The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes!

The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes is a Holmes film that carries a great deal of panache and that mostly comes from the fact it was written and directed by Billy Wilder. The film starring Robert Stephens as the great detective and Colin Blakely as his trusty biographer, was met at the time in 1970 with glowing reviews and some regard it as the best Sherlock Holmes film ever made. All this hullabaloo made me eager to see it. I have at long last had that pleasure, securing a copy from the folks at Kino-Lorber. My assessment is that the movie falls well short of its reputation. 

For one thing it's too long, clocking in at a cool two hours and five minutes. Like most movies that are too long and the product largely of one creative mind, it's relatively easy to find spots to cut. These kinds of projects often lack the perspective to see where precious words need not appear. The movie's plot is actually fairly simple. Holmes is ordered by his brother Mycroft (played wonderfully by Christipher Lee) to help guard a secret military project. He refuses but then gets involved with a lovely young woman looking for her husband. There are other details such as missing midgets, cages full of canaries, obscure Scottish castles, and a submarine. This movie does offer up the allure of Holmes confronting the Loch Ness monster mystery, but the solution is pretty humdrum and is even given away on the poster. (The poster is a humdinger by artist Robert McGinnis who offers up one of his exceedingly tempting semi-dressed dames.) 

The solution to the Loch Ness mystery (it's a secret military project) reminded me of the third issue of Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD in which pretty much the same solution is offered, and a bogus ghostly hound is bounding to boot. Steranko really smashed it all together quite neatly. 

Maybe in 1970 the actress Genevieve Page romping around 221 B Baker Street in the nude was provocative (they show nothing) but it's pretty mild by modern standards. Perhaps folks were provoked by the film's hints here and there that Sherlock Holmes might have a preference other than lovely women. There's little sizzle there for a modern audience. 

Don't get me wrong, this is a perfectly fine flick. It does the usual stuff that a Sherlock Holmes movie does and does it in a calm reflective manner, but it is hardly the finest Sherlock Holmes movie ever made. Any moviemaker who treads on this territory has to contend with the legends of Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, and alas this one doesn't cut the mustard much in that regard. Though I was happy to see that Watson was treated as a buffoon as often as was the charming Bruce, something hardcore Sherlockians claim to hate. 

 Oh, and the Loch Ness Monster is a submarine. I'd say I was spoiling the plot but it's on the fricking poster. I do like that poster! 

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