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Article: Moral outing. (Arts).(motion picture retells story of Jack the Ripper)(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- The Christian Century
- Article date:
- November 7, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 The Christian Century Foundation. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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FROM HELL begins with Jack the Ripper's infamous claim that he gave birth to the 20th century. The prominent position that the filmmakers, Allen and Albert Hughes, give this claim implies that they intend to offer proof of it as the movie's action plays out. Their subversive film takes seriously the idea that the seeds of Auschwitz and the cold war were sown in the bigotry and secretive violence of late Victorian society.
In the opening sequence, the camera pans down a building into the streets of Whitechapel, pausing at windows to look into scenes of squalor. When it reaches the street it pans over prostitutes on the corner and drunks urinating against the walls ...