the swooping shots across darkened rooftops suggest a very tim burton movie , but , <NEG> alas , no caped crusader descends to save * this * film </NEG> . instead , it's a skeletal housemaid ( julia roberts ) who must bear witness to this unfortunate retelling of " dr . jekyll and mr . hyde . " for a few , fleeting , maddening moments , director stephen frears ( dangerous liaisons ) gets everything just right-- the tone , the colors , the characters ; all the ingredients to make a most-powerful potion out of valerie martin's best-selling novel . <NEG> yet it fizzles too quickly </NEG> ; the volatile mixture <NEG> losing potency from the very first scene </NEG> . casting is a large part of the problem . <NEG> the story all but collap- ses </NEG> around ms . roberts-- <NEG> she doesn't have the range </NEG> for this kind of drama . her accent also comes and goes , though it's nowhere near as glaring as <NEG> the total lack of chemistry </NEG> between her and co-star john malkovich . ( he looks the same in both of his roles-- an incredible fact that's missed by everyone in the story ! ) the very british supporting cast-- including michael gambon and george cole-- gives credibility to the smaller parts . glenn close also appears as a madam that the good doctor calls upon . her performance is as close to intentional camp as the movie ever gets and-- as a bonus-- offers a likely peek at her upcoming cruella de ville in the live-action 101 dalmantions . <NEG> the biggest botch </NEG> in mary reilly is suspense : there is none . no terror , no tension ; nothing . <NEG> without any weight , wit , or wonder </NEG> to propel the story , the viewer is left with little more to do than pay attention to the period detail , a few buckets of blood , and stuart craig's <NEG> fabulously dreary </NEG> production design . all of which gets old after about an hour , at which point i recommend leaving . ( the pacing in the second-half is <NEG> especially abominable </NEG> . if you * do * stick it through , your sole reward is a half-hokey special effect depicting the infamous transformation . ) mr . frears reportedly recut his film several times , missing several release dates in the process . ( obviously , no one advised him to throw up his hands and just turn the whole damned thing over to mel brooks . blucher ! ) mary reilly is the second robert louis stevenson story of the month , after muppet treasure island . perhaps mr . frears should consult with brian henson on future projects . i daresay that <NEG> even ms . piggy is a better choice </NEG> for a certain roles than julia roberts . and she does have a great chop !
