(1960. Paul Massie. Dawn Davis. Christopher Lee. Dir. Terence Fisher. 88 min.) Clever rethink of the old Robert Louis Stevenson tale done with the panache of Hammer Films in it’s hey-day. A chump Dr. Jekyll, sexy wife Kitty, and mooch friend Paul (a very amusing Christopher Lee) form an uneasy love triangle until Jekyll shoots his dope and turns into lady-killer Hyde. Of all the Hammer Horror films maybe the best written, with weird twists like Hyde going to Jekyll’s house to seduce his own wife, or Jekyll sucking his beard back into his face. Victorian era whorehouses, more beaver shots than you can count, and Oliver Reed getting hit over the head with a bottle. Where else are you going to see Christopher Lee puffing on an opium pipe? Ah they don’t make them like that anymore.
