For generations, the Baskerville family have believed themselves to be cursed by the bloodthirsty ghost of a hound that prowls the fog-drenched moors of their Devonshire estate. When Sir Henry Baskerville falls victim to the curse, the great detective Sherlock Holmes embarks on his most famous case.
Of all the Sherlock Holmes novels written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Hound of the Baskervilles is genuinely considered the best by Sherlockians. Set before the famous detective apparently fell to his death at the Reichenbach Falls, this was a rare example of Conan Doyle adding elements from his interest in the supernatural into a Sherlock Holmes adventure. Perhaps it is this combination of Britain’s most famous detective and the supernatural that has invited so many different film and TV adaptations.
Prior to Benedict Cumberbatch indelibly making the role his own to modern TV audiences, Ian Richardson made for a suitably incisive and enthusiastic Holmes in this exciting 1983 adaptation. Like Basil Rathbone and Peter Cushing, Richardson is blessed with the avian features that effectively capture Sidney Paget’s original likeness of Holmes. Though the detective’s anti-social personality traits are somewhat ignored, Richardson is still captivating in this most well explored of acting parts, recalling the electric wit and intelligence of Rathbone’s Holmes.
In addition to good production values, the film also benefits from a distinguished cast of British actors, including Brian Blessed, Denholm Elliot, and Martin Shaw. Also accompanying the film is an excellent audio commentary by renowned Holmes expert David Stuart Davies. Overall, this new Blu-ray release will not disappoint fans of Gothic Horror and the nineteenth century’s finest detective.
THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES (1983) / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: DOUGLAS HICKOX / SCREENPLAY: CHARLES EDWARD POGUE / STARRING: IAN RICHARDSON, DONALD CHURCHILL, DENHOLM ELLIOTT, BRIAN BLESSED, MARTIN SHAW / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
