Warmest,

phil