AUGUST MURDERS: THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES

Posted on by The Beard

In 1971 NBC premiered its NBC MYSTERY MOVIE. This was an umbrella series with three shows appearing on a rotating basis each episode 90 to 120 minutes long. The three shows were COLUMBO, MACMILLAN AND WIFE, and McCLOUD. Needless to say, the NBC MYSTERY MOVIE was a hit. Not only did each individual show garner high ratings but the NBC MYSTERY MOVIE itself finished in fourteenth place for the year. This did not escape rival network ABC’s attention.

ABC wanted their own mystery movie night, but they decided to approach it a little bit different. Rather than present new detectives they decided to create an umbrella series with rotating shows based on classic detectives. The first of those pilot films was THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES (1972) starring Stewart Granger. 

THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES (1972) is a made-for-TV mystery film executive produced by Richard Irving, produced by Stanley Kallis, and associate produced by Arthur Hilton. It is directed by Barry Crane and stars Stewart Granger, Bernard Fox, and William Shatner. 

Cast

Stewart Granger as SHERLOCK HOLMES

Bernard Fox as DOCTOR WATSON

William Shatner as STAPLETON

Jane Merrow as BERYL STAPLETON

Anthony Zerbe as DOCTOR MORTIMER               

Ian Ireland as SIR HENRY BASKERVILLE

Brendan Dillon as BARRYMORE

Arline Anderson as MRS. BARRYMORE

Sally Ann Howes as LAURA FRANKLAND

John Williams as ARTHUR FRANKLAND

The movie opens with a flashback sequence in which we see how the evil Sir Hugo Baskerville, in attempting to force himself on a young girl, is savagely killed by a hound from hell. Thus begins the curse of the Hound of the Baskervilles. 

The current heir to the title, Sir Charles Baskerville, has died under mysterious circumstances. His friend and executor of his estate, Doctor Mortimer, is worried that something is going to happen to the new heir – Sir Charles’ nephew Sir Henry Baskerville of Canada. He implores Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson to look into the matter for the sake of Sir Henry. They agree to do so and travel with him to his new home in Dartmoor. 

They meet the servants – the Barrymores, they meet the neighbors – the Stapletons, they meet the townspeople – the Franklands. Everyone has a secret. Everyone is not who they pretend to be – and it is up to Sherlock Holmes with an able assist from Doctor Watson to piece together all the facts before there is another victim of the Hound of the Baskervilles. 

  • This is the first American color adaptation of this story. 

Dislikes

  • THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES is a hard story to tell. It is amazing that it has been brought to the screen so many times. One of the problems is that it has a story within a story. The story of Sir Hugo Baskerville and how he brought the curse upon his family is a story within the bigger story of Sir Charles Baskerville’s death and the attempts on Sir Henry Baskerville. Each adaptation tackles Sir Hugo’s story differently. Here they make a mistake. William Shatner plays a dual role in this film – one of them as Sir Hugo. But no wig and fake beard could cover up the fact that it is William Shatner and that spoils the mystery. Having him obviously be Sir Hugo spoils the climax. 
  • I’m afraid that there having been so many adaptations of THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES that this film suffers in comparison. It is rather cheaply made with sets and props left over from westerns. Now it may not be fair to compare this movie with other adaptations but the last time I checked there are over eighteen Hound of the Baskervilles movies. There is no way to avoid comparisons and I’m afraid this movie comes up short.
  • There is a tendency when making a film out of a classic story to think you can improve upon the original. I see that all the time with recent Hercule Poirot movies – as if you can improve upon Agatha Christie. Here they took liberties with the classic story – as if they can improve upon Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. You cannot and they did not. 
  • THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES is the Sherlock Holmes story that most perfectly melds mystery and horror. Unfortunately, this film is more mystery and very little horror. And the mystery is spoiled by the fact that we have seen it all before. You know how it ends because you’ve seen it in 1932, then again in 1939, and then in 1959, and so on. When one watches a Hound of the Baskervilles movie now it is not for the mystery but to see how the filmmakers do it. In this case they didn’t do it too well.  

Likes

  • Stewart Granger makes an excellent Sherlock Holmes. I wish someone had thought to have him play Holmes when he was a bit younger. Nevertheless, I loved his Holmes.
  • Bernard Fox makes a good Doctor Watson. He is not perfect. There is still a tad of the bumbling Nigel Bruce in his interpretation of Watson. But he is very good and plays well against Granger’s Holmes. 
  • It is always fun to see William Shatner ham it up and overact in another role. The only problem is that you spend so much time laughing you forget this is supposed to be a dramatic part. 
  • It’s a Sherlock Holmes movie. Right or wrong, good or bad, it’s a Sherlock Holmes film and that automatically means you have to love it. To paraphrase the movie THREESOME (1994) – Sherlock Holmes is like pizza, even when it’s bad it’s still pretty good. 

Reviewing a mystery is always rough because you don’t want to give anything away and spoil it for someone who perhaps has not seen the film. Your synopsis comes across as cutesy when you didn’t mean it to. You feel tied when you speak about the movie. This month is our month to exam mysteries – which means I’m going to be struggling all month.

This is not one of the better adaptations of this story. On the other hand, it is not the worst either. As Sherlock Holmes movies go it is kind of middle of the road – with the best thing about this movie being Stewart Granger’s involvement. 

I am going to recommend this movie but with reservations. It is not a sterling production, it is not going to take your breath away, it will not have you at the edge of your seat. But, if you are a Sherlock Holmes fan and have not seen this movie I suggest you check it out. If you are a Stewart Granger fan and have not seen this movie, check it out. If you are a William Shatner fan – yes, there are William Shatner fans – and have not seen this movie check it out. Hardcore geeks will understand. The things we do for geekery go beyond the call of duty. 

On our gray geeks scale I give THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES (1972) three gray geeks. 

That takes us thru the first of these ABC classic mystery movies. Next time we will tackle THE ADVENTURES OF NICK CARTER (1972) starring Robert Conrad. Until then, may the sun shine warmly on your cheeks, may the wind always be at your back, and may the bird of happiness poop on your head. Hasta la vista!

One thought on “AUGUST MURDERS: THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES”

  1. I enjoyed your article and agree 100% with your review. This version was one of the first Holmes adventures I watched on TV. It came on very late on cable and I caught it at just the right mood that it became a favorite.
    Possibly more nostalgia based, but of all the versions I probably watch this one the most. I think Granger was excellent as Holmes too and Shatner grows on you.

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Published by The Beard

I’m Eliseo Figueroa Jr. and you’re not. I was born in Saint Francis hospital across the street from Saint Mary’s Park in the Bronx. I was born there because that was where my mother was and I wanted to be near her. My parents came from Puerto Rico and moved to New York City when they were kids. My dad spoke fluent English – with an accent – but he’d had a stint in the army and had mastered the language. However, he needed a little work on reading and so everyday on the way to work he would buy a comic book and read it on the subway. In those days they were ten cents, a quick read, you could fold them and put them in your pocket, and when you finished you threw them away. Back home my mom would tell my dad to read me a story to put me to sleep. My dad had no desire whatsoever to read me any of my baby books so he read me one of his comic books instead. While other kids dreamed of Mother Goose, the Old Lady who lived in a shoe, or Little Red Riding Hood, I dreamt of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. And this went on for years. When I got older I asked him to give me the comic books. At that point he stopped throwing them out and I had a comic book collection even though I still didn’t know how to read. During the day I would make my mom read me my comics over and over again. I was dying to learn how to read and had been told that you learn to read in first grade. I remember being so excited the first day of school for the first grade. I couldn’t contain myself. I thought it was like magic – poof! – I was going to come back home and be able to read all of my comics. My mom had to sit me down and explain that it was a process. That over time I would learn how to read and by the time I finished the first grade I would be reading. I must say I was disappointed but more determined than ever to master this thing called reading. Over the years my comic collection grew (my dad had to keep building bigger and better shelves) and so did my interests. I mastered reading and went on to read books. I discovered the library where they actually let you borrow books – what a concept! And my interests in literary science fiction and fantasy expanded to include television and movies. Yes, I was and still am a full-blown geek! By the way, I’m the beard in our little duet. I have a goatee and no moustache. In all that time while growing up my dad never once complained. How could he? This was all his fault and he knew it. One time we were in a store where I was purchasing some comics and it all came to twenty bucks. As my dad was paying the man the owner commented on how much I was spending on comic books. My dad’s reply was, “Well, at least he’s not on drugs!” Science fiction, fantasy, horror, secret agents, giant monsters, and more are my drug of choice. Anyone who has ever sat in a darkened theater and has had their heart start racing in excitement as the music to STAR WARS begins to play knows exactly what I mean.