Saturday, December 26, 2009
Poll Question: Who best represents Sherlock Holmes?
Christmas saw the opening of Guy Richie’s Sherlock Holmes, and reviews of the production are racing about the internet, with film critics, doing what they do best – criticize other’s work. To my surprise, there are a good number of positive reviews, including by members of one of the oldest Sherlock Holmes fan groups, the Baker Street Irregulars, were quite positive.
A CNN review of Holmes, which consulted the Irregulars, was very enlightening. Many of the details which comprised the “common” perception, such as Dr. Watson being a bumbling sidekick, vice the manner in which he was portrayed in the written form (e.g. an intelligent military gentleman with an athletic background and with a patience for Mr. Holmes’ mannerisms), was an enlightenment.
Interestingly, the new movie is not based on one of the cannon stories of the Sherlock Holmes background, but a new story based on ritualistic murders in London. Additionally, Mr. Holmes’ opponent is a Lord Blackwood, not Professor Moriarty (though the “blogosphere” is rife with rumors of Brad Pitt possibly appearing in a follow-up movie as the infamous nemesis).
With all this in consideration, and with the plethora of links to the movie, I simply had to ask the next poll question a tad early which incarnation of Sherlock Holmes is your favorite? I am focusing on the “media” version (e.g. theatre, television, film) portrayals, for the purposes of this particular inquiry.
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The primary choices offered are
The first long-running portrayal of Mr. Holmes, in film form. More information located…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rathbone-Bruce_Sherlock_Holmes_films
(The episode “Mother Hubbard Case”, part 1… the remainder, as well as other episodes are posted as well.)
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Peter Cushing: Numerous film productions during the 1960s and early 1970s
More information on the legendary actor’s portrayal are located at the “Baker Street Dozen’s” website, at:
http://www.bakerstreetdozen.com/Cushing1.html
(From Sherlock Holmes and the Blue Carbuncle, 1968)
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An outstanding series which eventually made its way to the US, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is
perhaps the one of the best known portrayals of Mr. Holmes to modern viewers. For more information, please visit the Wiki, at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherlock_Holmes_(1984_TV_Series)
(From “A Scandal in Bohemia” – one of my favorite parts is the introduction, which includes the intriguing portrayals of Victorian London, with Mr. Holmes looking on.)
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The newest incarnation, featured in its full trailer, and with plenty of reviews just below…
As usual, I’ve included an “other” category, in case one decides that the previous choices do not appropriately reflect one’s view of Mr. Holmes. For a more comprehensive listing of actors who have portrayed him, please turn to the appropriate Wiki page.
For further information regarding the recently released movie, please visit the following
Movie Reviews:
CNN Entertainment
Christian Science Monitor
LA Times
BBC
Seattle PI / Film.com:
and of course, there is Google Entertainment (which has plenty of shills and critics).
Sherlock Holmes Websites:
Sherlock Holmes Public Library
Arthur Conan Doyle Society
Gutenburg Online (A large selection of novels are located here)
Sherlock Holmes Museum
The Baker Street Journal
The Baker Street Dozen
And as a final note, in the Virtual Worlds…
Mr. Holmes in “The Roofs of Clockhaven” (by Mr. Koskinen)
(by Mr. Koskinen)
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comments:
Ilsa Munro
said…
Place me firmly in the "Other" column – though to be fair Ive not yet seen the most recent effort. For me the greatest portrayal of Holmes remains Mr Christopher Plummer in "Murder By Decree" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079592/).
With luck I shall be able to compare it to the new film later today.
December 26, 2009 9:18 AM
Heather
said…
My vote goes to Michael Caine and Ben Kingsley in "Without A Clue"! 🙂
December 27, 2009 12:34 AM
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