I read Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde once. It’s actually a rather short book. But really, does anyone in the Western world not know the story of Henry Jekyll, kindly doctor, who tries some formula of his own making and becomes the murderous Edward Hyde? It’s part of the greater culture like the stories of Dracula and Dr. Frankenstein.
As it is, the silent movie version with John Barrymore (Drew’s grandpa if I read the Wikipedia family tree correctly) is currently on Hulu, and clocking in at 70 minutes, sure seemed appropriate that such a short book would inspire an equally short movie.
Dr. Henry Jekyll (Barrymore) is a doctor and philanthropist, working to push the boundaries of what medical science can do far beyond the limits his more conservative colleagues think is wise when he isn’t treating the poor at his free clinic, to the point that he misses the high society dinners he is invited to. Engaged to a lively woman, Jekyll seems to have it all. But, concerned that he isn’t willing to occasionally indulge in a vice here and there after having an unexpected good time at a music hall, Jekyll devises a formula to transform himself into Edward Hyde, a being composed of all that is evil in Jekyll that the good doctor had, up until this point, managed to mostly suppress.
The problem is, the more Jekyll lets Hyde out to indulge in vice, the stronger Hyde becomes and the more evil Hyde comes up with. It isn’t long before Hyde’s actions go beyond simply going to the bad side of town and engaging in more ordinary bad behavior and goes into actions like pushing down children and murder. While the audience is fully aware of the dual life Jekyll is living through Hyde, no one else knows. They just wonder why a man as good as Jekyll could have anything to do with a man as vile as Hyde. It can only end badly for the good doctor at this rate.
I liked this one, and Barrymore plays the two characters-in-one well. Known for his handsome profile, he isn’t afraid to go evil with the Hyde make-up (or, in a weird dream, as a giant spider). The visuals help since, in Stevenson’s book, it seems to imply the only physical transformation is one of the aura Hyde gives off. He still looks a lot like Jekyll. He just gives off a sinister feeling in everyone he meets, many of whom are disgusted by his mere presence. That doesn’t work quite so well in film, so the character has to look visually different from Jekyll without being too different. Hyde is not an attractive man, nor should he be. The addition of the fiancee, not something from the source material, gives the work a more tragic air. It’s still a silent movie, so viewers should be aware that these may require a bit more patience than most movies, but this was good silent horror as the story adapts a well-known work of literature, perhaps to film for the first time.
Grade: B+
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