BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 / Basil Rathbone movies

**Posted by Sherlock Holmes** April 22, 2012 11:58 pm

After doing so badly in the "other adaptations" version of the Sherlock quiz at the recent meetup, I've decided to start watching all the old movies and adaptations. So I've successfully (and probably illegally) downloaded the 14 Basil Rathbone films from 1939 to 1946. I'm currently watching The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1939) and immediately am noticing things that have influenced Moftiss - the opening scene for example, is a court case during which Moriarty surprisingly gets acquitted.

Anybody else seen these films and if so what did you think of them? And did you notice any other bits that have been used in the latest adaptation?

**Posted by Wholocked** April 23, 2012 12:32 am

I've downloaded the Jeremy Brett series' but not Basil Rathbone yet. We should start a penpal system so we can mail each other DVDs and we don't all have to break the law LOL

**Posted by Sherlock Holmes** April 23, 2012 7:59 am

Sounds like a good idea...except I'd just be mailing illegal downloaded copies anyway, lol.

**Posted by theCuriousOne** April 23, 2012 11:12 am

it can't be helped, LOL..
I don't know how to buy online via eBay/such things, besides I don't have any spare money for buy those movies.. (

**Posted by Morton** July 10, 2012 8:03 am

My father was a Holmes fan and I can remember watching the film repeats with him only because he called him Rasil Bathbone. It's on my 'to do' list to obtain the films.

**Posted by Straker** July 15, 2012 6:39 pm

theCuriousOne wrote:
it can't be helped, LOL..
I don't know how to buy online via eBay/such things, besides I don't have any spare money for buy those movies.. (

Many Sherlock Holmes films can be found on Youtube, including the Basil Rathbone ones.

**Posted by tobeornot221b** July 17, 2012 6:16 pm

Here are my London purchases - The 14 Basil Rathbone films and the double blu-ray of Sherlock series 1 and 2 (although I don't own a blu-ray player yet ):

Last edited by tobeornot221b (July 17, 2012 6:16 pm)

**Posted by tobeornot221b** August 18, 2012 6:05 pm

I just finished watching three randomly chosen B.R. films in a row: The Woman in Green, The Scarlett Claw and Pursuit to Algiers. Once you get used to those "ancient" films (where the actors tend to scream rather than talk normally) they are quite enjoyable.
Watson is a real bonehead, always eager to enjoy himself, drink wine, fall into every possible hole, chat up women half his age and even sing "Loch Lomond", accompanied by piano.
Rathbone-Holmes is very much like our Sherlock – though not as extremely discourteous to anyone less clever than himself.
Btw: His coat is two sizes too large and – ugly with a big U!
Of those films, I'd recommend The Woman in Green. It's a mixture between The Final Problem, The Empty House and a bit of Scandal. The Scarlett Claw has a lot of Baskerville in it (set in foggy, creepy Canada), whereas Pursuit to Algiers is a rather dreadful story about a king in disguise – though quite funny.
So, eleven more films to watch. Oh no, ten, as I watched the first one, Hound of the Baskervilles, only last week. I noticed how much meanwhile I'm used to the Gatiss Hounds version when it comes to assigning the right names to the characters - all the Franklands, Stapletons, Mortimers and Barrymores...

Last edited by tobeornot221b (August 18, 2012 6:06 pm)

**Posted by tobeornot221b** August 19, 2012 3:19 pm

Today I watched "The House of Fear" which is loosely based on ACD's "The Five Orange Pips".
The phrase "burnt to a crisp" was mentioned twice (and made me somehow jump; as well as "violent deaths" and "cufflinks" … crazy, I know ).
In this case it meant that a corpse couldn't be clearly identified because of the body's condition, whereas in Reichenbach "burnt to a crisp" has to have a different meaning - at least I strongly suspect...

**Posted by KeepersPrice** December 8, 2012 1:23 pm

*SPOILER*

I stumbled across the Basil Rathebone movie 'The Woman in Green' this morning on one of the movie channels. Found it fun to watch the scene of Moriarty's walk up the stairs to 221B while Holmes is playing the violin. Same pause on the step, same pause on the violin. Fun also, how the criminals have him write a suicide note and then try to get him to jump off the roof. So familiar and yet so not.......

"The Seven Percent Solution" is on right now. Rather touching scene at Holmes's bedside between him and Watson as Holmes struggles to recover from his addiction. I don't know the actor playing Watson. He's rather good.