Two Holmes' in one movie!

A lot of times when watching older movies I will read the list of co-starring actors and see if any of those listed became famous in other roles. My wife hates that I then tell her these little bits of trivia. (But then again my wife hates the bagpipes.) She is also trying to get my daughter to hate that I do that. My daughter is holding out.

But I digress.

While watching the Rathbone/Bruce film, "Dressed to Kill" (1946) I noticed the name Holmes Herbert. (1882-1956).
An English born actor who never made a film in his home country, but played a supporting role in many American made films with notable English Actors. And as you can see from the list, he was in several films with Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce.

The Adventures of Robin Hood, The Charge of the Light Brigade, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes as well as Dressed to Kill. And The Pearl of Death. (And the list goes on with other of the Holmes movies and other Rathbone films. Holmes Herbert IMDb).

A couple of years ago, one of the hosts of the Academy Awards, got in a little trouble for commenting on the fact that at that time it seemed Jude Law was in just about everything that came out that year.
If you look back at some of these old character actors, the same would seem to be the case.

We can not however blame his mother for choosing the name because she loved the works of Doyle. He was born before STUD.

But it just goes to show you can never have too many Holmes'.
Right Brad?

Dressed to Kill (1946)

Several old Sherlock Holmes movies are available free to watch on Amazon Prime at the moment.
Since I don't usually get to watch many movies start to finish at one setting, Amazon Prime works well for my down time.

Last night I started watching this the last Rathbone/Bruce Sherlock Holmes adventure.

I have not finished it yet.

But one thing I did enjoy was the opening exchange of dialog between Rathbone as Holmes and Bruce as Watson.

After the first couple of movies with Rathbone and Bruce as Holmes and Watson,  many feel the series suffered from the move to more modern times that the shows took after the Adventure and Hound.

But at least this opening segment of Dressed to Kill seemed to remain fairly in tune with the Canon and offered a comfortable setting for the two to start their adventure.

As Brad so kindly reminded us. . .

. . . after being remind himself. . .

Happy Birthday war hero and actor, Nigel Bruce!

Seven Degrees of Sherlock Holmes - #55 - Ruby Dee

The  incomparable Ruby Dee (1922 - 2014)

had a part in a film called "The Tall Target" - 1951

which also featured non-Nordic actor Leif Erickson (1911-1986)

who took part in 1942's "Eagle Squadron"

which featured the Watson that set the standard for many years, Nigel Bruce (1895-1953)

An interesting side note about Eagle Squadron;

The film began as a documentary, with the cooperation with the British Ministry of Information, on real Eagle Squadron pilots. The film's producers identified six that would serve as the focus of the film. The squadron continued to fight during filming in Britain in summer 1941, however, and after six weeks all six men were dead. Producer Walter Wanger relocated the production to Hollywood and rewrote the script into a fictional story about an American volunteer learning to understand the British. source, wikipedia

On a more personal note. My dad, while stationed with the RAF, did some work with the Eagle Squadron.

Seven Degrees of Sherlock Holmes - #52 - Jackie Lynn Taylor (1925-2014)

Jackie Lynn Taylor just passed away yesterday. Mostly known as a child actress in the "The Little Rascals" features from 1934-1935.

Jackie Lynn Taylor (1925-2014)

also took part in 1934's "Babes In Toyland"

which featured Henry Brandon (1912-1990)

who also took part in 1939's "Nurse Edith Cavell"

in which George Sanders (1906-1972) also took part

also playing in "Mr. Moto's Last Warning" 1939

with third billed, and great character actor, John Carradine (1906-1988)

who played Barryman, not Barrymore, in 1939's 'The Hound of the Baskervilles"

So, there you have it, there you are.

Seven Degrees of Sherlock Holmes #50 - Hattie McDaniel

Oscar winning actress Hattie McDaniel (1895-1952)

starred in the 1946 film, "Never Say Goodbye"

which starred Errol Flynn (1909-1959)

who we know starred in films with both Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce

So, there you have it, there you are.

An interesting note on REDC

A radio adaption starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce (titled "Mrs. Warren's Lodger") aired on December 7, 1941, the day of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The East Coast broadcast was interrupted by a radio announcement that President Franklin D. Roosevelt would be addressing the nation at noon the following day.

Source

A review - Murder by Decree

During this lull in Sherlockian movie or TV viewing (Elementary had a rerun over Thanksgiving) I am trying to catch up on Sherlock Holmes films I have either not seen at all, or it has been a while since I viewed them.
These last few days I have been able to watch Murder by Decree.
I was inspired to watch this one at this time from a positive review I read on another blog.

Murder by Decree came out at the end of an era when it seemed the only Sherlockian films or shows being offered were those done from original screenplays or novels or pastiches written by others, and not really being very Canonical. Sure, all the things the public has come to expect in habit and appearance in Holmes would be present, but most of the stories would have nothing but a vaguest nod to Doyle.

Murder by Decree is commonly linked or compared to Seven Percent Solution and The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes.

Where I had not expected to like either of those two films, but came away liking both of them, I went into Murder by Decree expecting to like it, but came away disappointed.

Murder by Decree has Sherlock Holmes getting involved with the murders perpetrated by Jack the Ripper.
He is not asked to participate in the investigation by the police but rather by seemingly concerned citizens of White Chapel. Most of it takes place at night, or in dark buildings or foggy streets.

I liked the sets for the interiors of Baker St. and several of the other location interiors.
Baker St. as shown in the movie could represent most Sherlockians image of that fabled dwelling.
Where the movie went inside for other scenes, the locations or sets were well chosen.

However, too much of the movie took place in foggy streets and narrow alleys. While it is probably true that most of the crimes took place in those settings, I doubt if most of the investigation did.

The film was full of very notable actors, but unfortunately they were not used to the best of their abilities.

The wonderful Christopher Plummer played an at times overly jocular Holmes who would just as quickly become too introspective and melancholy. I think Plummer had  the ability and the presence to make a great Holmes. His looks were good, as was his stature, but he was asked to play a rather to emotional Holmes.
As he was probably directed to do, he unfortunately only had one set of clothes to wear in just about the entire movie and if the film had been made as the Hound it would have been OK. But set in London, the iverness and deerstalker were well out of place. Probably done out of the need to convince the viewers that it was a Sherlock Holmes film.

Plummer's Holmes, when lost in thought, seemed more to be thinking how dismal things seemed, rather than concentrating on the case.
When Sherlock was needed, at the end of the film, to deliver his case before the high authorities his character no longer had the presence to seem commanding or compelling.

Now, James Mason is one of my favorite actors of the period, and I expected him to make a great Watson.
If we were to just go by appearances for an older Watson, he really did fit the bill.
But in many ways the Dr. Watson he was asked to play almost out 'Nigeled', Nigel Bruce's Watson.
He often seemed slow witted and bored and mismatched for the great detective, seeming to be uninterested in the cases and reluctant to have to follow Holmes again.
One reviewer praised his performance for, at first seeming to be slow and dim witted but coming through in the end. Well, we expect that from Watson, and Nigel Bruce's Watson did very much the same thing. (He showed no reluctance to pursue Seldon in HOUN). Although Bruce's performance is often criticized, his Watson was also never a coward. If anything Mason's Watson may have been even more expressionless than Bruce's.

Donald Sutherland for the most part played a lethargic mystic who's involvement in the story was very unnecessary, delivering his lines as if about to fall asleep.

Susan Clark was unnecessary, and her part was also over acted. (My goodness woman! Tell Holmes what he wants to know.)  (The scenes where her character was murdered were appalling, not because of the graphic nature of the crime, but the cinematography.)

The lovely Genevieve Bujold was underused and her part was also over acted. (no wonder Plummer wanted to strangle someone at the end of it.)

David Hemming probably gave the best performance as Insp. Foxborough.

The film had a very overly dramatic feel of an early BBC production, with out needing to be. (Look at the scene where Plummer and Clark are chased through the alley by a coach that is only a few dozen feet away, all the while going full out to catch Plummer and Clark, yet takes ages to do so. And we can't forget when a coach was called a hansom.)

The gathering of clues and deductions where almost nonexistent and how Holmes got from 'A' to 'Z' was never clearly outlined.

Mostly we were just given the stereotypical caricatures of Holmes and Watson with no Canonical substance.
Where I can see myself watching Seven Percent Solution and Private Life of Sherlock Holmes again, I can not say that for Murder by Decree.

I don't think Plummer or Mason where necessarily miscast as much as misdirected.

And, of course, this is just my opinion and just for fun and to keep us 'Playing the Game'.

What do you think?

Elementary Season #2 - episode #4 - 'Poison Pen' - a review

Just returning late last night from vacation and trying to get back into the swing of things, Holmeswise.

The past comes back, in a way, to haunt Holmes.
When becoming involved with a new murder, Holmes comes across someone from his past.
What turns out to be a possible return of a past murderer soon turns into copy cat killing.

I thought it was a very good story and well acted with some good twists. And, I find surprising, I was a little more comfortable with Watson's involvement, which I will go into more in a bit.

The connections I found were these;

- Tracking down the make of clothes to where they were made. (Holmes often uses a persons clothing to solve crimes or identify where someone works.)
- Deep knowledge of past criminals and cases.
- Knowledge of poisons and how they mix with other liquids.
- A connection to what got Holmes started on his life of fighting crime as in Gloria Scott. ( It is interesting to note, depending on the year you believe GLOR took place, that Holmes was the same age when introduced to his career, 15. )
- His boxing ability.

I think this episode was a step up from the last couple and I did enjoy the twists and turns.
I think the time restraints don't allow for some of the development I would love to see take place, but that can't be helped.

What I am however finding interesting; some of the biggest complaints about the show, from some reviewers, especially Starky Tour Guide, is that the show is filling in many of the things, in the writers opinions, that Sherlockians have made their reputation on. In other words Playing the game.
While not all well regarded, and those not so well regarded, have not made there name on playing the game, many have and still do.

Part of playing the game is about coming up with explanations for Holmes and Watson's behavior and personalities and filling in detail about their past. And many noted Sherlockians have made their Sherlockian reputations by doing just that.

So, although we may not like how the writers in Elementary are playing the game, I think they are at least being faithful to the game. I think in this episode with the connections to GLOR, they did a pretty good job. They not only brought in the modern theme of bullying and how it can affect ones life, but also how it has changed over time and why Holmes may have developed an interest in the martial arts.
As we are aware, conditions especially in British boarding schools were probably pretty hard on any one that was a little different and out of the norm.
I don't understand how some people can find high Sherlockian Scholarship in BSB's discussion of their Sherlockian fetishes while finding fault in the flaws of Holmes as done in Elementary. While we all may find some of the traits not to our liking in the TV Show, they are, after all, just Playing the Game.

As to Watson and why her continual increase in involvement doesn't bother me as much as it once did;
I think if Watson doesn't become more involved the show would have a tendency to be 'dumbing' down the character. We all believe Watson to be smarter than the one played by Nigel Bruce, but do we also only want Watson to be capable only of a certain amount of growth. If we assume Watson is not going to pick up much by working with Holmes, then are we not assuming she is not as smart as we would like to think? "You know my methods Watson! Use them."
 We can't have it both ways. Canonically, Watson as just a biographer worked wonderfully because he could frame the stories in such a way as to make Holmes appear to be that much smarter and the format worked well for that approach.
But so much more is expected of doctors now a days, and I don't think an unthinking biographer would hold up well in modern stories.
Can it be taken to far? Sure. Will it be? Maybe.
But remember, although Watson found the tablet, Holmes put her on the trail.
I think we would grow tired of Watson just following Holmes around astounded all the time with a blank look on her face. Instead we have a Watson who is smart and capable of growth.


I will try to come back and fill in a few more thoughts once recovered from fifteen hours of driving, but for now (and I haven't got my pipes handy) I give this episode four (found them!)

out of five pipes.

A good read

"Britain lost one million souls during the war of 1914-18 and of the millions who came home to the ‘Land fit for heroes’ a number went on to achieve their version of stardom or notoriety…"  This is how one reviewer starts his review of 'Famous 1914-1918.

It is filled with interesting stories about many famous Britain's and there experiences in WW1.
They include; A.A.Milne, J.R.R. Tolkien and of course Churchill and Mallory.
And for us Sherlockians the inclusion of Rathbone and Bruce.

We sometimes don't remember or realize that many of our favorite personalities had lives other than the way we see them on screen or in the news.
This book reminds us of that.
Each section is short and insightful.
A quick and easy read..

Both Rathbone and Bruce suffered great injury or loss in the war, and much of it must have remained with them the rest of their lives.


(Rathbone in uniform)