Jack the Ripper

Jack the Ripper was a 1959 British film produced and directed by Monty Berman and Robert S. Baker, loosely based on Leonard Matters' novel The Mystery of Jack the Ripper. Scripted by Hammer Productions' Jimmy Sangster, the film starred Lee Patterson, Betty McDowall, and John Le Mesurier.

Summary
In 1888, Jack the Ripper is on his killing spree. Scotland Yard Inspector O'Neill welcomes a visit from his old friend, New York City detective Sam Lowry (Patterson), who agrees to assist with the investigation. Sam becomes attracted to British heiress Anne Ford (McDowall), who invites him out to a Soho nightclub. The two are watching a six-girl cancan show when the Ripper embarks on his latest attack.

Cancan Sequence
The film has clear parallels with the previous year's Haunted Strangler, employing the identical motif of a serial killer stalking nightclub performers around the West End. The dance number was performed by the Ballet Montparnasse in one of their two credited screen appearances, and is one of the best remembered cancan scenes of the period. Despite the Victorian setting, the girls wear frilled briefs and suspender stockings more suited to the late 1950s. Later on in the film, the women are seen backstage in more traditional undergarments (including long-leg bloomers), though no explanation is offered for the change of apparel.

Several versions of the original print are known to exist, including one formatted for wide screen and a French dub containing additional scenes. Alternate titles include Jack l'Éventreur, Jack lo squartatore, Jack o anterovgaltis, De vrouwendoder and Eine Stadt sucht einen Mörder. The cancan scenes are slightly different in each cut.