Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A classic, 18 Mar 2004
By A Customer
It would be easy to dismiss this film as 'a classic Hammer' a term which is slightly double edged - but this film is a classic in every sense, and resoundingly British. The set designs are amazing, with Baker Street and Baskerville Hall being evocatively recreated. The mix between location shooting and the set of the moors is seamless and most unobtrusive. Terence Fisher's direction is again proven to be peerless - not indulging in any unnecessary movements or bizarre angles (compare and contrast to the Corman films), but a meticulous accumulation of detail - quite in keeping with Holmes and particularly Cushing's performance. With one of the greatest British film actors in the form of Cushing, and one of cinema's enduring icons in the form of Lee, this film was always ensured a cult following. But in this instance, much more wider appreciation is needed. Cushing performance is the very embodiment of Conan-Doyle's prose writing, Lee, playing against type gives one of his greatest early performances. Andre Morell again throws new light on Watson - not a bumbling Nigel Bruce figure, but as Conan-Doyle wrote him, a highly intelligent competant military surgeon who unfortunately has to spout questions to keep the audience informed about Holmes' motivation. However, one constant criticism of the film has been the fact that the Hound is not entirely convincing. This is true, but in the context of the film, it is entirely appropriate, thus negating all of the criticism. Alongside 'The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes', this must be the greatest Conan-Doyle adaptation, and one that richly deserves to be re-discovered. This DVD is a bit scant - only a trailer for extras, but nonetheless, the film itself is a true great.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ideal Holmes exhibition, 9 Jan 2007
Adapted from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's most famous Sherlock Holmes story, Terence Fisher's film of The Hound of the Baskervilles is probably the best attempt to immortalise the Great Detective on film. The movie has several things in its favour, notably a director at the top of his game, teamed yet again with the initial Bray crew who made Hammer's initial run of Gothic fantasies so memorable; in particular Jack Asher's cinematography deserves special praise. The cast, too, is almost flawless; in terms of faithfulness to the literary source, the Holmes and Watson team of Peter Cushing and Andre Morell is second only to the Jeremy Brett / David Burke pairing of the Granada TV series, twenty-five years later. The supporting performances are respectable, with such British cinema stalwarts as John Le Mesurier, Miles Malleson, and Francis DeWolff giving their usual accomplished turns, and David Oxley memorably evil as the depraved Sir Hugo Baskerville. The film doesn't quite follow the source novel, subtracting several characters and beefing up the roles of others, but as this is one of the most-adapted stories in TV and film history that is hardly a bad thing; the 1959 adaptation is easily the most enjoyable, being more action-packed than either the 1939 Basil Rathbone version or the 1988 Brett TV movie, whilst still building up a memorable atmosphere of menace and dread, aided by James Bernard's typically doom-laden score. As well as bettering the respected Rathbone and Brett versions, this movie is vastly superior to just about any other adaptation you could mention. The only real flaw in the film (and this is perhaps a controversial opinion) is the casting of Christopher Lee as the victimised Sir Henry Baskerville; Lee is, of course, typically professional in the role, and there is nothing technically wrong with his performance, but after viewing his forceful performances opposite Cushing in other, more even-handed movies, made both before and after this one, is a little hard to accept him as a weak, mild-mannered aristocrat, constantly in awe of Cushing's Holmes, and in need of his help. The fact that he towers above both Cushing and Morell, his supposed saviours, doesn't help either; surely an actor who would have been a better fit for the role would have been Francis Matthews, Cushing's young co-star in the previous year's The Revenge of Frankenstein.
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12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best verison ever!!!!, 22 Mar 2004
Ok, so this '59 edition of the classic A.C.Dole story isn't a perfect page-to-screen adaptation, but in my opinion makes for a better movie for it!!! This movie has everything to keep you interested time and time again - wonderful cast including the hammer duo Peter Cushing (Holmes) and Christopher Lee (Baskerville), a solid story full of plot twists and suspense, a great murder mystery which unfolds very well. If your new to hammer productions, or just new to this kind of film, I'd certain recommend a night in with this classic. A must for any self respecting movie fan.
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