# Film versions of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 15, 2010, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811 "2010-09-15T04:15:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811/1 "2010-09-15T04:15:15Z")
I’m watching a DVD which has both the 1932 and 1941 versions of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I like both of these versions although I’d say the Fredric March 1932 version is a bit better as it doesn’t have the long dialogue scenes which tend to slow down the 1941 Spencer Tracy film. I’ve seen the 1920 silent version, although it doesn’t really stick in my mind. I’ll have to rent it again. Are there other film versions of Dr. Jekyll that are worth watching? ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811/2 "2010-09-15T11:52:58Z")
There are plenty of them. I remember that when I was a kid in the 1960s, _Famous Monsters of Filmland_ listed all the extant versions _then_. It filled an entire page. Of course, that’s not the _good_ versions. I think that in the 1932 Fredric March/Rouben Mamoulian version you have the very best one. I love the little camera and directorial tricks Mamoulian pulls, and this was pre-Hays, so they got away with a little more than the 1941 version did. The 1920 version is memorable chiefly because Barrymore didn’t use any makeup in the Transformations. It’s interesting and well done, but not so great that it’s a Must See. Of the other versions I’ve seen, the TV movie in the late 1960s or early 1970s with Jack Palance stands out as a pretty good one. I don’t think it’s available, though. Two comedy versions are interesting for reasons other than the story. The original _The Nutty Professor_ with Jerry Lewis has been overshadowed by the Eddie Murphy film of the same name (with Lewis, I’m surprised to learn, produced), but it doesn’t have the same feel. When it was originally released, the trailer said “You can reveal the beginning, and you can reveal the end, but don’t reveal the Surprise Middle!” It wasn’t just a trailer joke. The trailer showed a gruesome-looking transformation scene, but didn’t show the result. At the end of it all, Jerry Lewis turned into A suave, cool, utterly unlike his spastic character lounge-singer type who had a thing for the ladies. Nobody missed the implication that Jerry Lewis’ “Mr. Hyde” was, for all intents and purposes, his ex-partner Dean Martin, who he’d broken up with a few years previously. I’m sure this contributed to their long separation. The other was **Jeckyll and Hyde – Together Again** , with its lame 1980s sex and drugs jokes.\* But the highlight of the film is the appearance of a pre-Elvira Cassandra Peterson as a busty OR nurse. \*The drug that turns Jeckyll into Hyde is pretty explicitly compared to cocaine, which is pretty interesting when you consider that many have suggested that the real cocaine influenced Stevenson in writing the original story (although he said it was all due to a nightmare). This theory may have influenced the making of this movie. Actually, the very best version is the original story, which is a surprisingly good read. If you haven’t read it, I recommend it highly. If you can, get _the Essential Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde_, with copious footnotes by Leonard Wolf. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811/3 "2010-09-15T12:15:17Z")
The Jack Palance version is available from Amazon- new on VHS (most expensive _L_), alone on DVD, with his DRACULA on DVD, or (best value) in THE DAN CURTIS COLLECTION which has his JECKYLL & DRACULA, also Turn of the Screw & The Picture of Dorian Gray. I recommend that latter, and also get the separately packaged Curtis production of Frankenstein which was awesome for 1973. Other good J&H versions I’ve seen- 1973 NBC-TV musical version (that’s right) starring Kirk Douglas and 1980 BBC-PBS Mystery Theatre version with David Hemmings (old duffer Jeckyll & young vibrant thoroughly depraved Hyde). I wasn’t impressed by the 1990 Michael Caine ABC-TV version (surprisingly). Never (also surprisingly) saw either the Hammer ‘Two Faces of Dr. Jeckyll’ or Chris Lee’s 'I Monster" (which didn’t use the J&H names). I did see AND liked Hammer’s “Dr. J and Sister Hyde”. ---
**Author:** ![wedgehed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8edcca/32.png) [@wedgehed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wedgehed)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811/4 "2010-09-15T12:38:29Z")
If we’re including offshoots of the original story, I enjoyed [Mary Reilly](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Reilly_%28film%29) & the TV series [Jeckyll](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jekyll_%28TV_series%29). ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811/5 "2010-09-15T12:42:17Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > \ > Two comedy versions are interesting for reasons other than the story. The original _The Nutty Professor_ with Jerry Lewis has been overshadowed by the Eddie Murphy film of the same name (with Lewis, I’m surprised to learn, produced), but it doesn’t have the same feel. When it was originally released, the trailer said “You can reveal the beginning, and you can reveal the end, but don’t reveal the Surprise Middle!” It wasn’t just a trailer joke. The trailer showed a gruesome-looking transformation scene, but didn’t show the result. At the end of it all, Jerry Lewis turned into > > A suave, cool, utterly unlike his spastic character lounge-singer type who had a thing for the ladies. Nobody missed the implication that Jerry Lewis’ “Mr. Hyde” was, for all intents and purposes, his ex-partner Dean Martin, who he’d broken up with a few years previously. I’m sure this contributed to their long separation. > > \ Despite not being a Lewis fan, I have fond memories of this movie. Murphy’s brand of humor has ruined more than one old movie remake. His Dr. Dolittle movies are a travesty as well. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811/6 "2010-09-15T13:47:27Z")
David Hasselhoff starred in the video of the [musical](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0279887/), and became an icon for the show. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811/7 "2010-09-15T14:29:24Z")
Actually, Lewis has said the character of Buddy Love in **The Nutty Professor** was based upon himself. Lewis actually was behaving that way at the time. Buddy Love = Dean Martin is overly glib, especially since the character has few of Martin’s mannerisms and seems much more like it’s a parody of Frank Sinatra’s persona. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811/8 "2010-09-15T14:40:30Z")
> [@](#): > > Buddy Love = Dean Martin is overly glib as often, we’re going to have to disagree here. Many saw Lewis’ portrayal as a smack against Martin at the time, and today as well. As the Wikipedia entry states; “Buddy Love is often interpreted as a lampoon of Lewis’ former show business partner Dean Martin” They wouldn’t say that if people _weren’t_ thinking it. It may be many things, but it ain’t “glib”. And Lewis may deny it and even be perfectly honest about it, but it’s still a wide perception. ---
**Author:** ![Rocketeer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocketeer/32/4437_2.png) [@Rocketeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rocketeer)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2010, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811/9 "2010-09-16T14:44:48Z")
The Frederic March version is\*\* intense\*\*. I was watching it with my young-teen daughter, and we were both horrified during the scene when he verbally abuses his (prostitute) girlfriend. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2010, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-versions-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/553811/10 "2010-09-17T17:53:23Z")
I love the March version. Especially that they pronounce it JEE-kyll; I thought there must have been a lot of people around at the time who were around when Stephenson was active and that was how it was pronounced. But I read later that JEE-kyll was the Scottish way and Jeck-yll was the English. Can’t confirm. Yes, Miriam Hopkins really took a beating.