Review: 'From Hell' Is A Ripping Tale
Hughes Brothers Take On New Ground
'From Hell' (R) 
The legend of Jack the Ripper has been told over and over again in many different ways, so who knew it still had some blood in it?
The Hughes Brothers, Allen and Albert, have taken a well-known tale and twisted the knife into it for a chilling interpretation all their own.
"From Hell" is a big departure for the Hughes, the twin brothers who produce and direct all of their projects. Their previous credits include the well-received "Dead Presidents" and "Menace II Society."
We knew that the Hughes Brothers had talent and a great eye, but "From Hell" proves that they are more than just directors of contemporary urban movies. They can take a period piece, far removed from their area of experience, and create a compelling, exciting experience.
Johnny Depp plays Inspector Abberline, an opium and absinthe-influenced policeman whose prophetic visions lead him on a blood-soaked mission to capture the specter who is killing a specific group of prostitutes which includes Mary Kelly (Heather Graham).
As each attack becomes more and more gruesome, Abberline is drawn into a dangerous world of secret physician societies, the cruelty of the haves and have-nots and the fact that the monarchy must be protected at all costs.
The directors throw the audience into the seamy London streets along with the doomed characters and never once make a nod to their contemporary inclinations. The only clue to the Hughes Brothers' previous films is the fast cut editing in the inspector's opium-induced visions where he sees flashes of murders to come in hideous and heightened detail.
In the same style as Hitchcock, the audience's view of the murders start off with brief glimpses of the violence, using only a glint of light off a knife as we hear it enter the poor woman's body. But with each new murder, the gruesome nature of the murders is slowly revealed until they put the carnage in plain view.
As we have come to expect from him, Depp disappears into the role of the flawed and dogged detective. We can see his intelligence, but also see what a burden he bears from his knowledge of things to come. Graham makes a lovely Mary Kelly, but instead of using an Irish accent, she tries for an English accent, which detracts from her believability. She also is not nearly as grimy and world-weary as her fellow prostitutes, so it is hard to see her really being part of their world.
It is not happy tale, but it is a tale well-told. "From Hell" is a stunningly photographed picture of one man's descent into madness and shows the Hughes Brothers in a whole new light.
The legend of Jack the Ripper has been told over and over again in many different ways, so who knew it still had some blood in it?
The Hughes Brothers, Allen and Albert, have taken a well-known tale and twisted the knife into it for a chilling interpretation all their own.
"From Hell" is a big departure for the Hughes, the twin brothers who produce and direct all of their projects. Their previous credits include the well-received "Dead Presidents" and "Menace II Society."
We knew that the Hughes Brothers had talent and a great eye, but "From Hell" proves that they are more than just directors of contemporary urban movies. They can take a period piece, far removed from their area of experience, and create a compelling, exciting experience.
Johnny Depp plays Inspector Abberline, an opium and absinthe-influenced policeman whose prophetic visions lead him on a blood-soaked mission to capture the specter who is killing a specific group of prostitutes which includes Mary Kelly (Heather Graham).
As each attack becomes more and more gruesome, Abberline is drawn into a dangerous world of secret physician societies, the cruelty of the haves and have-nots and the fact that the monarchy must be protected at all costs.
The directors throw the audience into the seamy London streets along with the doomed characters and never once make a nod to their contemporary inclinations. The only clue to the Hughes Brothers' previous films is the fast cut editing in the inspector's opium-induced visions where he sees flashes of murders to come in hideous and heightened detail.
In the same style as Hitchcock, the audience's view of the murders start off with brief glimpses of the violence, using only a glint of light off a knife as we hear it enter the poor woman's body. But with each new murder, the gruesome nature of the murders is slowly revealed until they put the carnage in plain view.
As we have come to expect from him, Depp disappears into the role of the flawed and dogged detective. We can see his intelligence, but also see what a burden he bears from his knowledge of things to come. Graham makes a lovely Mary Kelly, but instead of using an Irish accent, she tries for an English accent, which detracts from her believability. She also is not nearly as grimy and world-weary as her fellow prostitutes, so it is hard to see her really being part of their world.
It is not happy tale, but it is a tale well-told. "From Hell" is a stunningly photographed picture of one man's descent into madness and shows the Hughes Brothers in a whole new light.Copyright 2001 by Lifewhile.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
