Jack the Ripper (1958)
A Scotland Yard inspector at his wits end following recent unsolved murders of prostitutes is delighted when an old friend from the New York PD pays him a visit.
Loosely based on Leonard Matters' theory that Jack the Ripper was an avenging doctor who murders prostitutes to avenge the death of his son, the film plays out like a typical 'whodunnit' rather than any in depth study on the Ripper case.
Canadian actor Lee Patterson is imported into this British production by Monty Berman and Robert S. Baker in a bid to appeal to the American market as was regular practice at that time. Patterson is an engaging actor and is easy to root for. The film throws a few well known faces into the mix including Ewan Solon and John Le Mesurier.
Jack the Ripper is well made. Shot in stark black and white, except for one shocking blink and you'll miss it scene at the end, it's suitably eerie. The dank and fog bound London streets are a foreboding place and the whole thing has a chilling Gothic atmosphere, even harking back to the Universal Frankenstein days with the Londoners very quick to form a mob and hunt down anyone they might suspect of the crimes afoot.
The murders themselves aren't very graphic. More often than not a shot of a blade then the victim falls to the ground. Additional scenes of nudity and blood were shot for the French release some of which - the dance hall sequence - aren't of great value, but the few frames of murder footage including blood on breast shots would have upped the films shock value considerably. All these scenes are on the Italian dvd and hopefully have been spruced up and re-inserted into the new Severin blu-ray release.
Jack the Ripper is an enjoyable addition to anyone's fifties horror collection.
|