Date: 16. januar 2002 02:11 Newsgroups: alt.movies,alt.politics.clinton Subject: Jack the Ripper movie-plot makes Watergate and Clinton like scandals looks kind of lame Author: Simon Laub -------------------------------------- From Hell, staring Johnny Depp, is a brilliant movie. I certainly enjoyed the poorly lit alleys, hansom cabs and gaslights, the fog, the prostitutes, the homeless and then the unknown assailant, aka. "Jack the Ripper". Out there stalking the dimly lit, fog blanketed streets of Londons East End Whitechapel district. So London 1888 seemed very real to me. I don't know about the story though. As I understand it Chief Inspector Abberline, Johnny Depp, is/was the reallife policeman on the case - and in reality his favorite suspect was one George Chapman, who was hanged in 1903 for poisoning his wife. This seems interesting enough for me - and I would have liked to seen that story explored in a movie. But I see why they went with the prince Albert Victor story. It does have all the ingredience of a tabloid block buster! >i.e. the prince goes to the East End. Here "Prince Eddie" >secretly and illegally married Annie Crook, a Catholic girl. >It was then that the Royal Physician, >William Gull, allegedly became involved and in an attempt >to silence the scandal picked up all possible prostitutes >who had seen the wedding. >Or the prince has syphilis. Where the disease supposedly >caused Eddy to go insane and commit the Whitechapel murders. Both Watergate and Clintons various escapades seems pretty lame in comparison! But whatever the truth of these murders, to me it all boils down to these poorly gas lit alleys in London and the people who lived there. That could hardly be anything but one hell of a story. But ok, story wise I understand why involving the royal connection gives more drama and contrast to the powerty of east London. Still, there is plenty of drama in east London by itself. Which would have been interesting to seen explored further. Still, a brilliant movie which reminds us that the good old days where a lot else than just "good". Simon Laub