Harefooted Halloween: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)

What I Liked: This film is famous for two things and one is the makeup effects.  To transition from Jekyll to Hyde makeup effects artist Wally Westmore (Double Indemnity) and director Rouben Mamoulian (The Mark of Zorro) applied layers of different colors to Fredric March’s face that were revealed in real time through various colored filters in front of the camera.  The end result is arresting.  The shift is so smooth and quick that it looks impossible.  On top of this March is gagging and writhing in agony accentuating his now ghastly discolored face.  Just incredible.  The other transformation scenes are very well done too with the camera panning down to March’s hands to show them turning a darker color and then quick panning up to his face that is either in the midst of transforming or has already fully converted over.  I think a key element to selling these scenes is how fast the changeover is.  It’s not instantaneous but it isn’t dwelled upon either as if to nudge you in the ribs while saying “hey check this out!”  All convincing and marvelous decisions.  I had to rewind these scenes a couple of times to soak them all up including one showing Jekyll only from the back when he suddenly starts to eerily grow taller.

If you came for the effects then you’ll stay for the other famous aspect, Fredric March’s (The Best Years of Our Lives) performance.  He pulls off the genial and amorous Dr. Jekyll and the barbarous and hateful Mr. Hyde perfectly.  We see that as Jekyll he cares for his patients, has a good rapport with his colleagues and friends and dearly loves his fiancé, Muriel (Rose Hobart (Wolf of New York)).  But we also glean that he’s impatient and impulsive.  For example, he hates that his future father-in-law won’t move up the wedding date or when Muriel goes out of town for a month that’s when he decides to take the potion to turn himself into Hyde because he doesn’t know what to do with himself.  As Mr. Hyde March successfully pivots to an entirely different persona.  Aside from outwardly appearing more ape-like (inspiration was a Neanderthal) with a helmet of matted hair on his head, more hair in general, a forward brow, a larger wider nose, buck teeth with top and bottom fangs and a darker complexion, March alters his voice to be gravellier, moves sharply and speedily like a squirrel, has facial ticks where he can’t stop moving his mouth, creepily smiles most of the time and acts like a total piece of shit to everyone he comes in contact with.  It’s one thing for Hyde to look beastly but boy, he definitely acts like a goddamn monster (more on that in a minute).  Part of what makes March so good here is he gives you the sense that Jekyll has some unsettling shit bubbling beneath the surface so the leap to Hyde isn’t insurmountable.  His portrayal is truly sad where you feel for Jekyll’s inability to get a handle on his circumstance.  He feels horrible about the choices he’s made and attempts to make good but Hyde’s devastation is inescapable.

Miriam Hopkins (The Heiress) as prostitute Ivy Pierson is just as compelling.  Jekyll shows her kindness when she needed help so she sorta falls for him.  He can’t seem to forget about her either and as Hyde he chases after her.  The moment Ivy lays eyes on Hyde she’s appalled by his appearance but tries to keep it together.  She’s able to entertain him for a moment but soon after runs for the exit.  Tragically she’s held prisoner and, well, uh, oh jeez, I’m pretty sure the implication is that she’s repeatedly raped by him over the course of a month.  I don’t think you can interpret the situation any other way.  Hyde’s torture extends to psychological abuse as well with him constantly questioning her devotion and remaining physically close to her whenever they’re in the room together.  It’s suffocating to watch.  And man, Hopkins gives a masterful and completely heartbreaking performance.  She’s absolutely terrified but doesn’t know what to do.  She’s too scared to run away or fight back.  She pleads with Jekyll to help her but of course, she’s unknowingly tipping off Hyde that she’s looking for a way out.  It’s unbelievable how awful this character is treated.  Hopkins makes you wanna leap in there and save her.

A third, and lesser talked about element, is the camerawork.  From the very start cinematographer Karl Struss (The Great Dictator, Some Like it Hot) uses a POV shot of Jekyll playing the organ, checking himself in the mirror, riding a buggy to the lecture hall and greeting his colleagues.  It’s weird and different.  Struss employs this POV technique several times with the mirror work being the most impressive where he has to sync March’s movements in the mirror with what’s happening directly in front of the camera.  And I’m no expert but a bunch of other angles and camera moves used throughout I think are unique for the early 30’s.  He gets shots that are more like what you would see decades later in the 50’s or 60’s.  I never knew this type of camerawork existed at that time.  Stunning and remarkable.

Finally, the set design is beautiful.  Jekyll’s mad scientist laboratory has all the wonderful hallmarks like a million glass tubes of various solutions bubbling away, smoke, fire, paperwork scattered about, dramatic lighting, the works.  Dance halls and sex worker quarters are filthy, the streets are foggy, the lecture hall is grand, Jekyll’s and Muriel’s homes are enormous and opulent.  Additionally, the world the characters live in has a labyrinthine quality that’s slightly disorientating.

What I Didn’t Like: Sure, I could bring up some nitpicks like Hyde’s teeth are so bulky March clearly has some difficulty speaking in them, there are these counter-clockwise scene transition wipes that tend to awkwardly start before the current scene is finished, everyone pronounces Jekyll’s name “Jeek-all” instead of “Jeck-all” which I’m sure is more accurate if a touch distracting, but I mean everything else is so expertly crafted none of this shit matters that much.

Overall Impressions: A classic for sure.  This is by far the best version of Jekyll and Hyde I’ve seen (haven’t checked out the infamous 1920 silent version yet though).  Not only is it captivating, devastating, thrilling, moving and disturbing but it’s also scandalous.  This was made pre-Hays Code so there’s suggestive stuff like bare leg, side boob, implied rape and brutal head bashing with a cane.  Damn.

If you thought the Jekyll and Hyde concept was dumb or hokey or a metaphor for human nature that’s too on the nose then try this one out.  I can’t recommend it enough.