TCM just aired this and like all the other Hammer films I enjoyed it a great deal. They're not cinematic achievements but they are fun and that's one of film's aspects I really appreciate. I also tend to look at technical aspects and the first thing that struck me is how fake the moustaches looked. The beards looked better but now I wonder. The second, I'm embarrassed to write, was Marjie Lawrence's cleavage which may not be how she would like to be remembered given her extensive body of work. Did they really dress like that in Victorian England? I'd also never seen Angharad Rees before nor had I even heard of her but then I found out this was her first co-starring and second film role and I was intrigued. And, incidentally, that's another thing I like about Hammer: they find and highlight young talent. Anyway lots of good talent here, a lot from TV, presumably because they come cheaper. Some goofs like when Rees begins to sit while her host invites her to do so. But I'm getting technical again. Eric Porter is great. He manages to save the day even skewered by a cavalry sabre. Which brings up another goof: the thing must be five feet long but you can't see the other end sticking out of Porter's body. Good final scene, good score, worth a viewing.
Hands of the Ripper
1971
Action / Horror
Hands of the Ripper
1971
Action / Horror
88%
TOMATOMETER
· 8 reviews
49%
AUDIENCE
· 100 ratings
6.2/10
3.1K
Plot summary
A series of murders occur that mirror those committed by the Whitechapel Ripper. Through his experiments with psychoanalysis Dr Pritchard discovers a deadly violence in one of his young female patients. As he delves into the recesses of her mind he uncovers that Anna is possessed by her dead father's spirit, willing her to commit acts of gruesome savagery over which she has no control. But the most chilling revelation of all is the identity of her father: Jack the Ripper himself.
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July 21, 2014 at 01:08 PM
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the things to notice
Hammer, Jack the Ripper, and More
The infant daughter of Jack the Ripper is witness to the brutal murder of her mother by her father. Fifteen years later she is a troubled young woman (Angharad Rees) who is seemingly possessed by the spirit of her father.
I just finished watching Hammer's "Demons of the Mind" and was rather disappointed, so I decided to watch another Hammer of the same era to wash my palette clean. This was Peter Sasdy's third film for Hammer, following "Taste the Blood of Dracula" (1970) and "Countess Dracula" (1971).
The use of Freudian psychoanalysis (and the illness of "hysteria") is an interesting touch, particularly considering the age Jack the Ripper's daughter would have been. I also particularly like the men's pointy mustaches.
Why do films about killers systematically hunting prostitutes never get old?