Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941)

Dr. Jekyll allows his dark side to run wild when he drinks a potion that turns him into the evil Mr. Hyde.

Director:

Victor Fleming

Writers:

John Lee Mahin (screen play), Robert Louis Stevenson (based on the novella by)

Stars:

Spencer Tracy, Ingrid Bergman, Lana Turner

Nominated for 3 Oscars.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Spencer Tracy	...	Dr. Henry Jekyll / Mr. Hyde
Ingrid Bergman	...	Ivy Peterson
Lana Turner	...	Beatrix Emery
Donald Crisp	...	Sir Charles Emery
Ian Hunter	...	Dr. John Lanyon
Barton MacLane	...	Sam Higgins
C. Aubrey Smith	...	The Bishop
Peter Godfrey	...	Poole
Sara Allgood	...	Mrs. Higgins
Frederick Worlock	...	Dr. Heath (as Frederic Worlock)
William Tannen	...	Intern Fenwick
Frances Robinson	...	Marcia
Denis Green	...	Freddie
Billy Bevan	...	Mr. Weller
Forrester Harvey	...	Old Prouty

Storyline

Dr. Jekyll believes good and evil exist in everyone. Experiments reveal his evil side, named Hyde. Experience teaches him how evil Hyde can be: he kills Ivy who earlier expressed interest in Jekyll and Sir Charles, Jekyll's fiancée's father.

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Plot Keywords:

experiment | doctor | potion | year 1887 | animal experimentation | 

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Taglines:

Are You a Jeykll or a Hyde?

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

September 1941 (USA)

Also Known As:

El hombre y la bestia

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min 108 min (video)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was a notorious critical failure when released, although it eventually made a profit of $2 million around the world. Spencer Tracy later said it was by far the least favorite of the films he had starred in, and that his performance was "awful". The New York Times famously described it as "not so much evil incarnate as ham rampant ... more ludicrous than dreadful."

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Goofs

It does not make sense how Ivy does not recognize Hyde when he looks almost exactly the same as Jekyll.

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Quotes

Ivy Peterson: What are you going to do?
Dr. Henry Jekyll: Something so simple. I'm going to put an end to all that confusion.

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Connections

Featured in 100 Years of Horror: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1996)

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Soundtracks

See Me Dance the Polka
(uncredited)
Music and Lyrics by George Grossmith
Additional Lyrics by John Lee Mahin
Sung by Alice Mock in the "Palace of Frivolties" show
Reprised by Ingrid Bergman
Whistled by Spencer Tracy (whistling dubbed by Robert Bradford)

User Reviews

Ponderous - certainly not scary - but beautiful.

This is a thoughtful interpretation of the Stevenson story but is very rarely emotionally engaging. The theme seems to be sexual repression, with Hyde coming from Jekyll's repressed lust. As Hyde takes over we witness some extraordinary and very graphic Freudian imagery such as Bergman and Turner, naked, pulling a chariot containing Tracy and his whip, and Bergman being screwed out of a bottle by a corkscrew! Amazing. But the horror of the story is never realized and there is too much philosophical chat.

Tracy is terrific in the lead, but his make-up for Hyde is too subtle to be effective. The transformations require him to stand completely still which makes them a bit dull. The final transformation is quite an achievement however. Bergman could have been great but her attempt at a cockney accent seriously detracts from her fine emotional interpretation. Lana Turner is awful as Tracy's true love. But the rest of the cast is very strong - especially Donald Crisp.

The film also contains some fine Fleming touches, including his beautiful slow pans over magnificent sets and crowd scenes. The cinematography is excellent - make sure you don't watch the colorised version - and foggy Victorian London is recreated stunningly. This film never rises to the horror of the 1920 or the 1932 versions but still has much to offer.