fwdixon This is a not that bad Hammer horror idea dragged down by the dull dialog and deathly slow pacing. The idea itself is a pretty good one, have Jack the Ripper beget another little ripperette, who proves lethal to those unfortunate enough to kiss her. Several bloody killings, prostitutes, and a whispering gallery all contribute to this 4 Star production, making it somewhat less of a snooze-fest than it otherwise would be.

trashgang Not bad at all, I lust say, even as it is on low standards for the tile being. But back then this must be a gory flick. All based on the Jack The Ripper case but pure fiction. Jack has a daughter and she does see Jack killing her mother. A doctor takes the daughter in his house to study her about doing weird stuff.Of course you know where this is going. For a Hammer production this one is made before Hammer did put in a lot of nudity. And even on part of the flick itself it sin't a Gothic story like we've seen from Hammer. It's just an underestimated flick.It wasn't boring at any moment and when killings take place it all looks creepy due the use of the camera. For geeks of Hammer it's a must see and for old school horror fans too but if you want to see a typical Hammer then this isn't going to satisfy you. Excellent acting, good story and well done effects.Gore 1/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 2,5/5 Story 2,5/5 Comedy 0/5

LeonLouisRicci Way before Jason or Michael Sliced and Diced, this Gory Horror from Hammer's Late Period Set a Template and in a Lot of Ways other Films Noticed and Borrowed from Hammer.Upping the Violent and Blood Quota for the New Decade of the Seventies, Hammer uses Little Restraint here and even includes Needle to the Eye Nastiness that "Dr. Frederic Wertham" in His Exploitative "Science" Book Attacking Comics, "Seduction of the Innocent" seemed to Find Great Pleasure in Presenting while at the same time Feigning Revoltion from the Depiction.For the most part the Twist on "Jack the Ripper" Works Well, but some more Picky Fans might Find it a bit Repetitious. The Weakest Scenes in the Film is when a Medium or Psychic Channels minute Details about The Ripper's Daughter's Childhood. It Stretches to the Breaking Point even the Best "Sensitive" Abilities.Overall, it is a Good Looking Film as usual for the always Visually Interesting Hammer Studios and is one of the most Violent in its Catalog. The Beginning and Ending Scenes are quite Effective in Starting and Concluding this Lurid Tale of Psychological Mumbo-Jumbo and Victorian Hypocrisy.

James Hitchcock The sceptic-who-is-proved-wrong is a familiar figure in horror films. As soon as we hear the words "I don't believe in ghosts/witches/vampires/whatever" we know that retribution is lurking just around the corner. In some films this retribution will take no more serious form than the humiliation of being forced to eat one's words, but in others the forces of the supernatural will take bloody revenge on those who wrong them by doubting their existence. "Hands of the Ripper" brings a new twist to this theme. Dr. John Pritchard is an eminent psychiatrist in Edwardian London who brings one of his patients, a young woman named Anna, into his home. This might seem a risky thing to do, as Pritchard is well aware (although the police are not) that Anna is not only mentally unstable but also a murderess. Pritchard, however, is an enthusiastic Freudian who believes that the new science of psychoanalysis will enable him not only to find out the cause of her murderous impulses but also to cure them. Pritchard's theory is that Anna is suffering from a psychiatric illness caused by the subconscious memory of some childhood trauma. Given what the audience knows about Anna, this is in fact a pretty shrewd guess. She is the daughter of none other than Jack the Ripper. The Ripper's precise identity is never made clear, but it would appear that he is a gentleman of some wealth and social position. (Unlike some other Ripper films, this one does not try and blame the killings on the Duke of Clarence or anyone else connected with the Royal Family). As a child Anna witnessed her father killing her mother, who had guessed that her husband was the Ripper. This being a Hammer film, however, there has to be a more complex explanation for Anna's criminality. Although Pritchard as a scientific rationalist would disdain any supernatural explanation for evil, it transpires that Anna is possessed by her father's spirit and that he is using her as a vehicle to carry out further murders from beyond the grave. Pritchard is guilty of the sin of hubris- the hubris of believing that his scientific methods can cure her- and he therefore has to accept the moral responsibility when Anna, contrary to his confident predictions, does indeed kill again. Eric Porter was an actor I often associated with portrayals of rather stiff, middle-aged middle-class gentlemen like Soames Forsyte in the famous BBC adaptation of "The Forsyte Saga" or Karenin in "Anna Karenina", and Dr. Pritchard is such another such character, a respectable pillar of the Edwardian bourgeoisie who finds it difficult to show emotion or to comprehend that there may be matters in heaven and earth not dreamed of in his tidy, rational philosophy. Anna is played by Angharad Rees, an actress who was later to find fame in another BBC serial, "Poldark", which was responsible for a brief surge in the popularity of the baptismal names "Angharad" and "Demelza" (the name of her character) throughout Britain in the mid-seventies. To be honest, Angharad was never the most expressive of actresses, even in "Poldark", but that does not really matter in this film, as there appears to have been a deliberate intention to play Anna as wooden and emotionless in order to emphasise the fact that she is under the control of an exterior force. "Hands of the Ripper" is at times over-the-top and melodramatic, although if it weren't it would hardly be a Hammer film. Some of the attempts at humour seem a bit forced (such as the fake séance conducted by Anna's guardian, the fraudulent medium Mrs Golding) and some of the death scenes might seem unintentionally humorous by modern standards. Overall, however, this is one of the more inventive and original entries in the Hammer canon- certainly more original than a lot of their standard vampire fare- and can make for enjoyable late-night watching. 6/10