The Monster of London City (1967)

The German krimi films were a series of distinctive crime thrillers made between the late '50s and early '70s, usually based in London and on the works of crime author Edgar Wallace (or his son, Bryan Edgar Wallace). They were notable for their dark and brooding atmosphere and their distinct visual style which made them a genre all of their own. MONSTER OF London CITY has a great title and a workable premise (the amount of mileage in the Jack the Ripper storyline is pretty much endless) but in all other respects it's a dull, staged and talky effort that fails to show off the genre at its best.The story follows thus: a gory play is showing in the West End that acts out the Ripper murders. A real-life killer begins to emulate the play, murdering women in the same style. As the police begin their investigation, a number of suspects rise to the fore, primarily the main actor in the play who might well have crossed the line between fact and fiction. Eventually efforts are made to trap the killer but it's only at the very end his real identity is revealed.The story sounds good written down but far too much time is spent on incessant dialogue scenes – at least 90% of the film, I'd say. Much of the talk is banal and irrelevant, not adding anything in the way of plot or drive to the narrative. There are also a few too many leading characters, so we have to keep swapping back and forth between them in more extended scenes. A couple, like the husband and wife thrown in for comic relief, add nothing to the plot whatsoever. The police investigation is laborious and there's much repetition in the murders themselves – although they're suitably sinister, they feel as lifeless as the unfortunate victims end up. They just feature a guy with a hat, cloak, and big boots going around and using a straight razor to slice up his victims (unseen, of course). The filmmakers throw in a little nudity to try to liven things up but that doesn't work either.The mystery elements are obvious and there's no prizes for guessing the identity of the bad guy (I seem to recall Naschy's 7 MURDERS FOR Scotland YARD copying the same ideas). There's a huge red herring and no action scenes other than at the admittedly exciting climax. The cast seem bored and with no interesting characters to work with the film becomes a chore to sit through.

This is a decent if rather low-watt German krimi (a genre which itself was pretty low-watt compared to later Italian giallo genre it later inspired). The protagonist is a seemingly unstable, very method-like actor playing Jack the Ripper in a modern theatrical adaptation. Unfortunately, someone has begun committing a new series of Ripper-like murders and the intense actor becomes a likely suspect--or is he possibly being framed? As a murder mystery this is kind of weak tea, and as others have said the identity of the killer is pretty obvious. Unlike of a lot of the krimis, this movie was not based on a story by prolific English author Edgar Wallace (or even one by his less talented son Bryan Edgar Wallace). It has also had the misfortune of being released recently on a double-disc with another, inferior krimi "Secret of the Red Orchid", but one that stars Christopher Lee, Klaus Kinski, and Marissa Mell. This one in contrast has no major stars in the cast, but is much better made.What works best about this film is the style. Although the German filmmakers were doing their damnedest to capture the look of foggy London (usually using foggy Hamburg as a stand-in) where these films are almost always nominally set, they actually manage to capture some of the old ambiance of early 20th century Germany Expressionism. This interesting movement was destroyed in its native land by Hitler when he drove all the "decadent" Modernist artists out of the country. Many ended up in America where their artistic sensibilities informed 1940's American film noir. These German movies, by accident or design, capture a lot of this old visual style, even if plot-wise they're a lot closer to ridiculous, zany Italian gialli films they inspired than the fatalistic, downbeat film noir or old German horror films. What ALL of these genres have in common though is an emphasis on powerful visual style, which is unusual in the world of cinema, dominated as it has been by the heavily narrative Hollywood style.But I digress. This isn't one of the best krimis, but any decent krimi in my book is certainly worth a look.

A serial killer, modeling his methods and look after Jack the Ripper, stalks prostitutes on the streets of 60's London, lurking the dark allies and street corners as the ever-present fog makes it's presence known. The killer surprises his prey, strangulating the girls into unconsciousness before mutilating them. There's a special vicious strike when he draws his cutting blade diving into the mod hookers before discarding them like garbage(one girl he drives her car into a ditch while another he tosses her carcass into the river). Scotland Yard focus their attention on troubled actor Richard Sand(Hansjörg Felmy), whose past yields a stint with drug addiction and at present is struggling with bad nerves..he portrays Jack the Ripper in a stage production of the killer. Sir George(Fritz Tillmann), an important member of Parliament, is hoping to pass a bill to remove/censor objectionable theatrical productions, often escapes, when his niece Ann(Marianne Koch)goes to bed, at night cautiously..we see that his attire looks like what the copy-cat Ripper killer wears, perhaps a far-too-obvious red-herring. Ann is in love with Richard which annoys George who wishes to close the Ripper production down. Dr. Michael(Dietmar Schönherr), a man in love with Ann having grown up with her after "his father died", is good friends with Richard. All these melodramatic complications only add to poor Richard's troubles as he feels the investigation breathing down his neck and a desire to quit the Ripper character who is slowly wearing him out. The film also has Teddy(Peer Schmidt)and his assistant as this moronic sleuthing team hoping to catch the Ripper so they can become famous making a name for their amateur detective agency, but always come up short of that goal despite being so close. Ann suspects her Uncle after catching him whisking off one night and decides to conduct a little investigation of her own.The mystery, as explained by two other users, is not too hard to figure out which does take away from the overall appeal of this atmospherically made low-budget thriller. I loved how the director shoots the Ripper and his killing methods, not exactly displaying the cutting, but getting the grisly display over by showing how he conducts himself so thoroughly. Still, a good mystery should make the identity of the psycho a bit harder to figure out..and, it isn't too hard in this flick's case. I think it's well crafted, but the screenplay is lacking. I like how the film feels authentic instead of stage-bound..I think that adds to the mood of it. Even if the film may not actually take place in London, Berlin sure looks a lot like the British city and that's certainly a benefit as far as I'm concerned. Director Zbonek likes to shoot action from afar, even when the Ripper does his dirty business, lensing those desolate quiet streets where no one can help those unfortunate females needing assistance where there is none. But, stylish direction can only carry you so far and the story itself isn't anything to write home about..even after we get an explanation of why the killer committed his heinous acts.

A modern day Jack the Ripper is on the loose in London. The police and other government officials are concerned that a play concerning the Ripper's activities may have been, at the least, the inspiration for the rash of murders. In fact, the police view the actor who performs as Jack the Ripper each night as their primary suspect. Has this actor become so obsessed with his role that it's spilled out into everyday life? What Works: That Jazzy Score. One positive aspect of the film worth mentioning is the score. Martin Bottcher has created an incredible, over-the-top, jazzy score that suits the film. It's a good representation of the music I expect when watching a Krimi. Very nice!The Look. The Monster of London City is full of those dark streets and creepy alleyways that seem to breed knife-welding killers. These are the kind of places that I sure wouldn't want to walk through alone. It's a great look that is effective in creating the occasional suspenseful moment.What Doesn't Work: The Plot. The biggest flaw I see with The Monster of London City is in the plot. It's predictable and, as a result, there's really very little suspense. It should be quite obvious to anyone watching who the killer really is. Suspect after suspect are thrown at the viewer with little effect. It's far too easy to see through these red herrings and arrive at the correct conclusion.Acting. For the most part, the acting is emotionless. I've seen inanimate objects with the ability to emote better than these people. Many of them appear just this side of being bored to tears.The Comic Relief. I've seen several other Krimis that contain comic relief, but The Monster of London City takes it a bit too far. The bumbling husband and wife detective duo have far more screen time than they should have. While they are occasionally funny, their act takes away from the serious nature of the plot and feels like an unwelcome intrusion.In summary, it's not that The Monster of London City is the worst example of a Krimi you can find, but it's nowhere near the best. I'll keep watching these films because you never know when you're going to run across a real winner.