Madame Hyde

To be totally honest, what I like most about Mrs. Hyde is that she's independent, inscrutable, and a little rough around the edges.

Mrs. Hyde (Madame Hyde in the original French) is a scientific indie parable about a beleaguered high school physics teacher (Mrs. Géquil, which, strangely enough, sounds a lot like the French pronunciation of 'Jekyll') of children in difficulty. On the night of a red moon, she's working in her lab and a lightning strike passes through her equipment (she's doing experiments on body heat and electricity) and into her. This electroshock transforms her into a better teacher during the day and a strange, burning red moon creature in the evening.

If this film had been a polished, studio release, it would have been a shocking waste. But as it's an indie filmed backed by a surprisingly a-list cast (Isabelle Huppert, Romain Duris, José Garcia...), the look and feel of the film is reminiscent of Michel Gondry's La Science des Rêves.

This is a film that won't be liked by many, but those who appreciate quirky, weird, tongue-in-cheek independent modern fables with offbeat humour will find something to enjoy here. Mrs. Hyde is an uncomfortable experience, but not an unpleasant one.

Mrs Hyde (2018)

This is a quirky little film, held together by the sincerely studied acting of Isabelle Huppert. Romain Duris as the school principal is a bit miscast, but José Garcia as Huppert's sweet and loving husband might be the second highlight overall. It begins a bit tired, in my view, with yet another version of a classroom filled with unruly students and a teacher who can't cope. It's not unconvincing, but it has no freshness at all (except maybe Huppert's slightly unlikely incompetence). But this is the point of the movie underlying the more sensational paranormal stuff. The big twist is well advertised but I won't say what it is, except to point to the title and its reference to the Hyde of Dr. Jekyll. Huppert's character is meant to show two halves in opposition. Don't forget this is a kind of wry comedy, though it isn't outrageous and perky enough to ever quite take off. If there is an element of the mystical, or of something serious, then that, too, is watered down and not enough. The basic premise here might have had promise, but the adaptation and actual script are weak. There's no special reason to watch this film unless some odd aspect to all this strikes your fancy.

The movie, Mrs. Hyde, is inspired by the well-known novel "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde". The doctor is replaced here by a teacher of sciences confronted to problematic pupils. After a lightning she changes gradually her behaviour and starts transforming at night.

This is an indie movie in a very European style. This being said, it is not surprising that people who are not used to this genre feel a bit lost, and do not expect to like it if you are in that situation. This means that it is quirky compared to a more mainstream cinema, and it uses ellipsis, letting many things implicit.

The picture is also quite typical of the genre but this movie has its own personality when it comes to the colours. In that, you can see it as a less aggressive version of Amélie, with shadings of pastel blue.

As an indie movie it does quite well, but nothing exceptional either. The actors are doing very well but the rhythm is unequal.

There are already plenty of French movies about high schools in disadvantaged French suburbs, with very expected happy endings. This movie takes some distance from that as it carries on its "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"-kind story. Thanks to this distance we also appreciate better the development of the pupils. The very sudden turn in the pupil's behaviour still looks kind of artificial.

How on earth Huppert agreed to do this film ? It's so bizarre and terrible that you really don't care after five minutes and you know you are wasting your time. Director tried to make a dark comedy but it turned out a disaster. You don't know what is it that you are watching, horror ? Social commentary to contemporary French society or a film goes wrong from the beginning

French style of polar mixed with sci-fi. But it's flat, slow, no relevance and boring.