The PBS series Masterpiece Mystery! begins showing season 2 of “Sherlock” this Sunday, May 6th at 8PM Central Time. For those of you who have only recently discovered British television courtesy of “Downton Abbey”, do yourself a favor and watch this program. This is a modern-day incarnation of Holmes with sharp-witted dialogue and baffling plots worthy of Conan-Doyle’s immortal sleuth. Don’t worry that you’re coming in on Season 2. It hardly matters. The foundations of the characters of Holmes and Watson remain fully intact. Holmes, the brilliant master of deductive reasoning with no social skills whatsoever, and his faithful friend Dr. John Watson, recently mustered out of the Army who’s intrigued by Holmes’ mind and shares his fascination with the mysteries his life presents. Benedict Cumberbatch gives Holmes a welcome breath of fresh air, and the advantage of youth and vigor that he has rarely been given in the past. Martin Freeman’s John Watson is, thankfully, no bumbling companion present only to fill in plot points and chronolog the adventures of the Master Detective. This Doctor Watson is integral in solving the puzzles and giving Holmes the common sense, real world perspective he so sorely needs, as well as a well-educated and thorougly competant partner. This series is just surprisingly well-done. Given the premise of a modern-day Holmes played by a young man in his 20’s, my expectations going into Series 1 were very low. So it made the show that much more of a treat to watch.
There are few characters in literature whose portrayal on film evokes more passion among his fans than does Sherlock Holmes. According to Wikipedia, The Guiness World Book claims over 75 actors have appeared as Holmes in more than 200 films. The most famous of these is undoubtedly Basil Rathbone, who played the Bard of Baker Street in a total of fourteen films, starting in 1939 through 1946, as well as on radio during the same period. Rathbone had the aristocratic British accent for which Americans have a special fondness, and a Gallic nose that made his silhouette instantly recognizable. The affable, rotund Nigel Bruce, a stage veteran and character actor in Hollywood, played the bumbling Doctor Watson. The quality of the Rathbone/Bruce films varied widely. Their first outing in “The Hound of the Baskervilles”, was a fairly straightforward adaptation of Arthur Conan-Doyle’s book and was so popular that it kicked off the series. But as World War II broke out, the films took on the role of boosting support for the war effort, the plots lost their appeal for Holmes fans. Still, for many fans, Basil Rathbone is the embodiment of Sherlock Holmes.
As the television era arrived in the 1950’s, Holmes was revived in a British television series largely aimed at children. Through the 1960’s and 70’s a handful of Hollywood features such as “The Seven Percent Solution”, tried to remove the sugar coating Holmes had received in the Basil Rathbone versions. But the stars aligned in the 1980’s and Britain’s Grenada Television gave us “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” starring Jeremy Brett. An accomplished and dedicated actor, Brett immersed himself in the personna of Holmes by studying all of the original stories by Conan-Doyle. Brett’s Holmes had little of the snobbish affectations that Basil Rathbone often exuded, and gave his performance a depth of character that no previous actor had ever achieved in the role. This Holmes was a real person with feelings and desires, and several flaws. The Grenada series starring Brett is certainly my favorite Sherlock Holmes, and is considered by many to be the definitive portrayal. Several episodes are available through Netflix’s Watch Instantly streaming. Give it a try and you’ll be hooked.
Of course, no pop-culture hero goes unskewered forever. There have been a handful of comedies centered on Sherlock. Among these, my personal favorite is “Without A Clue”, starring Michael Caine as Holmes and Ben Kingsley as Dr. Watson. It’s a pure farce in which the characters of Holmes and Watson are reversed. It’s Dr. Watson who’s the genius here. He’s an incarnation of Conan-Doyle the author who writes about the adventures of Sherlock Holmes for a magazine. Holmes, on the other hand, is a third-rate actor and alcoholic who presents himself to the world (and the police) as the genius, but who, in reality, must rely on Watson at every step. As the story unfolds, Watson becomes increasingly jealous of his creation, whom the world continually lavishes with praise while totally dismissing his partner, and Holmes becomes ever-more annoyed at the never-ending stream of condescension and insults thrown at him by Watson. This all leads to a parting of the ways, and Watson attempting to create a new character for himself – “John Watson, the Crime Doctor”, but to no avail. The world wants Sherlock Holmes and will accept no substitutes. The movie was not a box-office success, but I dote on the performances of these wonderful British actors, especially Michael Caine who throws himself into the role of the idiot Holmes totally at-sea and drowning in the presence of Kingsley’s twinkling-eyed, all-knowing Watson. This is a perfect popcorn movie for a summer night.
