I was always under the impression I'd dislike this film because it's so much in the shadow of the 1931 film and essentially replaced it in the public consciousness for literal decade, and while those things are true I simultaneously still really liked this! It's more refined, beautifully photographed, less ambitious, and not pre-code in the slightest compared to the March version, but still takes a lot of what worked in that film into this one. Spencer Tracy is such a fantastic choice for this role, who appropiately uses his screen persona as a paragon of virtue for Jekyll and then completely flips that notion on its head with Hyde. I even like that his Hyde still looks like him, even if he does become more monstrous as the film progresses, which feels more in line with the story as opposed to March's increasingly simian Hyde. Ingrid Bergman does seem to get some flack for this one, she isn't anywhere near Miriam Hopkins and her cockney is questionable, but I still really liked her performance and the sympathy she elicits. Again, the March film is a masterpiece and the one to watch, but this version still is very good and doesn't deserve its derision.
I was always under the impression I'd dislike this film because it's so much in the shadow of the 1931 film and essentially replaced it in the public consciousness for literal decade, and while those things are true I simultaneously still really liked this! It's more refined, beautifully photographed, less ambitious, and not pre-code in the slightest compared to the March version, but still takes a lot of what worked in that film into this one. Spencer Tracy is such a fantastic choice for this role, who appropiately uses his screen persona as a paragon of virtue for Jekyll and then completely flips that notion on its head with Hyde. I even like that his Hyde still looks like him, even if he does become more monstrous as the film progresses, which feels more in line with the story as opposed to March's increasingly simian Hyde. Ingrid Bergman does seem to get some flack for this one, she isn't anywhere near Miriam Hopkins and her cockney is questionable, but I still really liked her performance and the sympathy she elicits. Again, the March film is a masterpiece and the one to watch, but this version still is very good and doesn't deserve its derision.
