When a nobleman is threatened by a family curse on his newly inherited estate, detective Sherlock Holmes is hired to investigate.
27 Jul The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)
Mongrel
Sherlock was an invention of the times, following the new idea of evolution. The notion of pure reason being able to perceive and comprehend everything in life was especially novel. This was contrasted to the bumbling inductive logic of doctors like Watson. Handling Holmes is easy if you stick to the magic of Holmes working for the reader, making what he/she sees make sense.
This production uses the Baskervilles as an excuse to completely reinterpret the stance. Here, the world is the same world as the other Hammer horror films, not inhabited by rational schemers but by scowling evil. Even though the rough facts of the story are retained, the tone is completely transformed. Stay away, lest this colour your perceptions of one of the great overblooming ideas: that we can really understand life.
Posted in 2003
Ted’s Evaluation — 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.
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