Purely Joyful Movie!

From my favorite movies..

It is both painfully honest and laugh-out-loud funny at the same time.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

While all of my reviews usually include a brief rehashing of the story, I'll try to say as little as possible, so people can experience the twists fresh. The main idea is that in 1988 L. A., on the 100th anniversary of the Jack the Ripper slayings, a current serial killer is replicating those murders down to the last detail. James Spader plays John Wesford, a do-gooder medical student employed at a clinic, and John ends up suspected of the crimes. So not only must the psychopath be identified, but Johns' name must be cleared...by an unexpected source."Jack's Back" creator Rowdy Herrington had been working in the business approximately a dozen years, doing various odd jobs behind the camera, before making this writing & directing debut. He realized that the anniversary of the Jack the Ripper crimes was imminent, and tied in that element to a story he'd already conceived. While his movie isn't anything special, it *is* solidly entertaining. It might not be gory enough for some people, but it has some good atmosphere (the sets are deliberately rendered to be somewhat hazy), and Herringtons' story twists help to keep things somewhat interesting.The main attraction is in seeing Spader subtly delineate two different characters. Herrington has also assembled a strong supporting cast here: pretty Cynthia Gibb as an intelligent leading lady, Jim Haynie, Chris Mulkey (source of some amusing comedy relief), and John Wesley as assorted detectives working the case, Rod Loomis as the ill-tempered head doctor at the clinic, Rex Ryon as Johns' co-worker, and the always great Robert Picardo as a psychiatrist lending the cops his expertise.Nicely filmed at a variety of L. A. locations.Seven out of 10.

What a horrendous film, I am amazed at the films high rating. After watching Jack the Ripper (1988 TV) starring Michael Caine, Armand Assante and Jane Seymour, and also From Hell (2001) starring Johnny Depp and Ian Holm, I was expecting more of the same. Alas, this film disappoints from the start. A poorly executed plot, mediocre acting with shallow characters.This is James Spader's worst film to date. He performed much better in Stargate (1994) and The Watcher (2000). The title refers to a Jack the Ripper copycat, who's committing similar murders in Los Angeles on the same days on the hundredth anniversary of when the original killings occurred. Plot: A young doctor John Westford (James Spader) finds himself at the scene of one of the Ripper murders and is eventually killed. His identical twin brother Rick Westford (James Spader) claims to have seen visions of the true killer in a dream. The police think that John had committed the murder and was the copycat. Now Rick has the chance to prove his brother was innocent and the the murderer is someone else....... In conclusion, not worth wasting 1hr 33mins on this flick. Do something else instead like cleaning your house or going for a walk in the park.

Warning: minor spoilersJames Spader is such a fine actor that he can make even dreck fairly watchable. This film starts out well, especially if you do not know going into it that Spader plays two roles. The surprise death of the heretofore main character ten or fifteen minutes in is an effective shocker. But much of the plot of this film is poor. A viewer would have to be heavily sedated not to realize who the killer is during the first third of the film -- he is such a cliché that all he is missing is a handlebar mustache to twirl, and the actor playing him does everything but hold up a sign saying "I'm an evil psychopath! Watch me!" Plus, his behavior in the final part of the movie is completely inexplicable. He isn't copying Jack the Ripper anymore, his intended victim isn't a prostitute, he has apparently gotten away with his crimes because someone else is under arrest and that person is guilty of at least one murder -- why do what he does? Oh, so we can have a final confrontation and end the film!However, "Jack's Back" is somewhat redeemed by Spader, who makes the twins distinct characters without overplaying their differences. Clearly the movie's director didn't realize how good Spader was, because he insists on giving "Rick" a scar and a radically different hairstyle, which are completely unnecessary (especially since the two characters' roles in the film do not overlap). As Rick, the comparatively ne'er-do-well twin (the main role), Spader projects a fair degree of complexity and does so in subtle ways. Watch the scene in which he goes into his brother's house, looks at books, photos, and then the unmade bed. Spader has no dialogue here, and doesn't overdo it -- no tears, no punching the wall, no bitter turning away -- but the play of emotions across his face is brilliant and tells us everything we need to know about their relationship. That's great acting.Besides the awful villain, other cast member are uneven. Cynthia Gibb is fine, Robert Picardo convincing as a smarter than average psychiatrist working with the police, and the always reliable Chris Mulkey (one of those "oh yeah, that guy!" actors) plays his usual slightly dense and harmlessly (if cluelessly) lecherous cop. But Wendell Wright badly overplays the police captain who repeatedly leaps to the wrong conclusions.Otherwise, the film suffers from being obviously of its era, the late '80's.Thus the music is really bad, especially for a suspense film, and they give us the wretched theme song ("Red Harvest" whatever that means, by Paul Saax, whoever that was) over both the beginning and ending credits. The clothes are accurate for the time, but it was not a good era fashion-wise. The hairstyles look especially silly, with poor Spader having to wear a swept across 'do that looks like he just missed the final cut when auditioning for a "Flock of Seagulls" tribute band, and the otherwise lovely Gibb is trapped in a late '80's gal-mullet. Saucony shoes apparently paid for product placement. Even the opening credits look cheap and generic.All in all, a mediocre film that starts out as if it will be much better but falls apart in the final reel, and that is only worth watching as part of a James Spader film festival.** 1/2

Someone is killing prostitutes in a very Jack The Ripper-esque fashion on the 100 year anniversaries of The Ripper's original murders. A med student (Spader) gets caught up in the last murder and winds up meeting a tragic fate. Now his twin brother (also played by Spader) is out to find the man responsible for his death and gets caught up in the middle of the copycat murder case in the process. Oh, and he has to clear his own name because he is a suspect in the above mentioned case AND also a suspect in his brothers murder...Whooo. Now that's a s*** load of plot!Jack's Back is an odd movie and kind of deceiving. You see, no one in their right mind is gonna market a movie this complicated. So what the box tells ya is that Jack's Back is about a murderer mimicking the Jack The Ripper slayings of a century ago. Well, that's only half the movie. Jack's Back is a murder mystery turned revenge noir turned suspense thriller that manages to avoid drowning itself in murky plot, pointless subplot, or endless dialogue in an attempt to competently tell the story and wrap everything up in the end. From the title and basic premise of the film one may think it's just your basic slasher type/murder mystery exploitation stuff that was recycled over and over again when this movie was released. If so, you're wrong...Jack's Back starts as a murder mystery about a nutball killing prostitutes, when we meet a med student with a heart of gold, John played by James Spader. He soon finds himself at the scene of one of the Ripper murders and is eventually killed. His shady twin brother Rick who sees the murder in a dream soon pops up. The police are quick to write off John's death as a suicide, but Rick knows better. He soon sets out to find the guy responsible with the help of Chris (Gibb) who had a thing for John and is developing a thing for Rick when he finds that things aren't as they seemed and the Ripper copycat is out for more blood. Writer/director Rowdy Herrington gives us a strong, well developed script with great characters and memorable situations. His ability to shift from a murder mystery to revenge flick to thriller deserves major props. Props to Herrington for creating such likeable and complex characters too. Great job! From a directing standpoint, Herrington gives the movie a moody and uneasy atmosphere blanketed in thick fog. Burnout Central award to Herrington. James Spader delivers a layered and very strong double performance that engaged me and kept my eyes glued on him. Cynthia Gibb gives a strong performance as well. I dug how the script didn't go into familiar romantic territory even though Spader and Gibb had great chemistry. Burnout Central awards to both!It was great to watch a movie with such a dense storyline that never forget what it was supposed to do-entertain. I was intrigued and fascinated with the story, performances and Herrington's ability to construct such a multi-layered plot and still find a way to pull it all together. Jack's Back isn't conventional in the least, it marches to its own drum, has class, and is well written, acted and directed. Check it out!