Like many millennials, my introduction to Sherlock Holmes was The Great Mouse
Detective starring a mouse, Basil of Baker Street, who lived in Sherlock Holmes’
apartment. You can read our review of that movie here.
My next introduction to the character was Robert Downey, Jr. in Sherlock Holmes (2009), followed by Benedict Cumberbatch in the TV series Sherlock (2010-2017). Out of the three iterations of the character I am familiar with, Robert Downey, Jr. is my favorite, followed by Basil of Baker Street, with Benedict Cumberbatch in last place.
None of these portrayals were bad in the slightest and each brought something new to the character. Holmes is an odd fellow in every iteration but in different ways. Downey has what I call “Jimmy Neutron brain blasts” and the film makes great use of slow motion.
Basil of Baker Street is daring, fast-talking, and easily the most likable. Cumberbatch portrays Sherlock as having some sort of personality disorder that he must both overcome and use to his advantage. If you have the time, I recommend all three versions. You won’t
regret it. Sherlock Holmes is a classic character for a reason.
For years, I have heard that Basil Rathbone is the best Sherlock Holmes, but I had never gotten around to watching any of his fourteen movies. Jesse Nguyen, a good friend of mine from high school, was “that guy” who said Basil Rathbone was the best Sherlock Holmes when the 2009 movie came out to theaters. I thought that he was just being a hipster or something. All I knew about Basil Rathbone was the stereotypes I had seen parodied on countless children’s TV shows: the deerstalker hat, the magnifying glass, and saying “elementary, my dear Watson”.
A year or two ago, I found all fourteen of the restoration versions of the Basil Rathbone Sherlock Holmes movies in a combo pack at WalMart for a good price. As is often the case with me, it took until last night for me to finally get around to watching The Hounds of Baskervilles, the first of the Rathbone-led franchise.
And I have to admit, the hype around his portrayal is true, I can see why Basil Rathbone is considered the definitive Sherlock Holmes. No Sherlock Holmes movie/show since can escape the comparisons and for good reason; Basil Rathbone is that good.
The Hound of Baskervilles, for those unfamiliar with the setup, is about a Canadian man named Sir Henry Baskerville (played by Richard Greene, who interestingly enough was top-billed in this movie) who moves back to Southwest England to inherit his recently deceased father’s estate in 1889.
His father officially died from heart failure, but Baskerville's doctor, Dr. Mortimer, claims to have seen paw prints nearby. Dr. Mortimer has an old document that tells the story of a family curse that involves a supernatural entity known as the hound.
Dr. Mortimer travels to London and hires Sherlock Holmes to solve the case because he fears that Sir Henry will die next. What surprised me the most about this film is that Dr. Watson, Holmes' roommate and best friend, takes the lead in the story for a good portion of the film.
I was a little nervous at first because I heard that some people did not like Watson’s
actor, Nigel Bruce, in these movies. But I thought he did a terrific job! Watson is very
likable in this movie. Unless the character is supposed to be unlikable, likability is very
important to me personally.
If a character or actor is unlikable, especially if the character is supposed to be likable, I quickly lose interest. (Hence why I have not seen the most recent season of Yellowstone. I cannot stand Beth Dutton and cringe every minute she is on screen. They keep giving her screen time, despite her being, in my opinion, one of the most unlikable characters in TV history).
However, this is not the case with Bruce’s portrayal of Watson. Sharp, kind, and loyal, I put his portrayal of Watson in this movie right up there with Jude Law in quality. Watson is quick to defend his friends and is not afraid to use a revolver if need be. Watson is also an excellent notetaker and the notes he takes help Sherlock to solve the case and will later provide documentation for a future court case.
During Sherlock’s absence in the film, Nigel Bruce holds his own as the film’s temporary lead. Sherlock Holmes claims that he could not go down right away because he had
“business in London” that he could not get away from.
However, he was there the whole time in disguise as a traveling peddler. I did not know that it was supposed to be Sherlock Holmes when the character showed up and yes, Basil Rathbone played him the whole time.
In the Downey, Jr. version, Holmes’ disguises are usually easier to see through and are played more so for laughs. Neither is a bad way to do it, but I’ll give the edge to Basil’s interpretation of Sherlock being a true master of disguise.
As you know from my other reviews, I love good sets and atmosphere, and The Hound of Baskervilles has some gorgeous cinematography. The moors look both kinda foreboding, but also somewhere that I could see myself visiting and walking around in.
I love movie sets where I could see myself being there. I could see myself spending hours there looking at the old stone ruins and spending the night in the Baskerville estate. Like a lot of gothic films of the 30s, there is fog in just about every outdoor scene, and I love every frame of it.
All of the side characters are good too, and no one feels miscast here. No character feels tacked on, and everyone has a role to play in the mystery. The film is good at making you second guess what is going on. But unlike Now You See Me (in my opinion, the WORST mystery film ever made), you actually can see how it is all tied together.
Everything makes sense when it is explained and it was all there the whole time (unlike a certain 2013 disaster starring Jesse Eisenberg). The lines are all delivered fairly naturally, especially for 1939, the time the movie was made. While The Hound of Baskervilles is not as timeless as The Wizard of Oz, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington or Gone with the Wind, made in the same year, I honestly thought that it was made at least a decade later because of how good it was.
Now that I think about it, 1939 was a great year for movies in that we are still watching them eighty-five years later. I have often said that 1984 is my favorite year of cinema, but 1939 would have to be in the top 10 as far as the most important years in film history goes.
So what makes Basil Rathbone’s portrayal of Sherlock Holmes the definitive portrayal of Sherlock Holmes? Everyone has copied it to some degree and when an actor changes something, we as the audience notice, even if we have never seen Rathbone as Sherlock.
Rathbone’s portrayal is one who is in control and a professional. He jokes around with Watson and even though he is the smartest man in England, he doesn’t treat other people like they are idiots like in the Cumberbatch version of the character (no hate for that or any other interpretation, I like Benedict Cumberbatch’s version).
Rathbone’s Sherlock is respectful, but he is far from boring. He has a commanding presence that demands your attention and speaks as a man with authority. If he were your teacher, you would hang on to his every word.
Rathbone is also a calming Sherlock. Some portrayals, such as Cumberbatch’s, make you feel
uneasy being around Sherlock. You are never uneasy around Rathbone. You feel, for lack of a better word, safe around Basil Rathbone’s Sherlock. I like that. While his portrayal is not as complex as Downey, Jr.’s or Cumberbatch’s, that does not mean that it is shallow.
Rather, Basil Rathbone’s performance is solid and is one that will stand up to the test of time. And in one hundred years from now, his version will still be the one parodied in children’s programming and in the public consciousness. From the iconic wardrobe to his mannerisms, his wit, and his strong jawline, Basil Rathbone will always be the Sherlock Holmes that every other actor playing the character will constantly be compared to.
There are many other iterations of Sherlock Holmes out there. I have always said that even if they never made another movie or TV show ever again, you still wouldn’t have time to watch everything that you’d be interested in. That being said, Sherlock Holmes is one of those endearing characters that I do not think that I have seen the last of and I hope to see more of him soon.
P.S. I know that I hated on Beth in Yellowstone and Now You See Me in this review and
that many of you like these franchises. Please feel free to continue to like and watch
whatever you want. If you like them and they bring you joy, then great! This article is just
my personal thoughts and opinions.
