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{{Short description|1996 film by Stephen Frears}}
{{Infobox Film | name =Mary Reilly
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
| image =Mary_Reilly.jpg
{{Infobox film
| caption ='''Theatrical Release Poster'''
| name = Mary Reilly
| director = [[Stephen Frears]]
| image = Mary_Reilly.jpg
| producer =
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| writer = Valerie Martin (novel)<br>Christopher Hampton (screenplay)
| director = [[Stephen Frears]]
| starring =[[Julia Roberts]]<br>[[John Malkovich]]<br>[[George Cole]]<br>[[Michael Gambon]]
| producer = [[Norma Heyman]]<br />[[Ned Tanen]]<br />Nancy Graham Tanen
| music =
| writer = [[Christopher Hampton]]
| cinematography =
| based_on = {{based on|''[[Mary Reilly (novel)|Mary Reilly]]''|[[Valerie Martin]]}}
| editing =
| starring = {{Plainlist|
| distributor = [[TriStar Pictures]]
* [[Julia Roberts]]
| released = [[February 23]], [[1996]] (U.S. release)
* [[John Malkovich]]
| runtime = 108 min
* [[George Cole (actor)|George Cole]]
| language = English
* [[Michael Gambon]]
| budget = $47,000,000 (estimated)
| imdb_id = 0117002
}}
}}
| music = [[George Fenton]]
'''''Mary Reilly''''' is a [[1996 in film|1996]] film directed by [[Stephen Frears]]. The movie was written by [[Christopher Hampton]] based on the novel ''[[Mary Reilly (novel)|Mary Reilly]]'' by [[Valerie Martin]]. This was the re-teaming of director Frears, screenwriter Hampton, and actors [[John Malkovich]] and [[Glenn Close]], all of whom were involved in the Oscar-nominated ''[[Dangerous Liaisons]]'' (1988).
| cinematography = [[Philippe Rousselot]]
| editing = [[Lesley Walker]]
| studio = [[TriStar Pictures]]
| distributor = [[Sony Pictures Releasing]]
| released = {{film date|1996|2|23|United States}}
| runtime = 108 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget = $47 million<ref name=numbers>{{cite web|title=Mary Reilly - Box Office Data|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/1996/0MARE.php|publisher=The Numbers|access-date= August 16, 2011}}</ref>
| gross = $12.9 million<ref name=numbers />
}}
'''''Mary Reilly''''' is a 1996 American [[Gothic fiction|gothic]] [[horror film]] directed by [[Stephen Frears]] and starring [[Julia Roberts]] and [[John Malkovich]]. It was written by [[Christopher Hampton]] and adapted from the 1990 [[Mary Reilly (novel)|novel of the same name]] by [[Valerie Martin]] (itself inspired by [[Robert Louis Stevenson]]'s 1886 novella ''[[Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde]]'').


It reunited director Frears, screenwriter Hampton, and actors Malkovich and [[Glenn Close]], who were involved in the Oscar-winning ''[[Dangerous Liaisons]]'' (1988).
==Plot outline==


''Mary Reilly'' was theatrically released by [[TriStar Pictures]] on February 23, 1996 to poor reviews. It was a [[box-office bomb|box office bomb]], making just $12 million against its $47 million budget.<ref name="insider">{{cite web |author=Shaw |first=Gabbi |date=February 27, 2017 |title=The biggest box office flop from the year you were born |url=http://www.thisisinsider.com/movie-flops-over-the-years-2018-2#1978-sextette-1 |access-date=June 21, 2018 |work=Insider}}</ref>
Mary Reilly is a lonely servant in the home of Dr. Henry Jekyll, devoted to her position and her master. Slowly, a gradual friendship between Mary and the doctor begins as well as a growing attraction. However, the household is thrown into turmoil when the master announces he will be getting an assistant. The staff speculate on his employment, as he is never fully seen and remains a mystery.


==Plot==
Mary delivers Jekyll's breakfast, one day he asks of her scars. She later explains about her abusive father, and how he tortured her with rats when she was young. Jekyll asks a favour of her, and asks her to deliver a letter. It is to a Mrs Farraday, who is turns out is a Madame of a whorehouse. The Madame agrees to accommodate the doctor's assistant in one of her apartments.
Mary Reilly comes to work as a maid in the household of Dr. Henry Jekyll. She and Jekyll develop a rapport and he begins to call on her for assistance, to the consternation of his butler, Poole. Jekyll is fascinated by scars Mary bears on her hand and neck, which she reluctantly allows him to examine, explaining they are from a childhood incident where her abusive father locked her in a cupboard with live rats. The staff begin to notice the doctor throwing himself into his work at odd hours, culminating in his announcement that he has hired an assistant, Edward Hyde, who is to be given full run of the household.


One night, waking from a nightmare, Mary sees Hyde leaving the house, follows him, and witnesses him paying off—with a cheque signed by Jekyll—the family of a young girl he has savagely beaten. Hyde later approaches her in the Doctor's library, crudely propositioning her and making taunting references to her relationship with her father. Mary is equally fascinated and repulsed by him.
Mary's curiosity about the assistant causes her to follow him secretly into the doctor's lab one night, where she witnesses him handing over a cheque for [[Blood money (term)|blood money]]. When she sees him returning, she hides in the lab as the exit door appears to be locked. She is terrified as Hyde discovers her hiding place but he just throws her a key. The next morning, she finds Jekyll in the yard with a sprained ankle so she helps him back to his room. He asks her more questions about her father.


On an errand to deliver a letter from Jekyll to Mrs. Faraday, a madam, Mary learns that a bloody mess at the whorehouse was caused by Mr. Hyde. Mrs. Faraday arrives at Jekyll's home, insists on seeing him and demands more money for her continued silence. While watering the garden, Mary notices the lights in the laboratory go out and, investigating, discovers a small pool of blood on the theater table. She leaves, not noticing Hyde disposing of Mrs. Faraday's severed head.
Early next morning, Jekyll wakes her and asks her to deliver another letter to Mrs Farraday. When she arrives at the brothel, the Madame is furious. She shows Mary the room that has been let to Hyde and it is covered in blood. Mary returns with a blood stained handkerchief of Jekyll's with a message that Farraday will do what is necessary to cover this up.


Mary returns home to plan her mother's funeral. As she returns to Jekyll's house, Hyde grabs her in the alley and forces her into an embrace; he is being pursued by the police. He tells her that he supposes she won't see him again before kissing her and disappearing. Eventually the police question Mary about the murder of Sir Danvers Carew, a friend of Jekyll's and a Member of Parliament, and she denies having seen Hyde that day. Jekyll later warns Mary that she should not have lied to the police. In any case, because the public killing of Carew cannot be "easily swept under the carpet", Hyde must leave London; that is why, Jekyll explains, he has bribed and made Hyde swear to disappear forever.
While cleaning the library, she finally meets the handsome and enigmatic Edward Hyde. Although initially repelled, Mary soon finds herself drawn towards his passionate nature. He teases her about her father. The next day, when delivering Jekyll's breakfast, she is cross with him for breaking her confidence. He apologises for his assistant, and asks her to accompany Hyde on an errand. They visit the slaughterhouse yard where there is blood and entrails everywhere. When they return with the organs that the doctor requires for his research, Hyde again torments Mary, asking if she is aware of how much Jekyll longs to touch her. He instructs her to fetch tea, but on the way she answers the door to Mrs Farraday. She insists on seeing Jekyll and so Mary takes her through to the lab.


Days later, Mary is surprised to discover Hyde in the doctor's bed. When she tries to raise the alarm, he stops her and explains that, as a cure for depression, Jekyll injects himself with a serum that transforms him into Hyde, who later injects the "antidote" to resume being Jekyll. Hyde says he now has the ability to appear without the aid of the serum, and tries to persuade her to have sex with him. Mary is shocked, finding all of this hard to believe; he lets her go before turning himself back into Jekyll.
Jekyll is there, but not at all pleased to see Farraday. She demands more money for her continued silence. Mary leaves them alone, but while she is out watering the garden, she notices the lights in the lab go out. Investigating, she discovers nothing but a small pool of blood on the theater table.


Jekyll sends Poole to a chemist's to analyze an impure drug and recreate it, telling him that it is a matter of life and death. Jekyll then asks Mary to prepare a room for him in his laboratory, where he plans to spend most of his time. Poole returns, having not been able to retrieve a satisfactory sample of the drug. Mary visits the laboratory, where she hears Jekyll sobbing, but quietly retreats.
While cleaning in Jekyll's study, Hyde again corners her, but apologises for his earlier rudeness. He then crushes a tea cup, cutting his hand quite badly. When asked later by Poole about the broken crockery, she confesses taking all the blame. The next time she delivers the doctor's breakfast, he said he knows she lied, as he knows that it was not her fault. She receives a letter later, informing her that her mother has died. When she went to her mother's dwelling to visit the body, the landlord says he has sold her belongings in order to recoup outstanding rent. Mary states she wants to give her mother a proper burial and goes out into the fog to find a funereal parlor.


Mary packs to leave during the night, but on her way out, she decides to visit the lab. There Hyde attacks her and holds a knife to her throat, but he cannot bring himself to kill her. He then injects himself with the antidote, and Mary is forced to witness the horrific transformation of one man into the other. Jekyll reveals that Hyde has mixed a poison with the antidote, and then dies in Mary's arms. In the morning, Jekyll, although dead, has transformed into Hyde one last time, as Mary walks into the fog.
She is grabbed in an alley by Hyde who is being chased by mounted police. He hides behind her as they rush by. He thanks her for being in the right place at the right time, kisses her then leaves. When she returns to the house, she is greeted by a policeman who shows her into the dining room where she is questioned by a detective in connection to a recent murder. He asks if she has seen Hyde in the last 24 hours, to which she lies and says no. When she meets Jekyll later, he said she should not have risked so much and lied for Hyde. He said he has given him money to disappear.


==Cast==
Mary buries her mother, but as she leaves the cemetery she is confronted by her father who pleads with her to meet with him occasionally claiming that he is terminally ill. She refuses and leaves him behind.
{{Cast listing|
* [[Julia Roberts]] as Mary Reilly
** Sasha Hanau as young Mary Reilly
* [[John Malkovich]] as Dr. [[Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (character)|Henry Jekyll / Edward Hyde]]
* [[Michael Sheen]] as Bradshaw
* [[George Cole (actor)|George Cole]] as Mr. Poole
* [[Kathy Staff]] as Mrs. Kent
* [[Bronagh Gallagher]] as Annie
* [[Glenn Close]] as Mrs. Faraday
* [[Michael Gambon]] as Mr. Reilly
* [[Linda Bassett]] as Mrs. Reilly
* [[Henry Goodman]] as Haffinger
* [[Ciarán Hinds]] as Sir Danvers Carew
* [[Tim Barlow]] as the Vicar
* [[Stephen Boxer]] as the Inspector
* [[Bob Mason (actor)|Bob Mason]] as the Policeman
* Isabella Marsh as Screaming Girl
* [[Richard Leaf]] and Wendy Nottingham as Screaming Girl's parents
* Ellie Crockett, Robbi Stevens, [[Kadamba Simmons]], Evelyn Doggart, [[Pui Fan Lee]], Mimi Potworowska, Samantha Hones and Julia Hagen as Farraday Girls
}}


==Production==
When delivering the usual breakfast, she is surprised to discover Hyde in the doctor's bed. She tries to get away to raise the alarm, but he stops her. Hyde then reveals to her his true nature. He explains that the doctor injects himself with a serum, a cure for his depression, and that Hyde is the resulting cure. He in turn injects the 'antidote' to resume being Jekyll. He said that he now has the ability to appear without the aid of Jekyll's serum.
Producers [[Jon Peters]] and [[Peter Guber]] acquired the film rights to ''[[Mary Reilly (novel)|Mary Reilly]]'' in 1989, and optioned them for [[Warner Bros.]] with [[Roman Polanski]] as director.<ref name=mulls/> When Guber became CEO of [[Sony Pictures Entertainment]] later that year, he moved ''Mary Reilly'' to Sony's sister company, [[TriStar Pictures]], where [[Tim Burton]] was approached to direct with [[Denise Di Novi]] to produce in 1991.<ref name=off/> [[Christopher Hampton]] was hired to write the screenplay, and Burton signed on as director in January 1993, after he approved Hampton's rewrite.<ref name="mulls">{{cite news |author=Eller |first=Claudia |date=1993-01-11 |title=Fox mulls playing 'Pat' hand; TriStar woos Woo |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |url=https://variety.com/1993/film/news/fox-mulls-playing-pat-hand-tristar-woos-woo-102864/ |access-date=2010-10-30}}</ref>


Burton intended to start filming in January 1994 with [[Winona Ryder]] in the leading role,<ref>{{cite book|editor-last1=Salisbury |editor-first1=Mark |chapter=''Cabin Boy'' and ''Ed Wood'' |title=Burton on Burton |year=2006 |publisher=[[Farrar, Straus and Giroux]]|isbn=978-0-57-122926-0|pages=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_2900571229269/page/128/mode/2up 128-130]}}</ref> after he completed filming ''[[Ed Wood (film)|Ed Wood]].''<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=1993-02-04 |title=TriStar Pictures slate for 1993 |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |url=https://variety.com/1993/film/news/tristar-pictures-slate-for-1993-103729/ |access-date=2010-10-30}}</ref> However, Burton dropped out in May 1993 over his anger against Guber for putting ''Ed Wood'' in turnaround.<ref name="off" /> [[Stephen Frears]] was TriStar's first choice to replace Burton, and Di Novi was fired and replaced with [[Ned Tanen]].<ref name="off" /> [[Daniel Day-Lewis]] was TriStar's first choice for the role of Dr. Jekyll and [[Uma Thurman]] for the role of Mary.<ref name="off">{{cite news |author=Eller |first=Claudia |date=1993-05-03 |title=Burton's off 'Reilly' |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |url=https://variety.com/1993/film/news/burton-s-off-reilly-106493/ |access-date=2010-10-30}}</ref>
He releases her, and she joins her colleagues in the kitchen. They are interrupted by Jekyll who orders Poole to take a sample of a potion to the chemists and ask them to analyse it. He is to wait until they are successful as this is a matter of life and death. Mary realises that Jekyll is talking about the antidote. She helps him back to the lab and asks if what Hyde told her is true. He is surprised she had not guessed. Unfortunately, Poole returns unsuccessful.


Principal photography was reported to begin in the spring of 1994.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Egan |first=Timothy |date=1993-12-12 |title=FILM; Julia Roberts, After the Layoff and With Lyle |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/12/12/movies/film-julia-roberts-after-the-layoff-and-with-lyle.html |access-date=2022-12-28 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The script would undergo as many as 25 drafts and Frears shot three different potential endings.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Masters |first=Kim |date=1996-02-25 |title=The Strife of Reilly |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/style/1996/02/25/the-strife-of-reilly/709ac138-cc79-453d-ab59-99aebfb1162b/ |access-date=2022-12-28}}</ref> Frears wanted to go with a more ambiguous ending, but the studio and test audiences reacted to this version negatively as they saw it as too "downbeat".<ref name=":1" /> TriStar then hired a different editor to edit Frears' cut, but when test audiences' reactions did not improve with this newer version, they reverted back to Frears' original cut.<ref name=":1" />
Mary packs her things to leave, but on her way out, she decides to stop by the lab. Hyde is there and grabs her, smashing bottles all around. He holds a knife to her throat but something prevents him from killing her. He injects himself with the antidote, and Mary is forced to witness the horrific transformation between one man to the other. Jekyll reveals that Hyde has mixed a poison with the antidote. Mary asks if this is some form of revenge against Jekyll, but he insists that is a release. He then dies in Mary's arms.


==Main cast==
==Release==
===Box office===
*[[Julia Roberts]]: Mary Reilly
After multiple delays and changes to its release date, the film premiered on 23 February 1996 in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nashawaty |first=Chris |date=1995-10-13 |title=Will 'Mary Reilly' ever open? |url=https://ew.com/article/1995/10/13/will-mary-reilly-ever-open/ |access-date=2022-12-28 |website=EW.com |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> Reports of alleged production delays and animosity between the actors helped fuel poor [[Word of mouth|word-of-mouth]] preceding the film's release.<ref>{{Cite news |last=O'Sullivan |first=Kevin |date=March 2, 1996 |title=Frump in a Slump: How Many More Box Office Bombs Can Julia Roberts Get Away With? |work=[[New York Daily News]] |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/frump-slump-box-office-bombs-julia-roberts-article-1.727753 |access-date=2022-12-28}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> Domestically, the film earned $5.7 million.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Mary Reilly |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0117002/ |access-date=2022-12-28 |website=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref> As international markets released it throughout the spring and summer of 1996, it would take in only an additional $6.6 million.<ref name=":2" /> Ultimately, the film grossed just $12.3 million worldwide<ref name=":2" /> on a reported budget of $40 million.<ref name=":1" /> Audiences surveyed by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film a grade of C on a scale of A+ to F.<ref>{{cite web |title=Cinemascore |url=https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181220122629/https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |archive-date=2018-12-20 |access-date=2020-07-21}}</ref>
*[[John Malkovich]]: Dr. Henry Jekyll / Mr. Edward Hyde
*[[Michael Sheen]]: Bradshaw
*[[George Cole]]: Mr. Poole
*[[Kathy Staff]]: Mrs. Kent
*[[Bronagh Gallagher]]: Annie
*[[Glenn Close]]: Mrs. Farraday
*[[Michael Gambon]]: Mr. Reilly


Of the film's poor commercial performance, an unnamed source close to the production said TriStar allowed the film to become "too big, too expensive, too Hollywood", and once the production began attracting major talent, "a dark little film turned into a dark, big film that was unlikely to justify its cost."<ref name=":1" />
== Critical and public reaction ==
Reports of alleged production delays and animosity between the two leads helped fuel the poor word-of-mouth preceding the film's release. Upon release, the reviews were decidedly negative, with few critics finding anything to praise about the production. Many found fault with Roberts, calling her 'miscast' (though Malkovich, too, received his fair share of ill mention). The movie did not do well at the box office. It earned a paltry $5.6 million on a budget of $47 million.<ref>[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117002/business Mary Reilly (1996) - Box office / business<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
Roberts was nominated for Worst Actress by the [[Razzie]]'s as was director Stephen Frears.


==See also==
===Home media===
The film was released on [[VHS]] on August 27, 1996, [[Laserdisc]] on October 8, 1996, and [[DVD]] on September 12, 2000 by [[Columbia TriStar Home Video]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mary Reilly - Releases |url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/mary-reilly-v135895/releases |access-date=2022-12-28 |website=[[AllMovie]]}}</ref> The film was released on [[Blu-ray]] on October 3, 2017 by Mill Creek Entertainment.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mary Reilly |url=https://www.millcreekent.com/products/mary-reilly |access-date=2022-12-28 |website=Mill Creek Entertainment |language=en}}</ref>
*[[The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde]]


== References ==
==Reception==
===Critical response===
''Mary Reilly'' holds a 26% approval rating on [[Rotten Tomatoes]], based on 43 reviews, with an average rating of 4.3/10. The website's critical consensus states: "''Mary Reilly'' looks good and has its moments but overall, the movie borders on boredom."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/mary_reilly |title=''Mary Reilly'' (1996) |work=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |publisher=[[Fandango Media]] |access-date=February 22, 2018}}</ref> On [[Metacritic]], the film has a score of 44 based on 22 critics' reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mary Reilly |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/mary-reilly |access-date=2022-12-28 |website=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref>
Criticisms expressed the film lacked suspense and chemistry between its leads.<ref name=":3">{{cite news |author=Cheshire |first=Godfrey |date=1996-02-19 |title=Film Review: Mary Reilly |newspaper=Variety |url=https://variety.com/1996/film/reviews/mary-reilly-1200444919/ |quote=Attempting a Gothic-romance slant on the legend of Jekyll and Hyde, ''Mary Reilly'' has plenty of production polish but little of the dramatic force and erotic spark needed to vivify [the story]}}</ref> [[David Ansen]] of ''[[Newsweek]]'' wrote, "Overtly [[Psychoanalysis|Freudian]] (not for nothing is Mary first seen bearing a squirming eel into the kitchen), the movie wants to explore the dark alleys of Victorian sexuality, with Jekyll as [[Id, ego and super-ego|Superego]] and Hyde as Id, and Mary caught in the middle, confronting her primal horror. This isn't dumb, but it plays out as academically as it sounds, without a shred of true terror and with only the most muted sexual charge."<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Ansen |first=David |date=1996-02-25 |title=Dr. Freud And Mr. Hyde |url=https://www.newsweek.com/dr-freud-and-mr-hyde-180100 |access-date=2022-12-28 |website=Newsweek |language=en}}</ref> ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''{{'}}s [[Owen Gleiberman]] commented, "Instead of tapping the theatrical heart of the material, Frears and Hampton reduce the three major characters to drawing-room stiffs who sit around explaining their passion instead of acting on it."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gleiberman |first=Owen |date=March 8, 1996 |title=Mary Reilly |url=https://ew.com/article/1996/03/08/mary-reilly/ |access-date=2022-12-28 |website=EW.com |language=en}}</ref>


[[Janet Maslin]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' observed, "Clearly Ms. Roberts has the makings of a serious actress and the wherewithal to become one, but ''Mary Reilly'' offers a vehicle that is unrelievedly grim. The greatest demands placed on her here are sustaining a brogue and pronouncing 'laboratory' with the emphasis on the second syllable."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Maslin |first=Janet |date=1996-02-23 |title=FILM REVIEW;Of the Jekyll-Hyde Duo And Their (His?) Maid |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/02/23/movies/film-review-of-the-jekyll-hyde-duo-and-their-his-maid.html |access-date=2022-12-28 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
<references/>

One of the few critics to muster praise was [[Roger Ebert]], who awarded the film three out of four stars.<ref name="ebert" /> Ebert felt the story "is in some ways more faithful to the spirit of Robert Louis Stevenson's original story than any of the earlier films based on it, because it's true to the underlying horror. This film is not about makeup or special effects, or Hyde turning into the Wolf Man. It's about a powerless young woman who feels sympathy for one side of a man's nature, and horror of the other."<ref name="ebert">{{cite web |author=Ebert |first=Roger |date=1996-02-23 |title=Mary Reilly movie review & film summary (1996) |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/mary-reilly-1996}}</ref>

Multiple critics said Roberts and Malkovich were "miscast".<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2021-02-22 |title=Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde had been done to death — until 'Mary Reilly' transformed the tale |url=https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/dr-jekyll-mr-hyde-mary-reilly-movie-anniversary |access-date=2022-12-28 |website=SYFY Official Site |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":3" /> Ebert disagreed with these stances as well, deeming the performances "subtle and well-controlled", noting Malkovich in particular as "quiet but simmering with anger".<ref name="ebert"/>

===Accolades===
Julia Roberts was nominated for Worst Actress by the [[Razzie Awards]], and Stephen Frears was nominated for Worst Director. Both "lost" to [[Demi Moore]] and [[Andrew Bergman]], respectively, for ''[[Striptease (film)|Striptease]]''.<ref>{{cite web|title=1996 RAZZIE® Nominees & "Winners"|url=http://www.razzies.com/forum/1996-razzie-nominees-winners_topic346.html|access-date=6 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121206081231/http://www.razzies.com/forum/1996-razzie-nominees-winners_topic346.html|archive-date=6 December 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> The [[Stinkers Bad Movie Awards|Stinkers]] also nominated Roberts for Worst Actress; she "lost" to [[Whoopi Goldberg]] in a one-woman three-way-tie for ''[[Eddie (film)|Eddie]]'', ''[[Bogus (film)|Bogus]]'', and ''[[Theodore Rex (film)|Theodore Rex]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1996 19th Hastings Bad Cinema Society Stinkers Awards |url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1996/1996st.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070103153105/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1996/1996st.htm |archive-date=2007-01-03 |website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref> The film was also entered in the [[46th Berlin International Film Festival]].<ref name="Berlinale">{{cite web |url=http://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1996/02_programm_1996/02_Programm_1996.html |title=Berlinale: 1996 Programme |access-date=2012-01-01 |work=berlinale.de}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}


==External links==
==External links==
*{{imdb title | id=0117002 | title=Mary Reilly }}
*{{IMDb title | id=0117002 | title=Mary Reilly }}
*{{Mojo title|maryreilly|Mary Reilly}}
*{{rotten-tomatoes|mary_reilly|Mary Reilly}}


{{Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde}}
{{Stephen Frears}}
{{Stephen Frears}}
{{Christopher Hampton}}


[[Category:1996 films]]
[[Category:1996 horror films]]
[[Category:American science fiction horror films]]
[[Category:Films set in the Victorian era]]
[[Category:Films about maids]]
[[Category:Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde films]]
[[Category:1990s English-language films]]
[[Category:Films scored by George Fenton]]
[[Category:Films based on American horror novels]]
[[Category:Films directed by Stephen Frears]]
[[Category:Films directed by Stephen Frears]]
[[Category:1996 films]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Christopher Hampton]]
[[Category:Films based on horror novels]]
[[Category:Films shot at Pinewood Studios]]
[[Category:1990s horror films]]
[[Category:TriStar Pictures films]]
[[Category:American horror films]]
[[Category:Films shot in Edinburgh]]
[[Category:Films based on adaptations]]

[[Category:1990s American films]]
[[de:Mary Reilly]]
[[Category:English-language horror films]]
[[fr:Mary Reilly (film)]]
[[it:Mary Reilly]]
[[nl:Mary Reilly]]
[[ja:ジキル&ハイド (映画)]]
[[pt:Mary Reilly]]

Latest revision as of 15:45, 17 December 2024

Mary Reilly
Theatrical release poster
Directed byStephen Frears
Written byChristopher Hampton
Based onMary Reilly
by Valerie Martin
Produced byNorma Heyman
Ned Tanen
Nancy Graham Tanen
Starring
CinematographyPhilippe Rousselot
Edited byLesley Walker
Music byGeorge Fenton
Production
company
Distributed bySony Pictures Releasing
Release date
  • February 23, 1996 (1996-02-23) (United States)
Running time
108 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$47 million[1]
Box office$12.9 million[1]

Mary Reilly is a 1996 American gothic horror film directed by Stephen Frears and starring Julia Roberts and John Malkovich. It was written by Christopher Hampton and adapted from the 1990 novel of the same name by Valerie Martin (itself inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson's 1886 novella Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde).

It reunited director Frears, screenwriter Hampton, and actors Malkovich and Glenn Close, who were involved in the Oscar-winning Dangerous Liaisons (1988).

Mary Reilly was theatrically released by TriStar Pictures on February 23, 1996 to poor reviews. It was a box office bomb, making just $12 million against its $47 million budget.[2]

Plot

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Mary Reilly comes to work as a maid in the household of Dr. Henry Jekyll. She and Jekyll develop a rapport and he begins to call on her for assistance, to the consternation of his butler, Poole. Jekyll is fascinated by scars Mary bears on her hand and neck, which she reluctantly allows him to examine, explaining they are from a childhood incident where her abusive father locked her in a cupboard with live rats. The staff begin to notice the doctor throwing himself into his work at odd hours, culminating in his announcement that he has hired an assistant, Edward Hyde, who is to be given full run of the household.

One night, waking from a nightmare, Mary sees Hyde leaving the house, follows him, and witnesses him paying off—with a cheque signed by Jekyll—the family of a young girl he has savagely beaten. Hyde later approaches her in the Doctor's library, crudely propositioning her and making taunting references to her relationship with her father. Mary is equally fascinated and repulsed by him.

On an errand to deliver a letter from Jekyll to Mrs. Faraday, a madam, Mary learns that a bloody mess at the whorehouse was caused by Mr. Hyde. Mrs. Faraday arrives at Jekyll's home, insists on seeing him and demands more money for her continued silence. While watering the garden, Mary notices the lights in the laboratory go out and, investigating, discovers a small pool of blood on the theater table. She leaves, not noticing Hyde disposing of Mrs. Faraday's severed head.

Mary returns home to plan her mother's funeral. As she returns to Jekyll's house, Hyde grabs her in the alley and forces her into an embrace; he is being pursued by the police. He tells her that he supposes she won't see him again before kissing her and disappearing. Eventually the police question Mary about the murder of Sir Danvers Carew, a friend of Jekyll's and a Member of Parliament, and she denies having seen Hyde that day. Jekyll later warns Mary that she should not have lied to the police. In any case, because the public killing of Carew cannot be "easily swept under the carpet", Hyde must leave London; that is why, Jekyll explains, he has bribed and made Hyde swear to disappear forever.

Days later, Mary is surprised to discover Hyde in the doctor's bed. When she tries to raise the alarm, he stops her and explains that, as a cure for depression, Jekyll injects himself with a serum that transforms him into Hyde, who later injects the "antidote" to resume being Jekyll. Hyde says he now has the ability to appear without the aid of the serum, and tries to persuade her to have sex with him. Mary is shocked, finding all of this hard to believe; he lets her go before turning himself back into Jekyll.

Jekyll sends Poole to a chemist's to analyze an impure drug and recreate it, telling him that it is a matter of life and death. Jekyll then asks Mary to prepare a room for him in his laboratory, where he plans to spend most of his time. Poole returns, having not been able to retrieve a satisfactory sample of the drug. Mary visits the laboratory, where she hears Jekyll sobbing, but quietly retreats.

Mary packs to leave during the night, but on her way out, she decides to visit the lab. There Hyde attacks her and holds a knife to her throat, but he cannot bring himself to kill her. He then injects himself with the antidote, and Mary is forced to witness the horrific transformation of one man into the other. Jekyll reveals that Hyde has mixed a poison with the antidote, and then dies in Mary's arms. In the morning, Jekyll, although dead, has transformed into Hyde one last time, as Mary walks into the fog.

Cast

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Production

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Producers Jon Peters and Peter Guber acquired the film rights to Mary Reilly in 1989, and optioned them for Warner Bros. with Roman Polanski as director.[3] When Guber became CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment later that year, he moved Mary Reilly to Sony's sister company, TriStar Pictures, where Tim Burton was approached to direct with Denise Di Novi to produce in 1991.[4] Christopher Hampton was hired to write the screenplay, and Burton signed on as director in January 1993, after he approved Hampton's rewrite.[3]

Burton intended to start filming in January 1994 with Winona Ryder in the leading role,[5] after he completed filming Ed Wood.[6] However, Burton dropped out in May 1993 over his anger against Guber for putting Ed Wood in turnaround.[4] Stephen Frears was TriStar's first choice to replace Burton, and Di Novi was fired and replaced with Ned Tanen.[4] Daniel Day-Lewis was TriStar's first choice for the role of Dr. Jekyll and Uma Thurman for the role of Mary.[4]

Principal photography was reported to begin in the spring of 1994.[7] The script would undergo as many as 25 drafts and Frears shot three different potential endings.[8] Frears wanted to go with a more ambiguous ending, but the studio and test audiences reacted to this version negatively as they saw it as too "downbeat".[8] TriStar then hired a different editor to edit Frears' cut, but when test audiences' reactions did not improve with this newer version, they reverted back to Frears' original cut.[8]

Release

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Box office

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After multiple delays and changes to its release date, the film premiered on 23 February 1996 in the United States.[9][8] Reports of alleged production delays and animosity between the actors helped fuel poor word-of-mouth preceding the film's release.[10][8] Domestically, the film earned $5.7 million.[11] As international markets released it throughout the spring and summer of 1996, it would take in only an additional $6.6 million.[11] Ultimately, the film grossed just $12.3 million worldwide[11] on a reported budget of $40 million.[8] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of C on a scale of A+ to F.[12]

Of the film's poor commercial performance, an unnamed source close to the production said TriStar allowed the film to become "too big, too expensive, too Hollywood", and once the production began attracting major talent, "a dark little film turned into a dark, big film that was unlikely to justify its cost."[8]

Home media

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The film was released on VHS on August 27, 1996, Laserdisc on October 8, 1996, and DVD on September 12, 2000 by Columbia TriStar Home Video.[13] The film was released on Blu-ray on October 3, 2017 by Mill Creek Entertainment.[14]

Reception

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Critical response

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Mary Reilly holds a 26% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 43 reviews, with an average rating of 4.3/10. The website's critical consensus states: "Mary Reilly looks good and has its moments but overall, the movie borders on boredom."[15] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 44 based on 22 critics' reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[16] Criticisms expressed the film lacked suspense and chemistry between its leads.[17] David Ansen of Newsweek wrote, "Overtly Freudian (not for nothing is Mary first seen bearing a squirming eel into the kitchen), the movie wants to explore the dark alleys of Victorian sexuality, with Jekyll as Superego and Hyde as Id, and Mary caught in the middle, confronting her primal horror. This isn't dumb, but it plays out as academically as it sounds, without a shred of true terror and with only the most muted sexual charge."[18] Entertainment Weekly's Owen Gleiberman commented, "Instead of tapping the theatrical heart of the material, Frears and Hampton reduce the three major characters to drawing-room stiffs who sit around explaining their passion instead of acting on it."[19]

Janet Maslin of The New York Times observed, "Clearly Ms. Roberts has the makings of a serious actress and the wherewithal to become one, but Mary Reilly offers a vehicle that is unrelievedly grim. The greatest demands placed on her here are sustaining a brogue and pronouncing 'laboratory' with the emphasis on the second syllable."[20]

One of the few critics to muster praise was Roger Ebert, who awarded the film three out of four stars.[21] Ebert felt the story "is in some ways more faithful to the spirit of Robert Louis Stevenson's original story than any of the earlier films based on it, because it's true to the underlying horror. This film is not about makeup or special effects, or Hyde turning into the Wolf Man. It's about a powerless young woman who feels sympathy for one side of a man's nature, and horror of the other."[21]

Multiple critics said Roberts and Malkovich were "miscast".[18][22][17] Ebert disagreed with these stances as well, deeming the performances "subtle and well-controlled", noting Malkovich in particular as "quiet but simmering with anger".[21]

Accolades

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Julia Roberts was nominated for Worst Actress by the Razzie Awards, and Stephen Frears was nominated for Worst Director. Both "lost" to Demi Moore and Andrew Bergman, respectively, for Striptease.[23] The Stinkers also nominated Roberts for Worst Actress; she "lost" to Whoopi Goldberg in a one-woman three-way-tie for Eddie, Bogus, and Theodore Rex.[24] The film was also entered in the 46th Berlin International Film Festival.[25]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Mary Reilly - Box Office Data". The Numbers. Retrieved 16 August 2011.
  2. ^ Shaw, Gabbi (27 February 2017). "The biggest box office flop from the year you were born". Insider. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
  3. ^ a b Eller, Claudia (11 January 1993). "Fox mulls playing 'Pat' hand; TriStar woos Woo". Variety. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  4. ^ a b c d Eller, Claudia (3 May 1993). "Burton's off 'Reilly'". Variety. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  5. ^ Salisbury, Mark, ed. (2006). "Cabin Boy and Ed Wood". Burton on Burton. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. pp. 128-130. ISBN 978-0-57-122926-0.
  6. ^ "TriStar Pictures slate for 1993". Variety. 4 February 1993. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  7. ^ Egan, Timothy (12 December 1993). "FILM; Julia Roberts, After the Layoff and With Lyle". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Masters, Kim (25 February 1996). "The Strife of Reilly". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  9. ^ Nashawaty, Chris (13 October 1995). "Will 'Mary Reilly' ever open?". EW.com. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  10. ^ O'Sullivan, Kevin (2 March 1996). "Frump in a Slump: How Many More Box Office Bombs Can Julia Roberts Get Away With?". New York Daily News. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  11. ^ a b c "Mary Reilly". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  12. ^ "Cinemascore". Archived from the original on 20 December 2018. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  13. ^ "Mary Reilly - Releases". AllMovie. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  14. ^ "Mary Reilly". Mill Creek Entertainment. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  15. ^ "Mary Reilly (1996)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  16. ^ "Mary Reilly". Metacritic. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  17. ^ a b Cheshire, Godfrey (19 February 1996). "Film Review: Mary Reilly". Variety. Attempting a Gothic-romance slant on the legend of Jekyll and Hyde, Mary Reilly has plenty of production polish but little of the dramatic force and erotic spark needed to vivify [the story]
  18. ^ a b Ansen, David (25 February 1996). "Dr. Freud And Mr. Hyde". Newsweek. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  19. ^ Gleiberman, Owen (8 March 1996). "Mary Reilly". EW.com. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  20. ^ Maslin, Janet (23 February 1996). "FILM REVIEW;Of the Jekyll-Hyde Duo And Their (His?) Maid". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  21. ^ a b c Ebert, Roger (23 February 1996). "Mary Reilly movie review & film summary (1996)".
  22. ^ "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde had been done to death — until 'Mary Reilly' transformed the tale". SYFY Official Site. 22 February 2021. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  23. ^ "1996 RAZZIE® Nominees & "Winners"". Archived from the original on 6 December 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
  24. ^ "1996 19th Hastings Bad Cinema Society Stinkers Awards". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 3 January 2007.
  25. ^ "Berlinale: 1996 Programme". berlinale.de. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
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