''Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'' is a 1908
silent horror film starring
Hobart Bosworth
Hobart Van Zandt Bosworth (August 11, 1867 – December 30, 1943) was an American film actor, director, writer, and producer.
Early life
Bosworth was born on August 11, 1867, in Marietta, Ohio. His father was a sea captain in the Civil W ...
, and
Betty Harte in her film debut.
Directed
Director may refer to:
Literature
* ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine
* ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker
* ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty
Music
* Director (band), an Irish rock band
* ''D ...
by
Otis Turner
Otis Turner (November 29, 1862 – March 28, 1918) was an American director, screenwriter and producer. Between 1908 and 1917, he directed more than 130 films and wrote 40 scenarios. He was born in Fairfield, Indiana, and died in Los Angeles ...
and
produced by
William N. Selig
William Nicholas Selig (March 14, 1864 – July 15, 1948) was a pioneer of the American motion picture industry. In 1896 he created one of the first film production companies, Selig Polyscope Company of Chicago. Selig produced a string of co ...
, this was the first film adaptation of
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...
's 1886 novel ''
Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'' is a 1886 Gothic novella by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson. It follows Gabriel John Utterson, a London-based legal practitioner who investigates a series of strange occurrences between his old ...
''. The screenplay was actually adapted by
George F. Fish and
Luella Forepaugh from their own
1897 four act stage play derived from the novel, causing a number of plot differences with the original source. Despite Stevenson's protests, this film became the model which influenced all the later film adaptations that were to come.
[Haberman, Steve (2003). "Silent Screams". Midnight Marquee Press. p. 15. ]
Roy Kinnard states it is also considered to be
the first American horror film.
There are no known existing copies of the film today.
Plot
The film begins with the raising of a stage curtain. Dr. Jekyll vows his undying love for Alice, a vicar's daughter, in her spacious garden. Suddenly, seized by his addiction to the chemical formula, Jekyll begins to convulse and distort himself into the evil Mr. Hyde. He savagely attacks Alice, and when her father tries to intervene, Mr. Hyde takes great delight in slaughtering him. While in his lawyer's office, Dr. Jekyll sees visions of himself being executed for his crime.
Hyde later visits a friend Dr. Lanyon to ask him to procure some chemicals he needs, and after drinking the potion, he transforms back into Jekyll right before the doctor's eyes. Later in his lab, Jekyll transforms back into Mr. Hyde again, but haunted by visions of the gallows, he takes a fatal dose of poison, killing both of his identities simultaneously. In true theatrical tradition, the curtain then closes.
Production
The
screenplay was adapted by
George F. Fish and
Luella Forepaugh based on their own
1897 four act stage play, which was condensed into a 16-minute long film. Selig thought the screenplay he used was based directly on Stevenson's novel, not realizing it had been adapted from Fish and Forepaugh's stage play instead, causing some plot differences. Selig erroneously commented upon its release that his film was "presented in strict accordance with the original book....involving each detail of pose, gesture and expression.....executed by persons of indisputed dramatic ability."
Despite its brevity, the film was also organized into four acts, just like the play.
Each act consisted of a single scene, and the acts were separated onscreen by the rising and falling of a curtain. Selig produced a number of films from this period in much the same way, as if a static camera had simply photographed a stage play that was in progress.
The film was released seven months after the death of stage actor
Richard Mansfield
Richard Mansfield (24 May 1857 – 30 August 1907) was an English actor-manager best known for his performances in Shakespeare plays, Gilbert and Sullivan operas, and the play '' Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde''.
Life and career
Mansfield was born ...
. (Mansfield had created the part of Jekyll/Hyde in the theater in ''
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'', the first stage adaptation written by Thomas Russell Sullivan, beginning in 1887.)
To cash in on the popularity of their 1908 film, the Selig Polyscope company released another version of the Jekyll-Hyde story (running 7 minutes) in 1909 called ''A Modern Dr. Jekyll'', which updated the story to a contemporary setting. Jekyll's formula was depicted as more of a magic potion in that film, and even transforms him into a woman in one scene. The 1909 film is also considered lost.
Critiques
Jekyll's transformation into Hyde was filmed all in one continuous shot without the use of any special effects. Bosworth simply contorted his body into a hunchbacked position and slid part of the wig he was wearing lower down over his forehead.
Critics were enthusiastic, giving Bosworth special mention: "The change is displayed with a dramatic ability almost beyond comprehension".
Motion Picture World opined "The successful reproduction of this well-known drama surpassed our expectations".
[Kinnard, Roy (1995). "Horror in Silent Films". McFarland and Company Inc. . Page 24.]
References
External links
''Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde''at the
Internet Movie Database
IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde (1908 Film)
1908 films
1908 horror films
American black-and-white films
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde films
1900s science fiction horror films
Lost horror films
American silent short films
Films directed by Otis Turner
Selig Polyscope Company films
Lost American films
American science fiction horror films
1908 lost films
American films based on plays
1908 short films
1900s American films
Silent horror films
Silent science fiction films