From Hell

London in 1888 is a smoky, dangerous place where the line between fact and fever dreams feels thin. Inspector Frederick Abberline, a Scotland Yard officer with an opium habit, digs into a brutal spree that targets women in Whitechapel. He follows a chain of clues through gaslit alleys, discreet betting rooms, and crowded workhouses, trying to separate routine corruption from something more sinister. As pressure from the press and city officials mounts, Abberline finds himself drawn to Mary Kelly, a striking woman with her own troubled past, and her presence complicates the case and his judgment. The investigation brushes against rumor, occult lore, and competing theories about the identity of the killer, offering a dark reimagining of the Ripper myth without revealing the truth.

Released in 2001, the film was directed by Albert and Allen Hughes. It adapts Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell's From Hell graphic novel, with a screenplay by Terry Hayes and Rafael Yglesias, delivering a stylized period piece for wide audiences.

Box office performance was solid but not spectacular for a big budget period thriller. It grossed approximately 74 million worldwide, reflecting modest but steady interest in a darker, more atmospheric take on Victorian crime. The numbers positioned From Hell as a cult favorite rather than a blockbuster.

This title is remembered for its lush, rain slicked visuals, heavy fog and a graphic novel sensibility that translates to screen tone. Johnny Depp brings a quirky intensity to Abberline that lingers in discussion of early 2000s adaptations of comic works. The look and mood influenced later genre crossovers.

Critical reaction was mixed, with praise for production design, mood, and Depp's presence, but criticism of the plot's complexity and historical looseness. Thematically the film probes addiction and obsession, the cost of modern inquiry, and the clash between rational investigation and superstition in a city haunted by conspiracy.