Hands of the Ripper (1971)

★ 6.1 1h 25m IMDb

A series of murders occur that mirror those committed by the Whitechapel Ripper. Through his experiments with psychoanalysis Dr Pritchard discovers a deadly violence in one of his young female patients. As he delves into the recesses of her mind he uncovers that Anna is possessed by her dead father's spirit, willing her to commit acts of gruesome savagery over which she has no control. But the most chilling revelation of all is the identity of her father: Jack the Ripper himself.

Hands of the Ripper

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Cast

Eric Porter
Eric Porter as Dr. John Pritchard Died 1995 · Shepard's Bush, London, UK A highly respected Shakespearean for five decades until his death of colon cancer in 1995, classical actor Eric Porter's claim to international fame would, ironically, be outside of that realm, with o...
Angharad Rees
Angharad Rees as Anna Died 2012 · Edgware, Middlesex, England, UK Angharad Rees was a London-born Welsh actress and, later, jewellery designer, best known for her British television roles during the 1970s and in particular her leading role as Demelza in the 1970s...
Jane Merrow
Jane Merrow as Laura Age 84 · Hertfordshire, England, UK From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Jane Merrow (born 26 August 1941) is a British actress, born in London to an English mother and German refugee, who was active in the 1960s and 1970s in England...
Derek Godfrey
Derek Godfrey as Dysart Died 1983 · London, England, UK Derek Godfrey (3 June 1924 – 18 June 1983) was an English actor, associated with the Royal Shakespeare Company from 1960, who also appeared in several films and BBC television dramatisations during th...
Dora Bryan
Dora Bryan as Mrs. Golding Died 2014 · Parbold, Lancashire, England, UK Dora May Bryan OBE was an English actress of stage, film and television. Born Dora May Broadbent, her career began in pantomime as a child actor. In World War II she joined the ENSA in Italy to entert...
Marjorie Rhodes
Marjorie Rhodes as Mrs. Bryant Died 1979 · Hull, Yorkshire, England, UK Marjorie Rhodes, born Millicent Wise in Hull, Yorkshire was a British actress..

Audience Reviews

Wuchak 6/10 Oct 04, 2021
_**Beware: the daughter of Jack the Ripper is on the loose**_

In 1906 London the troubled daughter of Jack the Ripper (Angharad Rees) is taken in by a sympathetic Freudian psychologist (Eric Porter) who wants to study her condition and “fix” her, but she’s soon prowling the Whitechapel district. Jane Merrow, Keith Bell and Derek Godfrey are also on hand.

“Hands of the Ripper” (1971) is Victorian horror from Hammer that’s similar to their previous “The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll” (1960), but less psychologically fascinating or entertaining.

Actually the doctor’s mental condition is more interesting than that of the girl he’s studying: He pulls a "Vertigo" on her by giving her his late wife's room, providing Anna her clothes to wear and is obsessed with healing her because he couldn't heal his wife. At one point he nigh kisses Anna wearing his wife's clothes when the topic of life-after-death surfaces.

Moreover, his son has picked a ‘marred’ fiancé and not only can this woman not assuage the doctor’s guilt over being unable to heal his wife (since Laura is his son's bride and her 'flaw' is outside his field) he’s concerned that his son will suffer the same outcome as himself and it weighs on him.

The film runs 1 hour, 25 minutes, and was shot at Pinewood Studios, just west of London.

GRADE: B-
CinemaSerf 6/10 Jan 25, 2025
This is quite an intriguing take on the established "Ripper" murders - as seen through he eyes of his daughter. She's but a bairn when she sees him at work and is unsurprisingly traumatised by the whole experience. Now grown to adulthood, "Anna" (Angharad Rees) finds herself the unwitting agent of a psychological impulse to continue in her father's stead. The sympathetic doctor "Pritchard" (Eric Porter) tries to apply some of elementary Victorian psychology to the investigation in the hope that he may be able to unlock this mystery and help out. Perhaps even find out the true identity of the original killer? Sadly, though, this is a deep rooted trouble that his good will isn't going to wish away. Indeed, after about half an hour we all realise that it's going to take something altogether more direct and even then, tragedy is more than less likely. It's a decent looking period drama this, with Porter doing enough to hold it together and Rees quite effective as the schizophrenic character. The dialogue is a bit excessive, and the science behind the story maybe isn't the best, but in many ways that serves to illustrate quite well how limited our understanding of the human psyche was - even in London at the height of empire. There's some fun added by the always reliable Dora Bryan and Lynda Baron and it's quite interesting to watch these otherwise street-smart and savvy characters completely disarmed by a different type of criminal altogether. The production is all a bit theatrical but it's not a bad light-horror film that effortlessly kills an hour and an half.

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