Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde may be the most ambitious monster movie ever made. Director Rouben Mamoulian, whose credits also include The Mark of Zorro (1940), presents a story of a man split between good and evil in such an audacious manner, that it's tone still instills uncomfortable shivers, and its effects still leave audiences scratching their heads.
The film is based on Robert Louis Stevenson's novella, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and the story is well known to most. A good-hearted Dr. Jekyll makes a potion that turns him into a manifestation of all the evil in his soul, Mr. Hyde. Here in this film, the two are portrayed by Frederic March, who won himself an academy award for his performance in this film.
The film opens with a series of elaborate POV shots that ends with a single long take of jekyll looking in the mirror and fixing his coat, then walking walking outside and getting into a carriage. From there, Mamoulian continues to experiment with his camera using techniques from confrontational straight on close-ups in dialogue scenes to one of the most convincing transformation scenes in any film, even to date.
This transformation scene is another POV shot, where the good doctor walks over to a mirror and we witness the his skin and lips change right before our eyes. No cuts, no dissolves, all entirely seamless in one shot. It's a wonderful, "how'd they do that?" moment and it alone warrants a viewing.
But there is much more to this film than impressive directing and special effects. At its core is a story that suggests an unsettling nature about people. Even the purest of them all still have a sliver of sin within their heart that is lustful and evil. This of course speaks to the strength of the source material, but the way in which the film adapts and articulates these films creates an enormously chilling effect.
We are given a hint that Jekyll is not 100% pure of heart in a conversation he has about temptation early on. This brief scene is monumental in demonstrating that it is not only in his Hyde form where Jekyll possess some darkness. He is a flawed man from the beginning, but when he does become Hyde, the relentlessness of his monstrosity goes so far as to make a film from 1931 still creepy to this day.
Most of this comes from the undertones and suggestions of sexual assault and rape throughout the film. Hyde manipulates a woman named Ivy with his money and goes on a rampage of abuse. Close to nothing is shown of his abuse towards her, all we have are descriptions and bruises to infer from. There is even a mention of a whip. The audience feels the terror when they see the fear in Ivy's eyes whenever she's with Hyde. In one scene, Hyde has her perform for him, and while he gleefully watches, she speaks with trepidation while robotically moving to what she hopes are the right steps.
It is this relationship that really serves the horror in this film. Much of the picture is a technical marvel, but none of that means anything if there isn't a human element that is at risk. Jekyll's fiance is never threatened, nor much of anyone else, for that matter. The only real victim in this film, is a random, innocent girl, who gets mixed up with the wrong company. What's truly frightening, is thinking that this is a timeless theme of horror...
Dad just read this book and loved it. I agree, some themes last forever. There is no escaping human nature.
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