From Hell

MPAA Rating

R

Theatrical Release Date

May 19, 2001

Genre(s)

• Cops
• Serial Killers
• DTS
• Special Editions
• Family Features

Rating (Stars)

Description

Heavy on atmosphere and light on everything else, From Hell is visually impressive while lacking the depth of the acclaimed graphic novel it's based upon. Making their third feature since 1993's Menace II Society, twins Allen and Albert Hughes approach the Jack the Ripper case with physical precision, re-creating the gritty Whitechapel district of 1888 London in meticulous detail. What they've forgotten is the sheer terror that gripped Whitechapel in the wake of the Ripper's slaying of five prostitutes, investigated here by a Scotland Yard sleuth (Johnny Depp) who uses opium, laudanum, and absinthe to fuel his semiprescient visions of the slayings. Heather Graham attempts a slippery Cockney accent as a would-be victim, while Ian Holm steals the show as a has-been surgeon with devilish delusions of grandeur. Violence is obliquely suggested or briefly graphic, but no matter how you cut it, From Hell is only marginally thrilling as it treads familiar territory. --Jeff Shannon

Director

Albert Hughes/ Allen Hughes

Stars

• Robbie Coltrane
• Johnny Depp
• Heather Graham
• Terence Harvey
• Ian Holm

Running Time

121 minutes

Original Price

$29.98

Current Value

$3.59

DVD Features

• Closed-captioned
• Color
• Dolby
• DTS Surround Sound
• DVD-Video
• Widescreen
• NTSC
• 2.35:1