I had the opportunity to appear this week on Episode 22 of Rippercast, a wonderful podcast for all things related to Jack the Ripper. This week host Jonathan Menges and a panel of Ripperologists took some time to discuss Ripper movies with me. What fun! It was an international Skype call (first time I ever used Skype), with participants spread out from Kansas to England.
The name of the episode is “Blondes, Psychics and Abberline’s Crutch.” I’d link to it, but the Rippercast site is experiencing technical difficulties. It’s also available on iTunes for easy download, which is how I got my copy.
Y’know, when you listen to an actor on one of those DVD commentary tracks, you’ll frequently hear comments like “Oh, they shot the wrong side of my profile” or “My nose is way too big.” (we’re all so vain).
For me, listening to this episode is kind of like that. I’m thinking: “Whoa, I sound like I’m talking over him, cutting him off. I hope they didn’t all think I’m rude.” Or… “Well, that was a missed opportunity. I could have mentioned…” Anyway, just thought I’d provide a little elaboration on some of those missed opportunities.
#1 Jonathan asks me what my favorite Ripper movie is, and I come out of the gate with the apparently controversial 1988 production with Michael Caine. So let me clarify what I meant when I said that it “tells the case the way it really was.”
First, I think that serious students of the case (let’s call them “investigative Ripperologists” for short) and serious students of the movies (that would be me!) can have different perspectives on what makes a good Ripper film… or even what constitutes “verisimilitude” in a film about the Whitechapel murders.
I have seen, well, just about all the movies listed on this site. A significant percentage of them (90%? 80%?) are highly fanciful. So… along comes the 1988 Jack the Ripper, and the film is set in the real world (not in outer space or in some parallel supernaturalized universe or in some sanitized London). It does a very realistic job of recreating the 1888 East End. It names the real victims, gets the modus operandi correct, includes numerous well-known incidents from the investigation into the case. It shows the potential for social unrest. Heck it even gets down to showing the weird Richard Mansfield wrinkle. Most Ripper movies don’t even try to name the real victims, much less use the killer’s authentic modus operandi, much less try to recreate the East End!
“Abberline’s crutch” (part of the title Jonathan gave to this Rippercast episode) does highlight a potential point of contention between the traditional investigative Ripperologist and a student of film—i.e. the portrayal of Abberline, chief investigator on the case. I did a doubletake, sure, when I first saw him portrayed as a drunk. But I’ve seen movies that portray the victims as glamor girls and the Ripper as a supernatural monster who transcends time! So portraying Abberline as having a crutch (in this case, an alcohol addiction) did not register very high on my “egregiously unrealistic” meter… though I guess it certainly registered for Abberline’s family. For me, none of that hurts my enjoyment of the movie, given Michael Caine’s wonderful performance and all. But it is enough to get an investigative Ripperologist fuming!
Nothing wrong with that. We’re just looking for different things. He’s looking for absolute accuracy while I’m giving the film marks not only for being an excellently crafted, well-acted production but also for happening to be the most accurate non-documentary film on the killings that I know of. 100% accurate? No. Most accurate? Yes.
So, if you’re an investigative Ripperologist who’s shocked by what I said about the movie, just remember that I come at the films from a movie angle (i.e., do they make good cinema?). “Most accurate” Ripper movie is good enough for me! “Well acted” Ripper movie is good enough for me. Heck, even “supremely entertaining though preposterous” Ripper movie is good enough for me. (Hey, I like Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde.. and yes, I do know better!).
So, that’s where I’m coming from when I list the 1988 MIchael Caine movie as one of my favorites.
Hi Cindy!
Another rub students of the case find with the Caine miniseries (and to a lesser extent ‘From Hell’) in its portrayal of Abberline is that Abberline was in fact married at the time of the Whitechapel crimes. Yet both these films, for the sake of plotting in a love story, make Abberline single. In “From Hell”, Johnny Depp’s character does say he is a widower, which was true of Abberline. But Abberline’s first wife Martha died in 1868 and he remarried in 1876 to Emma, with whom he remained for the rest of his life.
So not only do these films make Abberline out to be a lush or drug addict, they exclude his wife entirely. In some peoples opinions, that would have made for a much better (nevermind factual) story, Abberline, Emma and Jack.
JM
Hi Jonathan!
I think that I’m not as “up” on Abberline as I am on the victims, which is one reason that it didn’t rub me wrong. (Another reason, I think, is that it really is a good movie and a wonderful acting performance by Michael Caine, regardless of the treatment of Abberline).
But as I mentioned, I did do a double-take when the Caine production rendered Abberline an alcoholic. But I wasn’t absolutely sure it was a fabrication. I remember Abberline having been called “dyspeptic” and wondered if that was a euphemism for “lush.” Apparently not.
Thanks for all the info on Abberline’s marital history. I guess that even if you go outside of Hollywood, there’s still the temptation to play up love angles and personal torments, etc. Frankly, I think that the drama of trying to solve a case of this magnitude that’s way beyond the capabilities of an 1888 police force could suffice to fill out the “torment” requirement!
So I can definitely see the point in wanting to portray Abberline accurately - especially in a film that makes a claim for accuracy and research. I’ll keep these thoughts in mind next time I watch it. It probably won’t lessen my enjoyment (I mean, it really is a good movie). But it’s another factor to consider.
CCS