Other Jack The Ripper Films & Shows (1961–2017)

 Thriller: Season 1, Episode 28: Yours Truly, Jack The Ripper (1961)

B&W – 60m
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 – Fullscreen
Story: Yours Truly, Jack The Ripper by Robert Bloch
Adaptation By: Barre Lyndon
Prod.: William Frye
Dir.: Ray Milland
Starring: Boris Karloff, John Williams, Donald Woods, Edmon Ryan, Ottola Nesmith, Adam Williams, Nancy Valentine, Sam Gilman, Gloria Blondell and J. Pat O’Malley.
Music By: Jerry Goldsmith

70 years after the Jack The Ripper killings in London, Sir Guy convinces the police that Jack The Ripper may still be alive, eternally young, and still killing, currently in New York City. Smart and spooky rendering of the tale of Jack The Ripper. While the gory sensationalism of the later Ripper film and television outings is absent, the atmosphere and tension of “Who is Jack The Ripper,” is present and makes this a must watch. Milland handled the directorial work splendidly and the actors are capable. Karloff, “The Gentle Monster”, intros this tale of suspense with his soothing voice very nicely. He was the perfect host for this show. 

Trivia: The director of this episode of Thriller, Ray Milland starred in Sir Alfred Hitchcock’s Dial M For Murder with actor John Williams. The story’s author Robert Bloch is the same man who wrote the novel Psycho (1960) was based on. He subsequently wrote sequels to Psycho and a Jack The Ripper novel, after this short story, titled: Night Of The Ripper.

Out Of Print on DVD but Available on YouTube and Digital Copy

Time After Time (1979)

C – 112m
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 / 2.39:1 – Widescreen (Theatrical Ratio) / 2.40:1 – Widescreen (Blu–ray Ratio)
Story: Time After Time by Karl Alexander and Steve Hayes
Screenplay By: Nicholas Meyer
Dir.: Nicholas Meyer
Starring: Malcolm McDowell, David Warner, Mary Steenburgen, Michael Evans, John Colton, Corey Feldman, Neil Armstrong (archival sound), Sir Winston Churchill (archival sound), Jimi Hendrix (archival footage), John F. Kennedy (archival sound), Douglas MacArthur (archival sound), Edward R. Murrow (archival sound), Franklin D. Roosevelt (archival sound).

H.G. Welles chases Jack The Ripper through time to the 20th Century when the serial murderer uses the future writer’s time machine to escape his own time. Smart and literate Sci–fi yarn pits H.G. Welles brilliantly against Jack The Ripper. This premise has spawned several books over the years and a failed TV show in 2017 (see review below). A cult classic like this is stylish though somewhat average. Worth watching over the failed show with the same title though!   

Trivia: Malcolm McDowell and Mary Steenburgen met and fell in love while making this film. They were subsequently married from September 29, 1980 – October 1, 1990. Screenwriter – director Nicholas Meyer chose not to let them meet before they filmed the scene where they meet in order to keep their reaction fresh for the take. Malcolm McDowell listened to recordings of H.G. Welles to prep for his role as Welles. The real Welles’ voice was high and croaky according to McDowell, hence he chose not to imitate it. All four of H.G. Welles’ children were still alive when this film was released. A deleted scene had H.G. Welles meeting a punk on a bus who was playing loud music on a boom–box. The premise of the scene was later used in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), which was also co–written and directed by Nicholas Meyer. In the chase scenes at the hotel David Warner had a stunt double as he was recovering from two broken ankles at the time. In the close–ups you can see him running gingerly so as to not hurt himself. This was Corey Feldman’s film debut. Reportedly, Nicholas Meyer originally wanted Edward Fox as The Ripper; then he considered Mick Jagger as The Ripper but just couldn’t see him in the role. The studio wanted Sally Field for the role that went to Mary Steenburgen. This was the second Jack The Ripper film of 1979, the other was: Murder My Decree (1979) (see review in another entry).

Rated: [PG]
Out Of Print on Laserdisc Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy through The Warner Archive Collection 

Jack’s Back (1988)

C – 97m
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 – Widescreen
A.K.A.: A Knife To Kill, The Ripper, Red Rain
Writer – Dir.: Rowdy Herrington
Starring: James Spader, Cynthia Gibb, Jim Haynie, Robert Picardo, Rod Loomis and Chris Mulkey.

A serial killer in Los Angeles, California celebrates Jack The Ripper’s 100th birthday (anniversary) by committing similar murders and only one person has a chance at stopping him. This reviewer will resist the urge to make cutting remarks about this film. However the film does have a slow pace, iffy acting and a script that never builds suspense. It plays like a television movie, at best. Still, James Spader does his best with the lackluster material. As noted in the description of the film, the “birthday” of Jack The Ripper is actually the anniversary of his killings. This reviewer does not know many babies with surgical skills. 

Trivia: Director Harrington wanted the title to be: Red Rain, and to have Peter Gabriel’s song play over the opening credits. Due to budget restraints, he couldn’t get the rights to the song. So he had Paul Saax compose: “Red Harvest”. At the last minute the studio decided Red Rain had nothing to do with the film and changed the title to Jack’s Back.

Rated: [R]
Out Of Print on VHS & Laserdisc but Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy

The Ripper (1997)

C – 96m
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 – Widescreen
A.K.A.: Ripper
Written By: Robert Rodat
Exec. Prod.: Mark Gordon
Dir.: Janet Meyers
Starring: Patrick Bergin, Gabrielle Anwar, Samuel West, Michael York, Essie Davis, Karen Davitt and Josephine Keen.

The tale of Jack The Ripper and the lives of the people around him. “…Someone’s sneakin’, ‘round the corner...” A typical Jack The Ripper tale is boosted by the approach of focusing on the royal family rather than the victims. While this is a 1990’s television movie, it has the quality of an indie film sleeper hit. There are some factual errors as with any Ripper film / show. This is more of a drama than a mystery but the suspense still builds making it a good thriller.

Trivia: Samuel West previously played Prince Albert Victor Edward as a young child in: Edward The King (1975), in which his father, Timothy West, played the title role.

Rated: [R] – Violence & Sexuality
Out Of Print on VHS and not available on YouTube or Digital Copy, though it occasionally runs on TV 

Ripper (2001)

C – 114m
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 – Widescreen
A.K.A.: Ripper: Letter From Hell
Story By: John A Curtis and Evan Tylor
Screenplay By: Pat Bermel and Neil Bermel
Exec. Prod. – Prod.: John A Curtis (as John Cutis)
Dir.: John Eyres
Starring: A.J. Cook, Bruce Payne, Ryan Northcott, Derek Hamilton, Daniella Evangelista, Emmanuelle Vaugier, Kelly Brook and Bruce Pinard.

A massacre survivor studies serial killers under a famous expert, but her classmates soon start dying at the hands of a Jack The Ripper copycat. Excesses of excesses hamper this otherwise okay gory chiller. Followed by a sequel: Ripper 2: Letter From Within (2004).

Rated: [R] – Violence / Gore, Sexuality & Language
Available on DVD & Digital Copy 

Ripper 2: Letter From Within (2004)

C – 85m (Uncut) 89m (DVD)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 – Widescreen
Story By: Evan Tylor, Jonas Quastel, and John A. Curtis
Screenplay By: Jonas Quastel and John Sheppard
Additional Screenplay By: Pat Bermel and Neil Bermel
Exec. Prod.: John A. Curtis
Dir.: Jonas Quastel and Lloyd A. Simandl
Starring: Erin Karpluk and Richard Bremmer

When Ripper Murders start occurring to a haunted mental patient who survived the first film, time will tell who the killer is. A killer is on the loose in the nut house plot works rather well here. Better pacing than the first film and more of a coherent story make this superior to its predecessor. 

Rated: [R] – Strong Sexual Content, Violence & Language
Available on DVD & Digital Copy 

Ripper Street: The Complete Series (2012 – 2017)

C – 59m. Per Episode
Aspect Ratio: 16X9 / 1.78:1 – Widescreen
Dir.: Various. Writers: Various.

Starring: Matthew Macfadyen, Adam Rothenberg, MyAnna Buring, Jerome Flynn, David Wilmot, Charlene McKenna, David Dawson, Anna Burnett, Clive Russell and others.

The crimes of Jack The Ripper, and some of the other criminals, on the streets around the time of the Ripper killings, as they relate to Inspector Reid and company. Excellent telling of The Ripper tale bookending a series of crimes committed by thugs, rapists, murderers, and sometimes even the police force. Not one false note in this series. Although the episode count is low, the body count is high and the production is vivid. A must for Ripperphiles and fans of period piece films and shows! Be forewarned: This is NOT for the squeamish. Disclaimer: This reviewer is a self-taught Ripperphile and therefore holds some prejudice in favor of this show and others like it.     

Trivia: BBC 1 and BBC America decided to cancel the show in 2013 after two seasons. Amazon.com picked up the show and aired it on their streaming service and on BBC 1 and BBC America. That stint ran three additional seasons; totaling five seasons and 36 episodes. This show was filmed primarily in the U.K. and England.

Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy.

Time After Time: The Complete Series (2017)

C – 552m
Writers: Various
Novelization: Time After Time by Karl Alexander
Dir.s: Various
Starring: Freddie Stroma and Josh Bowman.

H.G. Welles takes his time machine through time to chase Jack The Rippers and other notable Troubledoers. This abysmal attempt to bring the Nicholas Meyer cult classic to the small screen for the modern audience should be avoided at all cost. By that this reviewer means: don’t spend money to see it! The acting resembles Charlie McCarthy sans humor and the story is stretched beyond reason. What is left is 552 minutes of agony for anyone that has good will towards the 1979 cult classic film, from which this abomination is derived. Weirdly the television show: Sleepy Hollow (2013–2017), derived from the 1999 Tim Burton film, succeeds where this one failed, in this reviewer’s opinion. Others may think differently on these points of course. But in the interest of saving people time after time, don’t bother with this one!

Available on Digital Copy

The Raven Films (1935-2012)

The Raven (1935)

B&W – 61m
Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1 – Fullscreen
Title Poem by Edgar Allen Poe. Dir.: Lew Landers (Louis Friedlander).
Starring: Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Lester Matthews, Irene Ware, Samuel S. Hinds & Ian Wolfe.

A brilliant Surgeon (Lugosi) obsessed with the works of Edgar Allen Poe (particularly the title poem) saves the life of a beautiful dancer (Ware) but goes mad when he can’t be her man. To help him with his revenge scheme he enslaves a criminal on the run who he gave a purposefully botched facial surgery to (Karloff). Universal Studios has branded this a, “horror,” film. It may have been horror at the time of it’s release but now would pass as a thriller. To those who can still appreciate it for what it was when it was released, it is still horror. To those who are expecting a 1970’s or forward depiction of horror, this will come off as a light thriller that is slightly melodramatic. If you can keep an open mind though, there are a few places in this film where you may have to remind yourself to breath. 

Note: Boris Karloff would go on to be in another same–titled movie that had little to do with the classic Poe poem. In that film he is teamed with Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Hazel Court, Olive Sturgess and Jack Nicholson. It is directed by Roger Corman with a script by Richard Matheson.  

Out Of Print on VHS and Laserdisc but currently on DVD

The Raven (1963)

C. – 86m
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 – Widescreen  
Dir.: Roger Corman. Screenplay by Richard Matheson. Title Poem by Edgar Allen Poe.
Starring: Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Boris Karloff, Hazel Court, Olive Sturgess and Jack Nicholson.

Price, Lorre and Karloff are…well…priceless as three sorcerers. Lorre is a riot as a drunk who can’t keep his mouth shut and keeps being turned into a raven (hence the title). Price is the sorcerer who helps him regain human form, even if it is just temporarily. Karloff is aiming to be head sorcerer with the sexual aid of Price’s, “late,” wife Lenore, Court. Nicholson brings up the romantic rear as the son that Lorre wishes he never had. It may be a small part but Nicholson makes the most of it. Great costumes, sets, a witty script and a talented cast make this breezy film enjoyable. This is more of a comedy than anything else.

Four points of note: 1.) Price recites the first couple of stanzas of Poe’s classic poem and acts out a very loose rendering of the next few in the opening scenes. 2.) Vincent Price, Peter Lorre and Boris Karloff did an LP album recording of each of them reading the Poe poem, from which the film gets its title. The three separate recordings were all edited together and released, in the aforementioned format, as a promotional gimmick for this film. 3.) This film is the 2nd film that Boris Karloff did that bore the title of the classic Poe poem but was only, “inspired by” it. Previously he was in another unrelated plotted version with Bela Lugosi, Lester Matthews, Irene Ware, Samuel S. Hinds and Ian Wolfe. 4.) There are stills available online, in books and on the DVD and Blu-ray releases of this film that have Price, Lorre and Karloff seated around a fire toasting marshmallows and smiling. These apparently come from a deleted scene that was never completely shot because the aforementioned trio kept cracking up and ruining the takes. Johnny Carson made reference to this in an interview he did with Price on The Tonight Show. Carson claimed to have seen the blooper reel of that scene at some party he attended. Sadly, if it does exist, it has not been made available to the public in any form – purchasable or otherwise (YouTube). A shame. The film is still watchable, forevermore. 

Out Of Print on VHS and Laserdisc, but available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy.

The Raven (2006)

C. – 81m
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 – Fullscreen  
Title Poem by Edgar Allen Poe. No Name Cast

This is an alleged “thriller.” To say that this was, “inspired by,” Poe’s classic title poem is to be generous. To say that someone starred in this would be a dubious honor. To say that this resembles the far superior 2012 film would be blasphemous. What is left is a muddled visual telling of someone who clearly became obsessed with the Poe poem and dreamt of meeting him one too many times. There is violence at play here if you would care to fast-forward to it, otherwise nothing comes of this film. Nevermore!

Rated: [R] – Bloody Violence Throughout, Nudity & Sexual Content, Brief Language & Drug Use. 
On DVD only; thankfully… And even that thankful point is questionable.

 

The Raven (2012)

C. – 110m
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 – Widescreen
Title Poem by Edgar Allen Poe…
Starring: John Cusack, Luke Evans, Alice Eve, Brendan Gleeson, Kevin McNally.

Edgar Allen Poe was reportedly alone and delusional when he died. The premise of this film is that Poe is recruited by the police to solve a series of murders inspired by his dark stories. Originally Ewan McGregor was cast as Poe and Jeremy Renner as Inspector Emmet Fields but they dropped out. They were replaced by Cusack as Poe and Evans as Fields. A good thing they were because Cusack and the rest of the cast are exceptional in their roles. For any fan of historical fiction mysteries, this is a must!

Additional Trivia: The film is set in Baltimore, MD, USA but was filmed in Hungary and Serbia with mostly a British cast. Cusack is the lone American in the lead cast. Sylvester Stallone tried to get another Poe bio–pic made with Robert Downey, Jr as Poe but it fell apart. The first trailer for the film was released on October 7, 2011 – exactly 162 years to the day after Edgar Allen Poe’s mysterious death. It is also interesting to note that since the film’s theatrical release, the annual mysterious cloaked visitor to Poe’s grave who would leave a shot of Cognac and a flower has ceased. Dare I say?: “Nevermore.” The film is watchable forevermore. 

Rated: [R] – Bloody Violence & Grisly Images.
On Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy.