Jack the Ripper (1976)

A serial killer whose mother was a prostitute starts killing streetwalkers as a way of paying back his mother for her abuse.

Director:

Jesús Franco (as Jess Franco)

Writer:

Jesús Franco (screenplay) (as Jess Franco)

Stars:

Klaus Kinski, Josephine Chaplin, Herbert Fux

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Klaus Kinski	...	Dr. Dennis Orloff
Josephine Chaplin	...	Cynthia
Herbert Fux	...	Charlie the Fisherman
Lina Romay	...	Marika Stevenson
Nikola Weisse	...	Frieda
Ursula von Wiese	...	Miss Higgins (as Ursula v. Wiese)
Hans Gaugler	...	John Bridger the Blind
Francine Custer	...	Sally Brown
Olga Gebhard	...	Mrs. Baxter
Angelika Arndts	...	Mrs. Stevenson Brown
Regine Elsener	...	Blonde Girl at Inquest
Peter Nüsch	...	Sergeant Ruppert (as Peter Nuesch)
Lorli Bucher	...	Miss Lulu
Esther Studer	...	Jeanny
Mike Lederer	...	Coach Driver

Storyline

A Swiss-German horror film with Klaus Kinski as the notorious Jack the Ripper. A respected doctor by day, Kinski dismembers London prostitutes by night, until the local Inspector's girlfriend (Josephine Chaplin) goes undercover to catch him.

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Plot Keywords:

murder of a nude woman | character name as title | jack the ripper character | serial murder | three word title | 

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Taglines:

Close your eyes and whisper his name...

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

Dr. Orloff's servant is named Frieda in the German version, but Flora in the International English version; also, Miss Lulu in the German version, becomes Maggy in the English version. The film was shot without sound, that was subsequently added for both versions.

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Goofs

The royal coat of arms shown outside Scotland Yard bears the letters ER - presumably for the current Queen: Elizabeth Regina. In 1888 when Jack the Ripper was loose Victoria was on the throne and the letters would have been VR: Victoria Regina.

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Quotes

Mr. Bridger, the Blind Man: The murderer smelled of several familiar odours; expensive soap. sweat, and very fine woolen clothes and mild Turkish tobacco and also an odour, Inspector, that you could recognise with much ease, I think: alcohol.
Inspector Selby: Yes, of course. You smell of it.
Mr. Bridger, the Blind Man: Oh, but that's an easy one. What I detected was a medicinal alcohol and then a real surprise; I also caught a whiff of a rare, medicinal plant of India. It transported me back to the colonies. In England, it's found only in the Botanical Gardens. It is ...

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Connections

Referenced in Seven Years in Tibet (1997)

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Soundtracks

My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean
(uncredited)
Scottish folk tune
Performed by Francine Custer

User Reviews

The Awful Dr. Kinski?

Throughout his career, Franco has borrowed ideas from his atmospheric first shocker, Gritos en la Noche/The Awful Dr. Orloff. This movie is almost a complete remake of that film, with Klaus Kinski an inspired substitute for Howard Vernon as the main maniac. A couple of things really get in the way of

my enjoyment, though: first, the city Jack terrorizes looks no more like London than, say, Marrakech. Or Beijing. Or Dubuque. Another irritating thing: the English dubbing on my print confuses Victorian English with Elizabethan English -- it's all "prithee"'s and "milord"'s and "wilt thou"'s. Ouch.

Details

Country:

Switzerland West Germany Spain

Language:

German English Spanish

Release Date:

23 September 1976 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Jack the Ripper

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinemec

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min 82 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1