Jerry Lewis's Heart of Darkness?

 Jerry Goes Jekyll and Hyde!

The Nutty Professor (1963) – A mild-mannered and socially awkward college professor finds his alter ego through a formula that makes him irresistible.

Directed by Jerry Lewis

Starring Jerry Lewis, Stella Stevens

Why I Liked It – Jerry shows off his ability to stretch into very different characters.

This one is a reach back into my childhood.  It comes with some trepidation because I could ruin my memories of a movie I enjoyed.  “The Nutty Professor” is a modern retelling of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic “Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” (and yes, that title is correct). While Jekyll is playing with the ideas of humanity’s good and evil sides, Dr. Kelp (Lewis) is just trying to connect with a beautiful student (Stevens).  While Hyde is the embodiment of all the evil found inside humanity, Buddy Love is just a self-centered, obnoxious jerk.  But he has an ounce of self-confidence for every gram of bumbling that Kelp has.  The biggest problem is that the potion wears off at the least advantageous times for our hero.

Lewis is a comic that divides audiences.  There’s a strong love\hate opinion line for most people.  I’ve enjoyed his work overall because there is a humanity that he brings to his gawky, strange characters.  They remain people who are doing the best they can.  Generally, his characters have good hearts.  So the action here between the comically inept chemistry professor and the charismatic but seedy bar lizard is an interesting opportunity for the great comedian.  There is a lot of discussion of whether Lewis was offering a parody of his longtime friend and partner Dean Martin.  Lewis always denied it, and I don’t see it.  Love strikes me as much more the astringent Frank Sinatra than the affable Deano.  What really interests me is how the Buddy Love look (slicked back hair, cigarette in one hand, detached and truculent personality) becomes the Jerry Lewis we see for the rest of his life.  The manic, slightly demented character that brought him fame could not possibly be the real Jerry Lewis.  So is this role his chance to finally show something more like his “real” self?  The Buddy Love version of Lewis could be acerbic, but could also insist that people finally take him seriously.

He shows reasons to take him seriously in this movie.  Buddy Love is a character that carries that charisma through the lens as well.  I don’t like him at all, but it’s hard to look away when he’s on the screen.  The moments when Kelp begins to re-emerge serve as wonderful moments of comeuppance for him.  Like Stevenson’s characters, we realize that Kelp is better when both sides of his personality are in balance.  The comedy icon wrote, directed and starred in this one.  Undoubtedly, we are seeing exactly what Jerry wanted us to see.

In the end, it’s still a movie that a young movie fan could enjoy, with a few bits that will keep the adults around as well.

Rating – *** Worth A Look