From Hell: Engraved In Stone

This was a very strong edit of From Hell. Compared with the original, this is a much grittier, more somber and (dare I say) "Victorian" rendering. The black and white plays beautifully, with some particularly striking city-scapes really selling the environment.

The music plays more strongly, too, with greater resonance.

A couple (small) nitpicks:
1. The name "Jack the Ripper" comes out of nowhere; at first multiple names play out in the public's musings. Then, suddenly, we are talking about Jack with no introduction. This may have been a flaw in the source material - I forget. But it jars.

2. The last murder I believe is a mirrored shot from the original. This is slightly frustrating, as the historical photos of this murder show the lady to have been lying head-right rather than head-left as here. Also an inspector later comments that her *left* arm is draped over her stomach, but last we saw her it was clearly her right arm. I suspect the Editor flipped this scene for aesthetic reasons, and it will probably slip by most. As someone who has been fascinated by the Ripper story in the past, I noticed ;)

3. Skyled noted below that the film in general has a palpable lack of suspense. We aren't really invested in any of the characters, and since Depp is not really ever in any direct danger it plays a bit weakly. This is not TM2YC's fault at all: the film (possibly even the original comic?) suffers from playing to certain beats we know are coming: we know the prostitutes will all be murdered - the only question is when. A stronger script might have overcome that, but alas they missed their opportunity. I think this edit improves on the original's mood vastly, but one will still be relatively unconnected to the characters.


Overall a very strong edit. Unfortunately the original material is still weak enough that this is simply an "enjoyable" film rather than a truly "good" or "great" one. That being said, this is much more artistically bold than the original.

The change to a deep black and white is very striking and fits the mood of the film perfectly. It looks great and gives the film a visual sense of creeping dread. I especially like how dark it was when the woman was grabbed from the shadows and disappears into them. The darker deleted scenes also aid the film in feeling darker and less like a typical Hollywood film.

However, these changes cannot overcome the fundamental flaws that the movie has. This should be a dark and disturbing movie with a low budget and no-name actors to justify its poor box office prospects. Instead there are big name actors so of course the movie has to have Johnny Depp doing his standard eccentric performance and the cliche of the prostitute with the heart of gold. It can't be too disturbing either and there has to be a happy ending. TM2YC succeeds in cutting down the eccentricities, removed the happy ending, and made the mood darker so it's a definite improvement. But the big problem I still have with the movie is that it's rather boring. Mostly we just wait until one of the prostitutes is killed and then Johnny Depp strolls up and says there's a mad doctor on the loose. Since Jack the Ripper's identity is a mystery for most of the movie we either follow the prostitutes which are uninteresting and mostly just drink and bicker or we follow Johnny as he does not very interesting detective work. There's not really much suspense as it's mostly just people wandering down dark cobblestone streets and occasionally dying.

In conclusion, this edit is far superior to the original and has a bold look, but some things just can't be fixed through editing. Based off how well the changes were made and what a difference they make, I recommend the edit on the chance others will enjoy it more than I did.

i didnt think i would like the black and white but after watching the edit i loved it and think the movie should have been released that way in the 1st place.great job with this edit done by TM2YC and thanks for your time and effort i really enjoyed watching this

Brilliant edit. The black and white conversion works like a gem. Reminded me of the gothic atmosphere of David Lynch's The Elephant Man. The original film couldn't figured out whether it was a thriller, a satire or a supernatural flick. TM2YC has given this film a solid personality. Now we can indulge in all the darkness, the innate evil characters and the social satire without the distractions. The removal of the lighter storylines and the inclusion of the darker deleted scenes results in a more focused film. Highly recommended.

Just finished watching this last night.
Very, very fine work.
Audio and video editing appeared seamless. No oddball scene jumps, no sudden shifts of audio levels.

The overall tone of this edit was grim, more so than the original, which I believe was by intent.
The "look" was more grindhouse than films meant to be that way.
The film was dark. I mean that literally, the look was very dark with lots of blacks, grays, shadows, and little white. The black seemed to deepen as the film / narrative progressed. By the end my eyes were fatigued. When I rewatch this, I will undoubtedly increase the Brightness on my monitor. Just a comment.

Nice bit of removal during closing credits. Marilyn Manson was completely inappropriate. Antony & The Johnsons was a nice choice, though perhaps a trifle obscure for the average listener. The Smiths, less so. Still welcome adds.
Overall, a great edit, one I think a lot of members will appreciate.