Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - DVD

"I'll show you what horror means..." growls the hideous Mr. Hyde (Fredric March) as the helpless, terrified Ivy (Miriam Hopkins) cowers on her bed. And now you'll see too, as you watch this fully restored 1932 version of Robert Louis Stevenson's spine-chilling masterpiece. With the inclusion of 17 minutes of previously censored material, this is the definitive Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Director Rouben Mamoulian's choice of young, handsom

It took John Barrymore to bring class to the American horror film, at least in the eyes of the industry. Dignified and virtuous as Dr. Henry Jekyll in this 1920 silent, Barrymore transforms into id incarnate as the lascivious Mr. Hyde. With almost no makeup beyond his gnarled, knobby fingers and greasy hair, Barrymore relies almost solely on a bug-eyed grimace, a spidery body language, and pure theatrical flourish. He tends to be hammy as the leering beast of a thug but brings a tortured struggle to the repressed doctor, horrified at the demon he's unleashed, guilty that he enjoys Hyde's unrestrained life of drinking and whoring, and terrified that he can no longer control the transformations. Martha Mansfield costars as his pure and innocent sweetheart, and Nita Naldi (the vamp of Blood and Sand) has a small but memorable role as the world-weary dance hall darling who first InchwakensInch Jekyll's Inchbaser natureInch.

Considered by many to be the first great American horror film, John S. Robertson's DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE allowed stage legend John Barrymore to deliver his first virtuoso performance on film. Blending historic charm with grim naturalism, this version of DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE is one of the more faithful of the many screen adaptations of Stevenson's story, recounting a visionary scientist's ill-fated attempts to unleash the human mysteries that dwell beneath the shell of the civilized self. Mastered from a 35 mm negative and complemented with a wealth of supplemental material, this Kino on Video edition beautifully showcases the dramatic brilliance and gruesome thrills of this influential American classic.