This is a TV series broadcast for the first time on 28 July 1955. It was presented by Gore Vidal. And, this is a cinematographic adaptation of the novel "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”, by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Throughout the duration of the film, the tension is very high; the atmosphere is frightening and gloomy. The director really wanted to stress the horrifying dimension of Stevenson's novel, and I think moreover that the philosophical dimension of the work is somewhat erased.
In this film, the viewer (spectator) is carried breath. Most scenes of the film are dark, and take place at night. We can see it all through the analysis and description of some screenshots of the film:
In this first screenshot, Utterson, reading the newspaper "The London Review", learns the horrible Mister Hyde crimes. The newspaper headlines: “Horrible crime in Soho; Police search for Mr. Hyde.” In fact, the Hyde murders make the headlines, so all Londoners are aware of it.
Also, the director chose to show the metamorphoses Jekyll after it drank the potion. The director therefore uses special effects to increase the fear of viewer and show the fantastic* dimension of the work of Stevenson.
[*The fantasy genre is a literary genre that is characterized by the intrusion of reality in a real setting. In fact, Stevenson's novel has a fantastic dimension because this novel is based on science to make the story plausible. However, it is allowed to doubt, so the invention of an elixir to transform the human being into a monster, that’s it supernatural.]
In this film, facial expressions are very important, so the viewer can feel the intensity of the fear of the characters. For example, in this screen the face is completely disfigured because the woman is horrified: She sees Jekyll that is about to change.
The camera makes close-up on their faces. Thus, the viewer sees the transformation of the face of Hyde, so buttons grow on his face, wrinkles appear, teeth gradually become black etc.
Moreover, the story telling by Jekyll as the narrative back drop is very interesting because, through it, the viewer is always in relation to Dr. Jekyll. He knows his feelings; he follows his actions and his thoughts carefully. This makes it possible therefore to distinguish between Jekyll, which is a human and maybe a good person, and Hyde, which is a monster.
To conclude, this movie is scary. The music and the voiceover bring the film a particularly frightening dimension; the film keeps the viewer in suspense; Hyde transformation leaves the spectator with horror and incomprehension (because first viewer doesn’t explain himself the fact that Jekyll be transform him). Can we believe that elixir can transform man into a monster? Embedded in the flow of the plot, the viewer is to be at the mercy to the director of the film: the viewer is frightening.
Thanks for reading.
Thomas Debled.