I love the film, but "work of art" is maybe a
little
too strong.
And most of the cast was great, but I do think Heather Graham fell a little short of the general standard.
You might very well think that. I couldn't possibly comment.

This film is without peer.The entire film and every character has/have given all that they possessed.
To dismiss or criticize this work of art is nonsense.
Depp,Coltrane.all of them.best effort and end product in last thirty years or more..

Well put, Icing. I agree completely.
You might very well think that. I couldn't possibly comment.

This message has been deleted.

Not the historical one, no. But I never thought the film was trying to be anything but a fantasy riff on the real-life events; it didn't seem to me to be pretending to be history.
And I think Depp did a great job of creating a credible character within a Gothic horror context.
You might very well think that. I couldn't possibly comment.

And this (correct) response shows why Depp doesn't get enough recognition for this role. He certainly wasn't playing a historically accurate character in a historically accurate film. However he was playing exactly the person that the script called for and he did blow that out of the park. With Depp's recent track record its sometimes hard to remember just how vast his skill is.

WHAT
real person? It sure as hell wasn't Fred Abberline.
The church may shout but Darwin roars

Agreed!

It was one of the few movies in which he seemed to be playing a real person than a surreal character. It's more of my personal preference than his usual work.
I liked this character.

Best film in fifty years.

Its the subject matter, most people can't and don't want to admit stark reality. I personally thought this was a masterpiece film, Depp nailed it. Whether it was all that factually correct or not - it should have been more. Aside from the I love this film.

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I agree wholeheartedly. I just watched this film again, and to be honest, I don't understand why it gets written off by so many people; it's got a lot of tension, character and intrigue, and above all it is carried by strong performances, particular depp's. just the way he talks to people, the stare in his eyes, his focus when investigating, and his passion and rage in his most urgent and angry moments, are outstanding. he does the accent well too I thought, and just painted a really broad and vivid picture of the character he was portraying.

Not sure if it's even one of his best performances but I agree with you that it's a compelling, complex, serious and subtle performance.
"Tell yourself whatever you need to hear, you're the only one listening."