10 Best Horror Movie Remakes Of All Time
2. Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde (1931)
The story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde has been around for so long now that it can be easy to lost track of all the different film adaptations. But long before the character was being squandered in modern films like The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, he received a proper classic film adaptation that truly did him justice.
The 1931 film, starring Frederic March and directed by Rouben Mamoulian was not the first film made based on Robert Louis Stevenson's novel, but it is undoubtedly the finest. Featuring innovative camera work, mind-boggling visual effects, and an astounding lead performance, the film embodies everything that is so great about this story.
Early on in the film, the slick direction and camera work ropes viewers in. One of the very first shots of the film is a POV shot, as Dr. Jekyll walks around his house. The audience follows along, but rules are broken as the camera passes a mirror and reveals not a camera, but Dr. Jekyll himself. Audiences at the time were completely unaccustomed to this kind of camera movement, and watching it now, it's shocking just how flawlessly the effect works to show how competent of a film it is, and also to literally put the audience in Dr. Jekyll's shoes.
It's stunning film from beginning to end and one that is more effective than any Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde adaptation before or since.