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.

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.