WasAnnon Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

Grimerlana Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Pluskylang Great Film overall

Fairaher The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Robert J. Maxwell It's a well-known story, the kind that made most sense during England's Victorian period. An innocent and respectable man somehow lets his savage unconscious loose and pays for it in the end. Dorian Gray served the same purpose for Oscar Wilde in "The Portrait of Dorian Gray." It took Freud to explain it to the public.This version of Jeykll and Hyde departs considerably from the novella as I remember it from years ago. All of the filmed versions do to some extent but this one is at the farthest remove.As Jeykll/Hyde, John Hannah gives it everything he's got but is somewhat undone by a confusing script that wanders around and covers not just gauche behavior -- stomping little girls on the street and erratic almost to the point of being presidential -- but several murders, purposeful in that Jeykll or Hyde is intentionally committing them, not just in a fit of pique, but to preserve the secrecy surrounding his, er, peculiar problem.There's no make up involved in the transition from one persona to another. Sometimes, as when angrily confronting the politically ambitious Sir Danvers Carew, one is reminded of the anecdote about the snooty critic taken to see one of the early films of the story and being told that the actor was playing the principal part. "I see. Which one is he now?" Then again, there are times when Hyde actually appears on screen opposite Jeykll and the two argue, with Hannah's Hyde sneering and ranting while Hannah's Jeykll cowers in the corner.If you can forget about the stark original and bull your way through the obfuscating obstacles, it's still a pretty good story. At least there are whores involved instead of Spencer Tray's show girls.

scathbeorh The acting is superb, the story-line flawless, the filming beautiful and creepy. This is a 'sleeper,' and, sad to say, one which was made for television and not wide release. But any die-hard fan of Horror or Mystery can't afford to let this one go by the wayside.Think you know already the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mister Hyde? I thought I did as well, and went into the film with an incredulous, nothing-else-to-watch attitude. But, as happens on occasion, my bad attitude was rewarded with surprise after surprise, and with an ending to this masterpiece that was/is deeply consoling and faith-building (to say the least).Plenty of bloodshed, classic British 'Dickensian' actors, prostitution, mob violence, brooding introspection, blackmail, self-licking lollipops, and the love of a wonderful Christian girl who should be, because of her circumstances, a hardened, angry person incapable of any feeling whatever.Don't miss this one!

Robodok I checked out this version of J&H on TV mainly because I'm a fan of John Hannah, but he was very disappointing in this role. It was his affability that made him a treat to watch in films such as 'Sliding Doors' and 'Four Weddings and a Funeral', and it is that very trait that undermines his portrayal of Mr Hyde. He is completely unconvincing as a menacing, dangerous figure, and the decision not to present Mr Hyde as physically different from Dr Jekyll exacerbates this problem, although it is an interesting choice artistically and could have paid rich dividends in the hands of an actor capable of projecting a truly intimidating presence. Also, his acts of barbarity, which are obviously meant to be shocking, don't have the desired effect; this is partly because of our familiarity with the story, but more so because of the lack of any real tension or suspense of any kind. Not only does Mr Hyde not seem as menacing as he is meant to be, but Dr Jekyll never convinces us that he was a paragon of virtue in the first place, due to inadequate exposure in the screenplay as well as the underwhelming acting and direction. The performances from the supporting actors likewise feel rather wet and unconvincing.It seems to me that the theme of this film was that there truly was no difference between Jekyll and Hyde, and that it was Dr Jekyll who deliberately chose evil. This point is made repeatedly in several repetitive scenes where Dr Jekyll keeps talking about "removing impurities" and that in the end he will "contain evil", and the servant Mabel time and again discusses the fact that we are able to choose between good and evil. This might have been an interesting subject had is been dealt with more subtly. The battle between the good and evil sides of a person also became more ridiculous as it became more explicit, and the resolution seemed to be designed more for its non-existent shock value than for any faithfulness to either the tale as it was originally told or to the tale as it had been told thus far in this film.Even if, or maybe especially if you are a fan of John Hannah, stay clear of this film if you want to avoid being disappointed on all levels.

sophie_lou21 A shorter comment then usual: Since it's release in the scandalise period of the Victorian era, Robert Louis Stevenson's novel DR JEKYLL AND MR HYDE has been a chief member of the classic horror monster stories. Along with Dracula, Frankenstein's monster, Mr Hyde joins the nightmare monsters that you wouldn't want to run into alone at the witching hour. Of course, after so many remade versions and far too many endless remakes, the world is all too aware who Mr Hyde is, and has gradually become a parody of itself.DR JEKYLL AND MR HYDE (2003) here is the best version so far as it takes the book and expands it in a way that it matches and in some cases, out does the original story. Bringing horror, fear and yet complete pity for Dr Jekyll into the equation, this film is hands down the best adaptation of the book. John Hannah (Sliding Doors, The Mummy and Four Wedding and a Funeral) plays Dr Jekyll, the young, kind, thoughtful and yet distressed doctor who finds himself a victim to his own desire to separate good from evil. Hannah is Dr Jekyll as much as Dr Jekyll is Mr Hyde. The way that John Hannah was able to show the split personality of the troubled doctor is amazing and Jekyll's slow decent into madness. While his appearance doesn't change, a darker side of Dr Jekyll in the form of Mr Hyde takes control and Jekyll is unable to stop it. His useless attempts to convince himself that it was Hyde, and not him that commits the crimes makes you pity him and feel for him all the more, the fact that he doesn't realise he is Mr Hyde.I urge everyone who had read the book or is a fan of the classical horror genre track this down on DVD and watch it. It's a treat to see an original and un-clichéd version of this classic horror thriller.