Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde
|
List Price: Our Price: $10.04 You Save: $9.91 (50%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $6.25 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
Movie Reviews of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde
Movie Review: Silent Horror Classic Adaptation
Summary: 5 Stars
By the year 1920, there'd already been several different film versions of the classic Robert Louis Stevenson novella centered around duality. However, John Barrymore's take, directed by John S. Robertson, would become the best known silent adaptation of the tale. This was the one that put several plot devices on the map. For instance, it introduced the good girl, bad girl dichotomy that mirror Jekyll and Hyde's sense of desire for the pure and profane. It wasn't taken too far in this version but become more developed in the definitive 1931 Rouben Mammoulien version starring Fredric March. One element it did add which did not remain was a sort of Dorian Grey touch involving Jekyll's fiancee's father.
Dr. Henry Jekyll, as opposed to the fifty year old private chemist portrayed in Stevenson's original, is here reimagined as a young and idealistic philanthropist who works late hours tending to the sick in his ward. His fiancee's father, Sir George Carewe, a more worldly man, tempts him by taking him to an "not respectable" bar where eyeing the women, especially a dancer played by Nita Naldi. He is inspired by the proposition of freeing man's baser nature from his more pure one. And, with that, he concocts a very potion that unleashes Edward Hyde, here seen as a spidery and disgusting manifestation of Jekyll's lower instincts.
Hyde now indulges in all the pleasures he could not as Jekyll. However, the path of illicit pleasures soon leads to destruction as Hyde ruins the lives of whomever he comes into contact with, and eventually commits murder. Even so, Jekyll also loses control when the transformations become involuntary, and he goes to sleep as the doctor but awakens as Hyde.
Many of the adaptations depict Hyde's growing evil in various ways. Here, its particularly interesting as Hyde's evil is represented in two, but comprehensive aspects. For instance, Hyde is pictured, as previously mentioned, like a spider, with pointed albino head, and elongated fingers; literally "creeping up" on his victims. The effects of his evil are metaphorically portrayed as disease-like; contagious and infecting all of his victims. This is made more clear on the DVD essay accompanying the movie which says the film was making subtle comparisons of Hyde's evil power with syphilis, which had been a horrible disease famous in the latter part of the 19th century, and still very much so at the time the film was released. Hyde's victims appear pale and weak with dark circles under their eyes much like those infected with syphillis. Hyde even goes so far to compare one fresh faced girl of the night he plans for his own amusement, to another he's already made use of and left behind who is now worn and sickly. Jekyll himself begins displaying signs of the sickness with dark circles under his eyes. Therefore, Hyde is a spider-like ogre carrying disease and vampirically draining the life force from his victims, including Jekyll (in a famous dream montage, Hyde is pictured as a giant spider crawling on top of Jekyll and sucking the life out of him; this causes Jekyll to change to Hyde).
This is but one theme of the film, though. There is enough of the classic story for everyone to recognize. Disease metaphors aside, Hyde goes onto become quite a brutal killer. He beats one victim pretty severely with a walking stick, and stomps over a young child, both clearly echoing Hyde's brutality in the novel.
John Barrymore, though pretty over the top by today's standards, gives a bravura performance as Jekyll/Hyde, even going so far as to portray much of the first half of the transformation with no make-up. More would indeed be added later on. He would use the Hyde make-up later on in life for practical joke purposes for which he was legendary. The rest of the supporting cast is quite good, especially the fiancee's father, Sir George Carewe, played by Brandon Hurst who helps lead Jekyll down his dark "Dorian Gray" like road. And, more would be made of the good girl/bad girl staple in later films, but it clearly marks a turn in adding a sexual motivation for, and component of, Hyde's evil. The film was one of the first horror movies, and is a classic staple of the 1920's silent pictures.
Movie Review: an early classic with all of the peculiar genius of silent film
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a must for any film buff: every gesture in this is significant and artfully rendered, even iconic. Visually, as in many silent films, it is utterly mesmerising and fascinating in their power, almost like a painting in the Louvre. It is important for the history of cinema to witness this film. You get the basic story of Jekyll/Hyde: a good doctor is tempted to explore his dark side, finds a chemical elixir to bring his id out, and eventually, it takes over completely.
What makes this film so intelligent is the acting with a young Barrymore, the start of a first-rate hollywood dynasty. I am used to his older self in the talkies, a wonderfully cynical actor in, say, Wonderful Life. In this film, he is in his prime, a handsome young man before he became so disillusioned with life as he in fact did. I great enjoyed seeing him so young.
Technically, the film is fun. Hyde is Jekyll, but with an elongated skull and extra joints on his fingers, expertly acted by a character change and plenty of grease. His girl, Millicent, is strikingly beautiful, in despair at his neglect, first of his mission for good and later as Hyde dominates him - there are themes of infidelity, barroom depravity, and perhaps pregnancy, all controversial to imply, let alone portray. This film advances all of these themes masterfully and unforgettably.
Recommended with enthusiasm.
Movie Review: For what it represents more than JB
Summary: 5 Stars
OK; two things to remember; first, as someone else pointed out, silent actors tended to be over the top a lot because they had to make up for the lack of sound. Virtually every silent star, even the true greats, fell into this trap. Second, John Barrymore, being a theatrical actor, would naturally be even a bit more hammy that the usual silent actor. That beside the point, the 1920 DJMH holds up well as an early horror film, with the transformation scene being nothing short of eerie, considering this film was made 5 years before Lon's Phantom of the Opera, often considered the pinnacle of silent make-up.
Barrymore achieves the Hyde look largely via facial manipulation and enlongated fingers, and his sinister aura is clearly felt, even when he's munching on a piece of scenery. The whole "feel" of the film, however is near-perfect, and Nita Naldi, almost 90 years after the fact, is still sexy in a dance-hall-singer sort of way. And yes, teh title cards could've been a bit more frequent and consistent. But these are minor things considering the whole. What's sad is the state of deterioration the film is in; it's not unwatchable by any means, but the quality is far below what some other films of the era look like. Still, Kino did a remarkable job. The extras are great as well, though it'd be nice to have the Lewis and 1911 versions on one DVD. Definitely a must-own
Movie Review: The Best Version of This Much-Done Movie
Summary: 5 Stars
John Barrymore shows us all what true acting is all about! To see the heartthrob of the 20's with his dashing good looks to suddenly turn into a pretty scary looking creature was very unexpected to me! As some previous reviewers had mentioned, they say his make-up for Mr. Hyde was "laughable". NOT TO ME! You have to see this film yourself to truly understand that, back then, without all the computer-generated gimmicks we have now, this is just TRUE exceptional horror in its day! True, Mr. Barrymore relied mostly on his eyes and the evil grin to "get across his point" as Mr. Hyde, but it works!!! I first had seen this as an afterthought movie that was thrown at the end of a horror movie collection I had purchased some years ago for my VCR player. It was in terrible condition, as I assumed it would be for such an old movie, but the darkness and the graininess of the film just added to the horror of it completely! I have seen many, many versions of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde but when I saw this version, it scared me to the core! Now I understand why John Barrymore was considered a classic actor of his time. He truly fits the bill of going from one extreme to the other, and in the end, isn't that REALLY what "acting" is all about???
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED but beware.......you will be scared!
Movie Review: One of the greatest silent films.
Summary: 5 Stars
I wish I could've been around when this movie first came out. For its time it is a truly shocking and horrific movie. As it stands I think it is one of the gems from the silent picture films era. It really tries very hard to delve into the difference between good and evil and the effects of it on a man who learns how to split himself into both. A really excellent film and a fantastic performance by John Barrymore with an excellent supporting cast. It's easy to see why Mr. Barrymore was one of the finest actors of his day. Enjoy!