Dr. Jekyll y su hermana Hyde

I am looking back on this movie with rose-tinted spectacles. I saw it when it first came out at the movies and it was quite risqué at the time. Nowadays, the levels of nudity and prurience would probably be laughable but I do remember feeling a stirring in my loins at the scene where Dr Jekyll realises he is now a woman and the first thing he does is have a good gander. Probably exactly what I'd have done at the time! Plot-wise it's pretty much the straight Jekyll/Hyde story and apart from the twist of changing sex very little is different.

Good performances from Ralph Bates and Martine Beswick who in my opinion didn't get the roles she deserved as she was very much Hammer's leading lady and not a mainstream actress. Very much in the mould of a dark haired version of Ingrid Pitt.

Oh well, I guess a DVD version of this will be available soon if not now and I will watch with relish. However, be warned, I recently bought a DVD of Vampire Lovers and was totally disappointed - obviously my memory of this other movie was tinged with nostalgia for a more innocent time.

At any rate, a movie to be enjoyed when placed into the context of it being made in the early 70's, Hammer were not making a lot of money and were trying to bring a little sex into their horror movies.

Hammer Films produced a number of classics and an even larger number of very good, entertaining films and a few misses. While Dr Jekyll and Sister Hyde is not a classic, it is one of their better later films, and much better than Hammer's other Jekyll and Hyde re-imagining The Two Faces of Dr Jekyll.

Dr Jekyll and Sister Hyde looks incredibly good, no surprise seeing as Hammer's films always looked good no matter the quality of the rest of the film. The sets and lighting recreate the Victorian London era with lovingly and evocatively and they look sumptuous and splendidly Gothic. One also has to love the rich colours and the beautiful and atmospheric photography. It is not just that the production values look great that is really well done, but also how much it contributes towards the feel and atmosphere of the film, here the atmosphere is wonderfully moody and has a real sense of fear throughout, which were not always there as effectively in other later Hammer films.

The film also has a chillingly haunting, with also some touches of lush romanticism, score with an at times Rachmaninov sound to it, the dark richness of the orchestration adding so much. It also has the advantage of being well placed and used effectively, excepting some overblown moments in a couple of the transformation scenes. Dr Jekyll and Sister Hyde is very intelligently scripted, with some witty and thought-provoking dialogue, while the story(with one of Hammer's most innovative and pretty ingenious premises) is incredibly clever and enormous fun, the suspenseful and often very creepy atmosphere staying consistent all the time and the chills and scares come off tastefully and unsettlingly. Loved the use of the Jack the Ripper mystery, which really did give off a sense of dread, and the nod to Sweeney Todd. The transformation scenes are beautifully shot and boast good effects work and a real edge-of-your-seat tension. The film is strongly directed, the characters carry the narrative very well and the acting is solid; with Ralph Bates giving by far his best performance in a Hammer film and Martine Beswick- youthful beauty at its best- even better in a menacing but never over-the-top performance.

It's not perfect however, but comes close. There are a few pacing longueurs, where a few scenes towards the start dragged just a little. And while the film is incredibly entertaining, rich in atmosphere and does a great job with the majority of its ideas, others did come off rather clumsily, especially the anachronistic and out of place inclusion of Burke and Hare, leaving one wonder why they were included in the first place(a nod to Stevenson's story The Body Snatcher perhaps?).

Overall, while not without flaws and not one of the Hammer classics, it's one of their better later films and never fails to entertain, chill and engage, making the most out of a great premise. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Dr. Jekyll (Ralph Bates) is a scientist researching the cure of many diseases. He is a very reserved and shy man, and spends most of his time working on his laboratory. One day, his friend Professor Robertson (Gerald Sim) visits him and advises that he would probably die before the conclusion of his studies. Dr. Jekyll decides to research an elixir of life, based on feminine hormones, to extend his life and consequently end his work. He uses female corpses to get the hormones. The effect of the elixir releases his '"feminine repressed side" and he becomes an aggressive and beautiful woman, Ms. Hyde (Martine Beswick). When the bodies finish in the city morgue, Dr. Jekyll starts killing women to proceed with his research.

"Dr. Jekyll & Sister Hyde" is another charming movie by Hammer and a great entertainment. The theatrical style uses few locations and the gore and killing are not graphic. Fans of Hammer Film Productions will certainly enjoy this different version of the classic story Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Médico & Irmã Monstro" ("The Doctor and Sister Monster")

Hammer's Dracula and Frankenstein movies starring Christopher Lee and/or Peter Cushing are probably their best known, but dig deeper and you'll find some even more original and inventive movies from the studio. Like 'Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde', one of the very best. Ralph Bates had appeared in a couple of not very good Hammer movies prior to this, but he's perfectly cast as Dr. Jekyll and the choice of the stunning Martine Beswick as his alter ego makes this really something to see! Beswick had already been a Bond girl and co-starred with Raquel Welch in Hammer's unforgettable trash classic 'One Million Years B.C.' before this. She later appeared in cult favourites like Oliver Stone's 'Seizure' and 'The Happy Hooker Goes To Hollywood', but this to me is the definitive Beswick role. She is so sexy and evil in this movie, you'll never forget her once you see it. Gerald Sim plays Jekyll's horny colleague Professor Robertson, and Jekyll and Hyde's lives are complicated by their respective love interests (sister and brother) Susan (Susan Broderick) and Howard (Lewis Fiander). Broderick is really lovely. She seemed familiar but it wasn't until I looked her up that I realized where I had seen her before. David Hemmings buys something from her antique store towards the beginning of 'Blowup'. Fiander incidentally appeared with Gerard Sim in 'Dr.Phibes Rises Again' the year after this, but did very little subsequent horror work. As well as the great cast, the movie is helped enormously by a fresh script from Brian Clemens, and the solid direction from Roy Ward Baker, who had both previously worked on 'The Avengers'. It's funny, most fans immediately name Terence Fisher as Hammer's best director, but Baker directed three out of my Top Five Hammer movies (the others being 'The Vampire Lovers' and 'Quatermass And The Pit'), so I'd choose him instead. 'Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde' is wonderfully entertaining, and I give it my highest recommendation. If you've ever enjoyed a Hammer movie but haven't seen this one you're in for a real treat!

Not to be confused with "Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde" ('95) or "Daughter of Dr. Jekyll ('57), "Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde" ('71) is a wonderful entertainment that was written and coproduced by Brian Clemens. Clemens, perhaps best known for his work on TV's cult series "The Avengers," as well as for writing and directing "Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter" (his only other film for Hammer Studios, in '74), also wrote a song for "DJASH"; needless to say, he is a man of many talents. In this film, he not only conflates the Whitechapel murders of Jack the Ripper in 1888, the notorious body snatcher/serial killers Burke and Hare (who both died many years before that, but no matter), and R.L. Stevenson's oft-told Jekyll and Hyde story, but gives it all a novel spin by having Jekyll transform into a woman. Also interesting is the fact that Jekyll, well played by Ralph Bates, is almost as monstrous as the Hyde creaturette that he becomes: Jekyll is willing to murder street trollops in order to obtain the female hormones needed for his experiments. Martine Beswick, it must be said, is perfect as Bates' "feminine side." She really does look like his female counterpart, and manages to appear both beautiful and scary looking at the same time. The film is very nice to look at, too; almost like an episode of "Masterpiece Theatre," but with more blood and mayhem. All in all, this is still another winner from the House of Hammer...with loads of fine extras on this DVD, too!