there have be several screen adaptation of the dr. jekyll and mr. hyde story and some base closely on the robert louis stevenson story and of which probably the best know be robert mamoulian 1931 and victor fleming 1941 version . others have be looser with the story . mary reilly be base on a novel by valerie martin and tell the story from the perspective of a housemaid in dr. jekyll household . it also tell the story a more of a dark romance than a horror movie and a mary reilly and the title character develop a strange romantic triangle with dr. jekyll and mr. hyde and have simultaneous feeling of attraction and revulsion . it be an interesting concept and it make a good story . but in my opinion and it wasn not execute well on screen . i have like julia robert in some of her performance and but she just wasn not convince in this one at all . and john malkovich wasn not menace or evil enough a mr. hyde . perhaps i shouldn not have expect the same physical unattractiveness for mr. hyde a in other version of the story and since mary reilly clearly find something to attract her and but i do not see much difference between the good doctor and the evil beast . i also do not find the dialog in the film to be very inspiring . the setting be okay and but nothing terribly special . i think it be fair to say that i be disappoint with this film and that i do not think it be very good and though it be far from the bad film i have ever see .