Running concurrent with a slate of Jack the Ripper style killings, medical student John Wesford(James Spader), working in a free clinic for the uninsured, is attempting to raise awareness about Los Angeles' poverty plight. The style and subjects chosen are practically identical to the notorious Jack the Ripper, left-handed, with anatomical knowledge and precise with surgical tools. One more victim is left to be targeted, and due to a direct link with the Ripper slayings of the past, the one chosen will be pregnant. Jack Pendler(Rex Ryon), a janitor at the free clinic, shows up at a pregnant hooker's apartment to give her an abortion, when John himself decides he might check in on the same woman. John finds the hooker slain on her bed, covered in blood, and, coincidentally, Jack returns supposedly to bring her antibiotics. Panic-stricken, Jack eventually strangles and hangs John by a rope in the free clinic(after pushing John into the dead victim, getting blood on his clothes, he becomes the prime suspect)leaving the police to believe he committed suicide. So John, a "man of the people" is considered the Ripper killer and the only one who might help clear his name is a twin brother, Rick(also played by Spader). But, before losing it, Jack claims hysterically to John that he did not murder the pregnant woman..could someone else actually be responsible for the other crimes?I would love to say that JACK'S BACK is more than just your standard Hollywood thriller, but it really isn't..well, maybe except for the bizarre way the filmmakers arrange for the real murderer to be identified(not only of his own brother, but the Ripper killer as well). Except for Spader in dual roles, there really isn't much to distinguish this from all the other thrillers you are accustomed to seeing. Police are searching for a killer with multiple twists identifying who the real culprit is, while one clearly is shown murdering a victim, it's an obvious red herring in regards to the Ripper slayings. You know that, despite having completed the Ripper murders as intended, the psychopath would just have to target "damsel in distress", Chris(Cynthia Gibb, the love interest for John, and later Rick, joining forces with him to find the real killer)so that he can not only be put in a position to be caught in the act, but so that the "wrong man", Rick, could come to the rescue. Robert Picardo is psychiatrist Carlos Battera, a little weird(okay, a lot weird), who the police turn to with help apprehending the Ripper killer..his hypnosis assists Rick in putting a face to the real murderer. This film, as directed by Rowdy Herrington(Roadhouse with Patrick Swayze), does include an interesting development which propels the story forward..twin brother Rick actually sees through his dying brother's eyes as he's being strangled and eventually hung in a dream! I found it amusing how the filmmakers arrange the differences between Rick and John: Rick's hairstyle, leather jacket, air of mystery, aura of danger, a speedy convertible, while John has frumpy clothes, a messy apartment, dedicated work ethic, ease with the public, and a dying VW bug which has seen better days. Oh, and Rick knows karate, so he is able to defend himself, unlike his brother, against the mammoth Jack who outweighs him by a cool thirty pounds.

Writer/director Rowdy Herrington seems to want to say something about homelessness, but then the theme trails off.The best reason to watch this, for most people, is that James Spader plays two roles. (Identical twins, and one of them has an earring!) It may be this film that inspired me to embark on my project of cloning Spader. No luck yet, but I will keep you posted.Considering the title refers to Jack the Ripper, this film is surprisingly even handed when it comes to the ratio of female to male victims of violence.There isn't much to dislike about the writing or the acting, but there isn't anything that really jumps out as outstanding.

From the start it's obvious this is going to be an immature and predictable version of a Jack the Ripper take-off. Everything is telegraphed way in advance and we know who the ripper is from the very first scene in which we see him as the head of the free clinic chastising a prostitute. If you know the history of the true ripper, then that's it, you know who it's going to be in this pile of manure. Yes, it's manure and entirely predictable, and barely believable, even as melodrama. What free clinic chief is going to chase away an idealistic doctor? And also act as the neighborhood morals officer? This crud is so full of outdated political propaganda that it's laughable. And it's amateurish and inept. Hell, they couldn't even get the asst. editor's name right in the titles, using Bubinow instead of Rubinow, and NOT as a joke either. Only good thing here is Spader's better-than-average performance.

Jack the Ripper films are one of my favorite, however, this film was boring and very unrealistic. I simply could not wait until it finally ended and the real Jack the Ripper was finally revealed. However, I knew who Jack the Ripper was from the very beginning of the picture. James Spader(John/Rick Westford) "I Witness"'03, gave a great dual performance and is a great up and coming actor along with Cynthia Gibb(Chris Moscari) "A Crime of Passion"'03 TV,who loved John Westford and became very close with Rick. These actors did a great job with a horrible script about nothing !