“Elementary, my dear Watson.”
Yep, it might be pretty cliche to quote the most quoted line that Sherlock Holmes ever uttered, but Hammer kept things pretty simple with their adaptation of The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. That’s not a bad thing, mind you, as this film is very enjoyable.
The film opens with an explanation of the Baskerville curse and then jumps right into the story of Sir Henry Baskerville (Christopher Lee), who is the final living heir to the Baskerville fortune and, apparently, the last target of the family curse. Dr. Richard Mortimer (Francis de Wolff) calls on Sherlock Holmes and Doctor John Watson (Peter Cushing and Andre Morell) to investigate the death of Sir Charles Baskerville and, hopefully, prevent the untimely death of Sir Henry.
Not only do Holmes and Watson believe that the curse is pure hokum, so does Sir Henry. To calm the nerves of Dr. Mortimer, however, Holmes sends Watson to accompany Sir Henry ad Dr, Mortimer to Baskerville Hall. Once at Baskerville Hall, a litany of characters are introduced that may or may not keep viewers guessing as to which one is the actual culprit in this whodunit. Holmes and Watson break down all of the events in the film and eliminate potential villains left and right. I won’t spoil anything more about this film, but just know that it really is a fun ride and I definitely recommend it. Also, it should be noted that this film is more of a mystery than a horror film, but there’s enough blood and gore to appease any Hammer fan.
The cast is brilliant. Cushing and Morell were born to play Holmes and Watson and work together with pure perfection. In all honesty, had either one of these two gents not worked in their roles, the film would have most likely been a dud. Cushing is deliberate in his delivery and Morell always has an assuredness about him that’s amazing to watch on the screen. Lee is every bit a jerk at moments and an extremely likeable guy at others as Sir Henry. The rest of the cast, in particular Marla Landi as Cecile Stapleton and Miles Malleson as Bishop Frankland, do superb jobs. Landi is wonderful as the broken hearted Cecile and Malleson’s comedic turn as the bishop injects just enough humor into the film.
As of this writing, I believe that Terence Fisher outdid himself as the director on this project. Everything from pacing to character development and the cinematography (Jack Asher) fell right into place. I loved the lighting in this production. The music and audio were also amazing.
If you haven’t figured it out yet, I loved this film. I definitely recommend it. Thanks for checking out my review. More Hammer Horror is on the way tomorrow!
Ken's Alternate Universe! 