Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de) "Das Ungeheuer von London-City" or "The Monster of London City" is a West German German-language production from 1964, so this one is already over 50 years old. Director is Edwin Zbonek and Robert A. Stemmle worked with Bryan Edgar Wallace on the script here. The title of this slightly under 90-minute movie is already an indicator that we are once again taken into the horrendous world of Jack the Ripper. There is a play in London which deals with this infamous serial killer and at the very same time prostitutes get murdered by a new perpetrator that is soon of course also called Jack the Ripper. What is his motivation? Watch for yourself and find out. The cast includes the likes of Felmy, Koch, Schönherr, Nielsen, Tillmann, so quite a few actors that were relatively famous back then, at least here in Germany and this also shows how prestigious these crime/horror films were back then, especially if the name Wallace was attached to them. Oh yeah, this one here is a black-and-white movie of course.I must say having seen many films from the well-known Rialto series I expected not too much here because I hardly liked any of them and if I did somehow, then it was mostly due to Klaus Kinski being in the cast and here he is not. This is why as you can see from the title of my review I was indeed pretty surprised I ended up liking this one here. The story was simple, yet smart. There were interesting inclusions in terms of the connection between the play and reality, such as the exchanged dagger. There was suspense if the actor is actually the killer. The old cop character was interesting, but they did not shove him into our faces like in other of these movies. The killer is not running around in some stupid costume. The comedy was not an essential part here, but still there were some subtly funny moments here and there like the guy they suspect of being the killer near the end. And there are also not too many suspects that you just get confused who is who and stop caring. Sure there were also some weak moments like the rushed-in explanation at the very end, but it's all good. I still think the good outweighs the bad here and especially a thumbs-up goes to the writers who prove that scary German crime movies in the 1960s do not have to be a failure by definition. This one here is kind of the exception to the rule. I recommend checking it out. Final note: The highly prolific Arthur Brauner produced this one and he is still alive today at the age of 98 (and a half). Will he make it to 100? Feel free to check it out if you read this review in August 2018 or afterward.

Leofwine_draca 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.

MartinHafer The idea for this film isn't bad, but somehow when it all came together the whole thing was a bit dull and I had a very hard time sticking with it. This is a German film dubbed into English and I wonder if perhaps it might have played better in its original form. Regardless, I couldn't wait for it to end.The story is set in 1960s London and a series of Jack the Ripper style have been occurring. At the same time, there's a play about the Ripper playing to huge crowds in the city and after a while it appears that the two might be related.The problem I had is that the characters weren't that interesting and the mystery wasn't all that hard to predict. On top of that, things were made a bit worse by a horrible musical track made by a cheesy theater organ. Overall, you could do a lot better.

John Seal The Monster of London City is an unremarkable entry in the krimi cycle, this time based on a novel by Bryan Edgar Wallace, son of the prodigious Edgar Wallace. Set in a London of perpetual night, the titular character is a modern day version of Jack the Ripper, whose murder streak coincides with the successful run of a play about the original Saucy Jack. Hansjorg Felmy is the star of the play, which judging from what we see here is one of the most inept to ever appear in the West End. Felmy is also the target of an MP (Fritz Tillmann) eager to shut down the production for inciting violence, and the police naturally suspect him as well. This review is based on a screening of IS Filmworks video, a faded and blurry black and white print that renders most of the night time scenes almost impossible to watch and incorrectly frames the film with a 1.66:1 aspect ratio, uncomfortably squeezing the original, widescreen Totalscope compositions. It's all we've got for now--the film isn't included in the recently released in Germany Edgar Wallace DVD boxed sets--but there are enough hints here to pique one's interest in seeing a restored print. A decent Martin Bottcher score is an added bonus.