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The cast in this three-feature length movie set is filled
with the cream of character actors.
The impressive production values compel one to smell the
stench of the London sewers and feel the chill of fear in
the dense fog of Dartmoor.
The Hound of the Baskervilles
Beside the corpse of Sir Charles Baskerville is the footprint
of an enormous animal. It is the manifestation of a curse
that has haunted the family for generations. When the young
heir, Sir Henry, arrives to claim his inheritance; he is in
mortal danger.
The story rattles along with verve and pace and looks like
being the best version of the story until the end. I had expected
the usual satisfactory conclusion with the villain being killed
by the hound or dying shouting imprecations as he is sucked
into the depths of Grympen Mire. But alas no, it's all rather
limp-wristed, he wanders off onto the mist-shrouded moor to
a solitary end.
The Last Vampyre
John Stocton (Roy Marsden) returns to of Lamberly where,
in the 18th century, the villagers murdered an ancestor in
the belief he was a vampire. A series of tragic events follow
and the great detective is called in to wrestle with the forces
of darkness.
It's an absorbing yarn with an impressive array of supporting
actors that includes Maurice Denham, Keith Barron and Freddie
Jones.
The Master Blackmailer
Charles August Milverton is a wealthy art dealer. When society
ladies need money to support an indiscretion he buys their
jewels cheaply. One of his victims commits suicide and another
faces ruin and ostracism. Only Holmes can save her!
Robert Hardy as the evil manipulator of feminine weakness
is superb. With one flash of his pebble glasses he transforms
from a nonentity to a fearsome adversary and lifts the already
high standard of acting in this production to a new level
of excellence.
Footnote: - Irene Adler was the love of Holmes' life
and yet he never embraced her. In The Master Blackmailer,
disguised as a plumber, he kisses a maidservant. Has this
salacious side to Holmes nature been revealed before? We would
like to know.
Conclusion: 90% Extras: 20%.
Continued: DVD
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