Amateur sleuth shows used to be popular in the pre-csi era of television.
These series showcased detectives who were not police officers, were often quirky, and could best the cops at solving murders -- if they could get them to listen.
You're right if you think that sounds exactly like CBS' Elsbeth. Elsbeth has more in common with amateur sleuth series of the past than with the show it spun off from, The Good Wife.
Elsbeth is a modern take on classic shows like Columbo, Murder She Wrote, and Diagnosis Murder. Most shows it owes a debt to are no longer on television, but streaming services have given them new life.
Elsbeth Heralds the Return of Amateur Sleuth Shows
Amateur sleuth shows are part of the cozy mystery genre.
Nowadays, they've fallen out of favor -- these mysteries mostly air as movies on the Hallmark channel.
There was a time...
These series showcased detectives who were not police officers, were often quirky, and could best the cops at solving murders -- if they could get them to listen.
You're right if you think that sounds exactly like CBS' Elsbeth. Elsbeth has more in common with amateur sleuth series of the past than with the show it spun off from, The Good Wife.
Elsbeth is a modern take on classic shows like Columbo, Murder She Wrote, and Diagnosis Murder. Most shows it owes a debt to are no longer on television, but streaming services have given them new life.
Elsbeth Heralds the Return of Amateur Sleuth Shows
Amateur sleuth shows are part of the cozy mystery genre.
Nowadays, they've fallen out of favor -- these mysteries mostly air as movies on the Hallmark channel.
There was a time...
- 5/20/2024
- by Jack Ori
- TVfanatic
Eighties television was a land of new ideas that hadn’t been seen before. It was also a place where old tropes were made shiny and new with a modern sheen that intrigued audiences and would produce classics like the hospital drama St. Elsewhere and the crime drama Hill Street Blues.
It would be a humdinger of a decade within the genre of mystery and detectives. It would see the return of the iconic detective Mike Hammer in a new series and would also bring us the dramedy Moonlighting. We’d also be treated to one of the greatest performances of Sherlock Holmes ever with the amazing Jeremy Brett.
It would also bring us a female detective who, in a world filled with male counterparts, couldn’t catch a break until she made up her own male counterpart in a boss named Remington Steele. The rest, as they say, is history,...
It would be a humdinger of a decade within the genre of mystery and detectives. It would see the return of the iconic detective Mike Hammer in a new series and would also bring us the dramedy Moonlighting. We’d also be treated to one of the greatest performances of Sherlock Holmes ever with the amazing Jeremy Brett.
It would also bring us a female detective who, in a world filled with male counterparts, couldn’t catch a break until she made up her own male counterpart in a boss named Remington Steele. The rest, as they say, is history,...
- 2/19/2024
- by Jessica Dwyer
- JoBlo.com
Sherlock Holmes has received numerous screen adaptations both canon and not, and many actors have also transformed themselves into the legendary detective, such as Jeremy Brett, Benedict Cumberbatch, Robert Downey Jr., and Henry Cavill.
BBC’s Sherlock
A new series following the adventures of the famed mystery solver is confirmed to be in the works at The CW, and it will feature a new Sherlock Holmes as well as a very intriguing twist to the story.
SUGGESTEDBenedict Cumberbatch Hates One Thing About Marvel’s Avengers Movies: “Five minutes, that’s all the time they have” The CW Orders Sherlock & Daughter Series
A new project entitled Sherlock & Daughter is now brewing at The CW with actor David Thewlis in the lead. Fans will find the title a bit different from the previous iterations of the detective thriller, and this unique spin will certainly attract audiences.
The plot of the upcoming show...
BBC’s Sherlock
A new series following the adventures of the famed mystery solver is confirmed to be in the works at The CW, and it will feature a new Sherlock Holmes as well as a very intriguing twist to the story.
SUGGESTEDBenedict Cumberbatch Hates One Thing About Marvel’s Avengers Movies: “Five minutes, that’s all the time they have” The CW Orders Sherlock & Daughter Series
A new project entitled Sherlock & Daughter is now brewing at The CW with actor David Thewlis in the lead. Fans will find the title a bit different from the previous iterations of the detective thriller, and this unique spin will certainly attract audiences.
The plot of the upcoming show...
- 2/16/2024
- by Ariane Cruz
- FandomWire
Battlestar Galactica has a compelling premise. Twelve human space colonies in a distant part of the universe are at war with a race of artificially intelligent robots called the Cylons. A human called Baltar betrays humanity and the Cylons wipe out the Twelve Colonies and most of their space-faring ships, the Colonial Fleet, in a nuclear attack that leaves their planets uninhabitable. The only surviving vessel from the Fleet is the Battlestar Galactica, along with a ragtag collection of other space vessels. So the human survivors travel across the universe led by Commander Adama of the Galactica, looking for the legendary 13th colony, Earth, to make it their new home.
With such a fascinating setup, it’s no surprise that Battlestar Galactica (1978) has had several sequels, spinoffs, and remakes: the short-lived sequel series Galactica 1980, which was hampered by a lack of most of the original stars; the very successful 2003-...
With such a fascinating setup, it’s no surprise that Battlestar Galactica (1978) has had several sequels, spinoffs, and remakes: the short-lived sequel series Galactica 1980, which was hampered by a lack of most of the original stars; the very successful 2003-...
- 1/17/2024
- by John Saavedra
- Den of Geek
Gayle Hunnicutt, whose best-known work came as Vanessa Beaumont, the mother of J.R. Ewing’s illegitimate son, in the final three seasons of Dallas, has died per multiple U.K. reports. Hunnicutt died last Thursday at a hospital in London, according to her ex-husband Simon Jenkins. She was 80 years old.
That Hunnicutt would find fame playing Vanessa Beaumont, a Brit, on a TV show called Dallas was a bit ironic for a woman born in Fort Worth. But it was entirely sensible given that the actress spent much of her career in British TV and movies, even marrying the be-knighted Jenkins before returning to work in the U.S.
Her TV career began with a role on the shortlived small-screen adaptation of Mister Roberts and included roles on The Beverly Hillbillies, Get Smart and in Marlowe opposite James Garner.
In 1970, Hunnicutt met and later married David Hemmings, who himself...
That Hunnicutt would find fame playing Vanessa Beaumont, a Brit, on a TV show called Dallas was a bit ironic for a woman born in Fort Worth. But it was entirely sensible given that the actress spent much of her career in British TV and movies, even marrying the be-knighted Jenkins before returning to work in the U.S.
Her TV career began with a role on the shortlived small-screen adaptation of Mister Roberts and included roles on The Beverly Hillbillies, Get Smart and in Marlowe opposite James Garner.
In 1970, Hunnicutt met and later married David Hemmings, who himself...
- 9/6/2023
- by Tom Tapp
- Deadline Film + TV
"My Fair Lady" is a 1964 movie musical based on the 1956 Lerner and Loewe stage musical of the same name, which is in turned based on the 1913 stage play "Pygmalion" which, in its own turn, is based on Greek mythology. Sure, that trail ends with Hollywood, but Broadway is up to exact same shenanigans when it comes to remakes and reboots. Although the story of "My Fair Lady" is significantly altered from the original mythos, the core relationship between creator and creation is unchanged. Well, it's now about British high society and not about a sculptor and a sculpture anymore. Close enough, right?
Anyway, the 1964 film stars the one and only Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, the titular fair lady. Co-starring as professor Henry Higgins, the titular claimant of possessing a "fair lady," is Rex Harrison, who also played the role opposite Julie Andrews in the original Broadway production. Wilfrid Hyde-White,...
Anyway, the 1964 film stars the one and only Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, the titular fair lady. Co-starring as professor Henry Higgins, the titular claimant of possessing a "fair lady," is Rex Harrison, who also played the role opposite Julie Andrews in the original Broadway production. Wilfrid Hyde-White,...
- 1/8/2023
- by Cameron Roy Hall
- Slash Film
Stars: Tom Hendryk, Michael McKell, Helen Crevel, Robin Denys, David Lenik, Mark Topping, Francesca Louise White | Written and Directed by Steve Lawson
Following on from Bram Stoker’s Van Helsing and Ripper Untold, Leicester-based filmmaker Steve Lawson returns with his third take on classic cinematic villains with Jekyll & Hyde; and like those aforementioned movies his story doesn’t take the traditional route, retelling the same story we’ve heard before with a new slant… It’s an interesting low-budget adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novella, Jekyll and Hyde, that’s for sure.
Though if you are looking for a formula, Lawson does follow that which he set out in Bram Stoker’s Van Helsing and Ripper Untold, namely that the film is small-scale, with minimal locations and feels much like a stage play (which it would be if not for the trip to Jekyll’s home) than cinematic...
Following on from Bram Stoker’s Van Helsing and Ripper Untold, Leicester-based filmmaker Steve Lawson returns with his third take on classic cinematic villains with Jekyll & Hyde; and like those aforementioned movies his story doesn’t take the traditional route, retelling the same story we’ve heard before with a new slant… It’s an interesting low-budget adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novella, Jekyll and Hyde, that’s for sure.
Though if you are looking for a formula, Lawson does follow that which he set out in Bram Stoker’s Van Helsing and Ripper Untold, namely that the film is small-scale, with minimal locations and feels much like a stage play (which it would be if not for the trip to Jekyll’s home) than cinematic...
- 12/15/2021
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”
That haunting line opened Daphne Du Maurier’s treasured 1938 romantic thriller “Rebecca,” which was published in 1938. Lauded by critics, it quickly became a best-seller and has been in print ever since. And for good reason.
Du Maurier wraps readers around her little finger with this addictive tale of a timid young woman-her name is never mentioned-who meets and falls in love with an enigmatic wealthy widower, Maxim de Winter, while in Monte Carlo working as a paid companion to the obnoxious American, Mrs. Van Hopper. Max and the young woman soon fall in love. They marry and he takes her home to his gothic estate Manderley run with an iron-fist by the tightly wound housekeeper Mrs. Danvers who is obsessed with the late, charismatic Rebecca, the late wife of Maxim.
Two years after its publication, “Gone with the Wind” producer David O. Selznick...
That haunting line opened Daphne Du Maurier’s treasured 1938 romantic thriller “Rebecca,” which was published in 1938. Lauded by critics, it quickly became a best-seller and has been in print ever since. And for good reason.
Du Maurier wraps readers around her little finger with this addictive tale of a timid young woman-her name is never mentioned-who meets and falls in love with an enigmatic wealthy widower, Maxim de Winter, while in Monte Carlo working as a paid companion to the obnoxious American, Mrs. Van Hopper. Max and the young woman soon fall in love. They marry and he takes her home to his gothic estate Manderley run with an iron-fist by the tightly wound housekeeper Mrs. Danvers who is obsessed with the late, charismatic Rebecca, the late wife of Maxim.
Two years after its publication, “Gone with the Wind” producer David O. Selznick...
- 10/22/2020
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
The new Netflix film Enola Holmes is the talk of the internet at the moment. And while the story centers around Sherlock Holmes’ younger sister, people can’t help but notice how Henry Cavill’s version of the private detective is so different from what we’ve seen in other incarnations.
There was a time when Jeremy Brett was unrivalled as the best version of the character. Then came Benedict Cumberbatch’s modern and quirky Sherlock, and alongside it the witty Robert Downey Jr. in the film series. Now, the genius crime fighting investigator has once again graced the screens with his mad deductions skills. Only this time, Henry Cavill, the actor known for playing the Man of Steel in the Dceu and Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher, has taken up the mantle. Or more precisely, the deerstalker and the overcoat.
What’s more, this particular version is merely...
There was a time when Jeremy Brett was unrivalled as the best version of the character. Then came Benedict Cumberbatch’s modern and quirky Sherlock, and alongside it the witty Robert Downey Jr. in the film series. Now, the genius crime fighting investigator has once again graced the screens with his mad deductions skills. Only this time, Henry Cavill, the actor known for playing the Man of Steel in the Dceu and Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher, has taken up the mantle. Or more precisely, the deerstalker and the overcoat.
What’s more, this particular version is merely...
- 9/26/2020
- by Jonathan Wright
- We Got This Covered
Ben Wheatley has emerged as one of contemporary cinema’s most dynamic genre filmmakers, thanks to projects such as “Kill List,” “Sightseers,” “High Rise,” and “Free Fire,” and now he’s taking on one of the most famous genre stories ever written: Daphne du Maurier’s Gothic classic “Rebecca.” Backed by Netflix, Wheatley’s “Rebecca” is the first major film adaptation of the novel since Alfred Hitchcock’s 1940 version starring Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine. Hitchcock’s adaptation won the Oscar for Best Picture. Can Wheatley deliver a retelling of the same caliber? Netflix’s trailer for the new “Rebecca” below gives moviegoers their first look at what Wheatley has hinted is a new take on the material.
Netflix’s official synopsis for “Rebecca” reads: “After a whirlwind romance in Monte Carlo with handsome widower Maxim de Winter (Armie Hammer), a newly married young woman (Lily James) arrives at Manderley,...
Netflix’s official synopsis for “Rebecca” reads: “After a whirlwind romance in Monte Carlo with handsome widower Maxim de Winter (Armie Hammer), a newly married young woman (Lily James) arrives at Manderley,...
- 9/8/2020
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
French actress Claudine Auger, noted for her role as Dominique “Domino” Derval in James Bond film Thunderball, has died at the age of 78.
The news was announced by her agency Time Art, which said she died in Paris on Thursday (December 20), as reported by numerous French press. No cause of death was disclosed.
Auger began her acting career in France when Jean Cocteau cast her in a small role in his 1960 pic Testament Of Orpheus. At the age of 18, she married the French filmmaker Pierre Gaspard-Huit, who was 43 at the time, and he cast her in several of his films including his 1958 film Christine in which she appeared alongside Romy Schneider and Alain Delon.
Her big break came when she landed the role of Domino in Thunderball, the fourth pic in the James Bond franchise in which she starred with Sean Connery, playing the mistress of arch villain Emilio Largo...
The news was announced by her agency Time Art, which said she died in Paris on Thursday (December 20), as reported by numerous French press. No cause of death was disclosed.
Auger began her acting career in France when Jean Cocteau cast her in a small role in his 1960 pic Testament Of Orpheus. At the age of 18, she married the French filmmaker Pierre Gaspard-Huit, who was 43 at the time, and he cast her in several of his films including his 1958 film Christine in which she appeared alongside Romy Schneider and Alain Delon.
Her big break came when she landed the role of Domino in Thunderball, the fourth pic in the James Bond franchise in which she starred with Sean Connery, playing the mistress of arch villain Emilio Largo...
- 12/20/2019
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
Even after all the great roles he’s taken since, for many people, Benedict Cumberbatch will always be Sherlock Holmes. It was the part that took him from ‘that actor with the weird British name’ to global megastardom, and launched the desires of millions of Cumberbitches all around the world. But while his performance in Sherlock is currently the standard by which contemporary takes on the role are judged, there’s one person who didn’t entirely approve of his casting.
In an interview with GQ, Cumberbatch explained that his own mom had a pretty funny reaction when he broke the news to her, telling the outlet the following:
“The first thing my mother said when I mentioned to her that I’d got the part was ‘You don’t have the right nose.’”
Now, I’ve had a second look at Cumberbatch’s schnozz and I don’t see anything particular un-Sherlocky about it,...
In an interview with GQ, Cumberbatch explained that his own mom had a pretty funny reaction when he broke the news to her, telling the outlet the following:
“The first thing my mother said when I mentioned to her that I’d got the part was ‘You don’t have the right nose.’”
Now, I’ve had a second look at Cumberbatch’s schnozz and I don’t see anything particular un-Sherlocky about it,...
- 1/29/2019
- by David James
- We Got This Covered
Sean Wilson Jan 16, 2017
From the BBC's Sherlock, through Disney, Hans Zimmer and Young Sherlock Holmes: we salute the music of Mr Holmes...
Few characters have enjoyed as much reinvention as Arthur Conan Doyle's sleuth Sherlock Holmes, an enduring icon who is as much bound up with the history of cinema (and indeed stage, TV and radio) as he is with literature. Indeed, adaptations of Holmes stories stretch right the way back to the earliest days of film at the start of the 20th century. Fittingly enough given Holmes' penchant for a violin serenade, the musical scores to his adventures are as richly varied as the outcomes to his mysteries are unexpected. Here are Holmes' musical highlights, from Buster Keaton through to Benedict Cumberbatch.
Sherlock Jr. (1924)
Not, strictly speaking, a Sherlock movie but as the title implies, the legacy of the character casts a long shadow over Buster Keaton's silent classic.
From the BBC's Sherlock, through Disney, Hans Zimmer and Young Sherlock Holmes: we salute the music of Mr Holmes...
Few characters have enjoyed as much reinvention as Arthur Conan Doyle's sleuth Sherlock Holmes, an enduring icon who is as much bound up with the history of cinema (and indeed stage, TV and radio) as he is with literature. Indeed, adaptations of Holmes stories stretch right the way back to the earliest days of film at the start of the 20th century. Fittingly enough given Holmes' penchant for a violin serenade, the musical scores to his adventures are as richly varied as the outcomes to his mysteries are unexpected. Here are Holmes' musical highlights, from Buster Keaton through to Benedict Cumberbatch.
Sherlock Jr. (1924)
Not, strictly speaking, a Sherlock movie but as the title implies, the legacy of the character casts a long shadow over Buster Keaton's silent classic.
- 1/15/2017
- Den of Geek
Kayti Burt Aug 8, 2016
From silent film to the BBC's Sherlock, we're perusing the many on-screen incarnations of the villainous Culverton Smith...
Contains potential spoilers for Sherlock series 4 (well, in the sense that it talks about the hundred-year-old story that inspired one of its characters).
In series 4 of the BBC drama, we're told Culverton Smith is to be Sherlock's "darkest villain yet". Introduced in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Dying Detective" and continuing in various film and TV adaptations over the years, the character has already had a long screen career.
In preparation for the forthcoming season of Sherlock (because what else are we supposed to do with this interminable hiatus?), we're taking a look at Culverton Smith's on-screen history through the ages. We've got your silent films. We've got your fan films. We've got your Jeremy Brett. Pick your poison — or should I say infectious disease...
First, an introduction.
From silent film to the BBC's Sherlock, we're perusing the many on-screen incarnations of the villainous Culverton Smith...
Contains potential spoilers for Sherlock series 4 (well, in the sense that it talks about the hundred-year-old story that inspired one of its characters).
In series 4 of the BBC drama, we're told Culverton Smith is to be Sherlock's "darkest villain yet". Introduced in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Dying Detective" and continuing in various film and TV adaptations over the years, the character has already had a long screen career.
In preparation for the forthcoming season of Sherlock (because what else are we supposed to do with this interminable hiatus?), we're taking a look at Culverton Smith's on-screen history through the ages. We've got your silent films. We've got your fan films. We've got your Jeremy Brett. Pick your poison — or should I say infectious disease...
First, an introduction.
- 8/7/2016
- Den of Geek
By Tim Greaves
Numerous actors have occupied the role of Sherlock Holmes over the decades, some more suited to the shoes of author Arthur Conan Doyle's famous consulting detective than others. One of the finest portrayals is that by Ian Richardson. Yet, sadly, his is also one that is often overlooked, not leastways because he played the character just twice (in a pair of 1983 films made for television), but also because his light was to be quickly eclipsed a year later by the arrival on TV screens of Jeremy Brett, whose interpretation of Holmes is considered by many to be the definitive one.
Sy Weintraub – who produced several Tarzan movies throughout the 60s and was executive producer on the popular long-running Ron Ely TV series –teamed up with Otto Plaschkes (whose producer credits include Georgie Girl and The Holcroft Covenant) with the intention of making several Holmes adventures headlining Richardson.
Numerous actors have occupied the role of Sherlock Holmes over the decades, some more suited to the shoes of author Arthur Conan Doyle's famous consulting detective than others. One of the finest portrayals is that by Ian Richardson. Yet, sadly, his is also one that is often overlooked, not leastways because he played the character just twice (in a pair of 1983 films made for television), but also because his light was to be quickly eclipsed a year later by the arrival on TV screens of Jeremy Brett, whose interpretation of Holmes is considered by many to be the definitive one.
Sy Weintraub – who produced several Tarzan movies throughout the 60s and was executive producer on the popular long-running Ron Ely TV series –teamed up with Otto Plaschkes (whose producer credits include Georgie Girl and The Holcroft Covenant) with the intention of making several Holmes adventures headlining Richardson.
- 5/10/2016
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
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Sherlock showrunners Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss share the thinking behind the Sherlock Christmas Special, The Abominable Bride…
The Abominable Bride, a Victorian-set adventure for Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman's Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, comes to BBC One and selected cinemas on New Year's Day.
The plan, as far as it's known, is for series four of Sherlock to start filming a few months afterwards, in Spring 2016.
Here's what Sherlock showrunners Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss told assembled press at a round-table interview on this February's set visit for The Abominable Bride. One message was made very clear: underneath the Victorian garb, it's still very much the same show...
On how the decision to take Sherlock back in time for the Victorian-set Special came about:
Mark Gatiss: We’ve sort of joked about the idea for a long time, but it’s just massively...
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Sherlock showrunners Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss share the thinking behind the Sherlock Christmas Special, The Abominable Bride…
The Abominable Bride, a Victorian-set adventure for Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman's Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, comes to BBC One and selected cinemas on New Year's Day.
The plan, as far as it's known, is for series four of Sherlock to start filming a few months afterwards, in Spring 2016.
Here's what Sherlock showrunners Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss told assembled press at a round-table interview on this February's set visit for The Abominable Bride. One message was made very clear: underneath the Victorian garb, it's still very much the same show...
On how the decision to take Sherlock back in time for the Victorian-set Special came about:
Mark Gatiss: We’ve sort of joked about the idea for a long time, but it’s just massively...
- 11/25/2015
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
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On a February set visit to Bristol, a group of journalists chatted to Martin Freeman about Sherlock’s Victorian-set Christmas Special…
Read the Sherlock special set visit round-table interview with Benedict Cumberbatch, here.
Filming on Sherlock’s first Christmas Special, The Abominable Bride, took place at the beginning of this year. Back then, very little was known about the episode, and the BBC was naturally keen to keep it that way.
Prior to visiting the Bristol set in February, we'd been told that the Special was set in the Victorian era, and that was more or less where the certainties ended. The rest was a hotchpotch of rumour, deduction and inference.
If the following cast and creators round-table interviews seem to have a hint of courtroom interrogation or parlour game about them, then, that air of secrecy explains it. Regardless of the constraints on what could and couldn’t be confirmed,...
google+
On a February set visit to Bristol, a group of journalists chatted to Martin Freeman about Sherlock’s Victorian-set Christmas Special…
Read the Sherlock special set visit round-table interview with Benedict Cumberbatch, here.
Filming on Sherlock’s first Christmas Special, The Abominable Bride, took place at the beginning of this year. Back then, very little was known about the episode, and the BBC was naturally keen to keep it that way.
Prior to visiting the Bristol set in February, we'd been told that the Special was set in the Victorian era, and that was more or less where the certainties ended. The rest was a hotchpotch of rumour, deduction and inference.
If the following cast and creators round-table interviews seem to have a hint of courtroom interrogation or parlour game about them, then, that air of secrecy explains it. Regardless of the constraints on what could and couldn’t be confirmed,...
- 11/23/2015
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Stars: Ian McKellen, Laura Linney, Hattie Morahan, Milo Parker, Hiroyuki Sanada, Hattie Morahan, Patrick Kennedy, Roger Allam, Philip Davis, Frances de la Tour, John Sessions | Written by Jeffrey Hatcher | Directed by Bill Condon
In 1947, the world famous sleuth has retired to a remote Sussex farmhouse, living in relative anonymity with only his housekeeper Mrs Munro and her young son Roger for company. Cantankerous, demanding and frustrated with the mis-representation of him in Watson’s best-selling novels, he diverts his attention to an unsolved case. As the mystery deepens, Sherlock tries desperately to recall the events of 30 years ago that ultimately led to his retirement.
I had high hopes for Mr. Holmes. After all, not only does the film star Ian McKellan in the central role but Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s character is, typically, guaranteed to provide some intriguing crime-solving action. Not so here.
Instead Conan Doyle’s iconic detective...
In 1947, the world famous sleuth has retired to a remote Sussex farmhouse, living in relative anonymity with only his housekeeper Mrs Munro and her young son Roger for company. Cantankerous, demanding and frustrated with the mis-representation of him in Watson’s best-selling novels, he diverts his attention to an unsolved case. As the mystery deepens, Sherlock tries desperately to recall the events of 30 years ago that ultimately led to his retirement.
I had high hopes for Mr. Holmes. After all, not only does the film star Ian McKellan in the central role but Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s character is, typically, guaranteed to provide some intriguing crime-solving action. Not so here.
Instead Conan Doyle’s iconic detective...
- 10/23/2015
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
Simply Media
To celebrate the release of The Englishman’s Castle, Chandler and Co., A Picture of Katherine Mansfield, The Locksmith and Lazarus & Dingwall on DVD, we are giving 1 lucky WhatCulture reader the chance to win a bundle containing all five!
Simply Media
An Englishman’s Castle (1978) starring Kenneth More (Father Brown), Isla Blair (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade) and Anthony Bate (Tinker, Tailor, Solider Spy), is set in an alternate 1970s on an Earth where Germany won the Second World War and is now occupying England. Peter Ingram (More) is the lead writer of a popular soap opera set in Blitz-era London, and knowingly turns a blind eye to the local Nazi rule, opting for the easy life. But when faced with the stark reality of the situation Peter has a difficult decision to make.
Available to own on DVD from 5th October 2015.
Simply Media
Chandler and Co.
To celebrate the release of The Englishman’s Castle, Chandler and Co., A Picture of Katherine Mansfield, The Locksmith and Lazarus & Dingwall on DVD, we are giving 1 lucky WhatCulture reader the chance to win a bundle containing all five!
Simply Media
An Englishman’s Castle (1978) starring Kenneth More (Father Brown), Isla Blair (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade) and Anthony Bate (Tinker, Tailor, Solider Spy), is set in an alternate 1970s on an Earth where Germany won the Second World War and is now occupying England. Peter Ingram (More) is the lead writer of a popular soap opera set in Blitz-era London, and knowingly turns a blind eye to the local Nazi rule, opting for the easy life. But when faced with the stark reality of the situation Peter has a difficult decision to make.
Available to own on DVD from 5th October 2015.
Simply Media
Chandler and Co.
- 10/5/2015
- by Laura Holmes
- Obsessed with Film
Summer 2015 had a lot to offer, a lot to lose sleep over, and a lot to learn from. It gave us hope that the next summer could be even better, and that Hollywood blockbusters still have some life in them yet. Before back to school this month, here are nine lessons we took away from this summer at the movies.
Lesson #1: Mad Max: Fury Road reset the bar for action movies – Zach Dennis
In a summer overrun by dinosaurs and emotive minds, the real kings of the season busted through the Australian apocalypse on top of supercharged cars with a chrome-infused vengeance. In a summer where nostalgia boomed, a new film that will influence the future was born — and it was born on the Fury Road.
Good movies are invigorating, and nothing awoke everyone’s passion like Mad Max: Fury Road did. It wasn’t just classic fun tied...
Lesson #1: Mad Max: Fury Road reset the bar for action movies – Zach Dennis
In a summer overrun by dinosaurs and emotive minds, the real kings of the season busted through the Australian apocalypse on top of supercharged cars with a chrome-infused vengeance. In a summer where nostalgia boomed, a new film that will influence the future was born — and it was born on the Fury Road.
Good movies are invigorating, and nothing awoke everyone’s passion like Mad Max: Fury Road did. It wasn’t just classic fun tied...
- 8/31/2015
- by Staff
- SoundOnSight
The BBC show starring Benedict Cumberbatch; the CBS series starring Lucy Liu and Jonny Lee Miller; the Guy Ritchie movies starring Robert Downey Jr.: The speed at which Sherlock Holmes has become a thing again never ceases to shock this particular Sherlockian. Once upon a time, the detective was a musty, dusty figure, vaguely familiar to the public at large but fixated upon by a small coterie of Victoriana-obsessed irregulars. Interest in him occasionally flared up — the 1980s PBS series starring Jeremy Brett and the 1940s films starring Basil Rathbone were two high points — but never anything like this. Sherlock Holmes is totally cool again, which warms my dorky heart.In Bill Condon’s Mr. Holmes, Ian McKellen gives one of his finest performances, as an aging Holmes reflecting on the past and contending with his legacy. The film clearly owes some debt to the recent rise in interest...
- 7/18/2015
- by Bilge Ebiri
- Vulture
According to Guiness World Records, Sherlock Holmes is the most portrayed fictional character, by more than 70 actors in over 200 films, plays and television shows. I haven't seen all of those, but Ian McKellen can certainly put his performance near the top of the list of great ones (my favourite will always be Jeremy Brett). Reuniting with director Bill Condon (Gods and Monsters, Kinsey), McKellen brings the world's greatest detective to life in a somewhat sedate mystery, more of an examination of the ravages of old age and senility, and the guilt that can prey upon those who have perhaps been a bit too insensitive. While not a surprising film, in that the story unfolds in expected ways, Mr. Holmes, based on the book...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
- 7/16/2015
- Screen Anarchy
From spoofs to point-and-click adventure games, here are 10 of the most memorable unusual incarnations of Sherlock Holmes...
We don’t know a great deal about the content of the 90-minute Sherlock special set to air later this year, but one thing has emerged from the set photos and tantalising titbits of information we’ve seen so far. Sherlock Holmes and John Watson will be in nineteenth-century garb, pitching them back into the setting of the legendary detective’s original adventures: 1895, to be precise. Why that happens is as yet unclear, but all will be revealed.
For those still craving their Holmes fix in the meantime, the new film Mr. Holmes offers us Ian McKellen’s take on the character, musing upon an old case as he looks back on his long career from the vantage point of retirement. Jonny Lee Miller’s ultra-modern, Us-based Sherlock will be entering his fourth...
We don’t know a great deal about the content of the 90-minute Sherlock special set to air later this year, but one thing has emerged from the set photos and tantalising titbits of information we’ve seen so far. Sherlock Holmes and John Watson will be in nineteenth-century garb, pitching them back into the setting of the legendary detective’s original adventures: 1895, to be precise. Why that happens is as yet unclear, but all will be revealed.
For those still craving their Holmes fix in the meantime, the new film Mr. Holmes offers us Ian McKellen’s take on the character, musing upon an old case as he looks back on his long career from the vantage point of retirement. Jonny Lee Miller’s ultra-modern, Us-based Sherlock will be entering his fourth...
- 6/29/2015
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
'Nicholas and Alexandra': Movie starred Michael Jayston and Janet Suzman 'Nicholas and Alexandra' movie review: Opulent 1971 spectacle lacks emotional core Nicholas and Alexandra is surely one of the most sumptuous film productions ever made. The elaborate sets and costumes, Richard Rodney Bennett's lush musical score, and frequent David Lean collaborator Freddie Young's richly textured cinematography provide the perfect period atmosphere for this historical epic. Missing, however, is a screenplay that offers dialogue instead of speeches, and a directorial hand that brings out emotional truth instead of soapy melodrama. Nicholas and Alexandra begins when, after several unsuccessful attempts, Tsar Nicholas II (Michael Jayston) finally becomes the father of a boy. Shortly thereafter, he and his wife, the German-born Empress Alexandra (Janet Suzman), have their happiness crushed when they discover that their infant son is a hemophiliac. In addition to his familial turmoil, the Tsar must also deal with popular...
- 5/7/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Martin Clunes has revealed that he is keen to reprise the role of Arthur Conan Doyle after ITV's Arthur & George.
Clunes stars as the Sherlock Holmes creator in the three-part drama, based on the true story of Doyle fighting to free an innocent man charged with a violent crime.
"I think it'd be fun to revisit, but who knows?" the actor told Digital Spy and other press. "It's great for television to have returning dramas, we all know that.
"There are other cases that he did look into - when Agatha Christie went missing, he was called in to find her... so there you go!"
Clunes insisted that any possible continuation is "up to ITV", adding: "We would like to - it depends how it performs."
The star also revealed that he "was never a Sherlock Holmes nut", despite being related to actor Jeremy Brett - who played the famous...
Clunes stars as the Sherlock Holmes creator in the three-part drama, based on the true story of Doyle fighting to free an innocent man charged with a violent crime.
"I think it'd be fun to revisit, but who knows?" the actor told Digital Spy and other press. "It's great for television to have returning dramas, we all know that.
"There are other cases that he did look into - when Agatha Christie went missing, he was called in to find her... so there you go!"
Clunes insisted that any possible continuation is "up to ITV", adding: "We would like to - it depends how it performs."
The star also revealed that he "was never a Sherlock Holmes nut", despite being related to actor Jeremy Brett - who played the famous...
- 2/27/2015
- Digital Spy
According to Guiness World Records, Sherlock Holmes is the most portrayed fictional character, by more than 70 actors in over 200 films, plays and television shows. I haven't seen all of those, but Ian McKellen can certainly put his performance near the top of the list of great ones (my favourite will always be Jeremy Brett).Reuniting with director Bill Condon (Gods and Monsters, Kinsey), McKellen brings the world's greatest detective to life in a somewhat sedate mystery, more of an examination of the ravages of old age and senility, and the guilt that can prey upon those who have perhaps been a bit too insensitive. While not a surprising film, in that the story unfolds in expected ways, Mr. Holmes (based on the book A...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
- 2/9/2015
- Screen Anarchy
Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman return to Sherlock for the 2015 Special. Here's a round-up of the Special news and rumours so far...
Latest news
Filming on the 2015 Sherlock Special kicked off in Bristol on Monday the 5th of January. The Victorian vaulted cellars of music venue Colstan Hall are reported to be providing one backdrop for the episode.
Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman were both snapped by trusty #setlock fans wearing the same period costume as in the preview image released by the BBC in November (see above).
Underneath that handsome top hat, Cumberbatch is sporting a shiny slicked-back hair do that, as does his costume, bears a strong resemblance to that worn by Jeremy Brett in the 80s-90s Granada Television Holmes series. Martin Freeman was also photographed in his David Burke-as-Watson-style brown suit and ‘tache (which, seeing how much the actor reputedly didn’t enjoy wearing his...
Latest news
Filming on the 2015 Sherlock Special kicked off in Bristol on Monday the 5th of January. The Victorian vaulted cellars of music venue Colstan Hall are reported to be providing one backdrop for the episode.
Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman were both snapped by trusty #setlock fans wearing the same period costume as in the preview image released by the BBC in November (see above).
Underneath that handsome top hat, Cumberbatch is sporting a shiny slicked-back hair do that, as does his costume, bears a strong resemblance to that worn by Jeremy Brett in the 80s-90s Granada Television Holmes series. Martin Freeman was also photographed in his David Burke-as-Watson-style brown suit and ‘tache (which, seeing how much the actor reputedly didn’t enjoy wearing his...
- 1/6/2015
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
"Sherlock" may not return for its fourth season until -- say it ain't so -- 2017, due to the hectic film schedules of in-demand stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. In the meantime, you can rewatch all three seasons and soon you can binge on Cumberbatch in "The Imitation Game" and Freeman in "The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies." But what then?
If you're craving more veddy British crime solving, you don't have far to look. Here are some of the best series the BBC (and ITV) has to offer, with private detectives, psychiatrists, cops, spies, and forensic pathologists all cracking cases, catching criminals and drinking lots of tea.
1. "Sherlock Holmes" (1984-1994)
If it's more Sherlock you crave (and not just Mr. Cumberbatch), then you must see Jeremy Brett's intensely intellectual (and equally arrogant) period-appropriate take on the legendary detective. This Watson is also solid, especially in "The House of the Baskervilles.
If you're craving more veddy British crime solving, you don't have far to look. Here are some of the best series the BBC (and ITV) has to offer, with private detectives, psychiatrists, cops, spies, and forensic pathologists all cracking cases, catching criminals and drinking lots of tea.
1. "Sherlock Holmes" (1984-1994)
If it's more Sherlock you crave (and not just Mr. Cumberbatch), then you must see Jeremy Brett's intensely intellectual (and equally arrogant) period-appropriate take on the legendary detective. This Watson is also solid, especially in "The House of the Baskervilles.
- 12/2/2014
- by Sharon Knolle
- Moviefone
BBC One has used their official Twitter feed to post the first promo photo for the one-off special of "Sherlock" due to air late next year. The special begins production in January and precedes a full fourth series which will go into production later in 2015 for a 2016 airing.
Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman seemed to be dressed up in garb more appropriate to the classic Holmes and Watson of Arthur Conan Doyle's stories, Cumberbatch also seems to be emulating an iconic outfit Jeremy Brett donned in the 1980s "Sherlock Holmes" Granada TV series - see this photo for comparison.
Producer Sue Vertue confirms that the pair will appear in these outfits in the special. BBC One has also tweeted a copy of the cover of the script for the special which you can see below:
This is what we've been doing today! Later on a pic of Sherlock and...
Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman seemed to be dressed up in garb more appropriate to the classic Holmes and Watson of Arthur Conan Doyle's stories, Cumberbatch also seems to be emulating an iconic outfit Jeremy Brett donned in the 1980s "Sherlock Holmes" Granada TV series - see this photo for comparison.
Producer Sue Vertue confirms that the pair will appear in these outfits in the special. BBC One has also tweeted a copy of the cover of the script for the special which you can see below:
This is what we've been doing today! Later on a pic of Sherlock and...
- 11/25/2014
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
By Lee Pfeiffer
If you're pondering what to get your significant other for a holiday gift, look no further than "Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Granada Television Series", which has been released in a boxed set by Mpi Home Entertainment. For many, series star Jeremy Brett was- and remains- the definitive interpretation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's legendary detective. There have been countless actors who have provided wide-ranging performances as Holmes and most of them are commendable in their own way. However, Brett's debut as Holmes in this classic British TV series met with instant international acclaim even among the notoriously fussy Holmes scholars who never seem to be pleased with screen presentation of their literary hero.
The Mpi set contains:
Every episode of the series (41 episodes on 12 DVDs) Includes the five feature film-length adventures Profusely illustrated collector's guide booklet with extensive essays by film historian Richard Valley Interview...
If you're pondering what to get your significant other for a holiday gift, look no further than "Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Granada Television Series", which has been released in a boxed set by Mpi Home Entertainment. For many, series star Jeremy Brett was- and remains- the definitive interpretation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's legendary detective. There have been countless actors who have provided wide-ranging performances as Holmes and most of them are commendable in their own way. However, Brett's debut as Holmes in this classic British TV series met with instant international acclaim even among the notoriously fussy Holmes scholars who never seem to be pleased with screen presentation of their literary hero.
The Mpi set contains:
Every episode of the series (41 episodes on 12 DVDs) Includes the five feature film-length adventures Profusely illustrated collector's guide booklet with extensive essays by film historian Richard Valley Interview...
- 11/20/2014
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Benedict Cumberbatch is everywhere. He's got no fewer than three films coming out between now and the end of the year, with Oscar-tipped biopic The Imitation Game in cinemas now, and The Penguins of Madagascar and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies imminent.
After months of speculation surrounding the casting of Marvel's next superhero Doctor Strange, fresh reports have emerged linking Cumberbatch to the coveted role, although nothing has yet been confirmed. There's also the small matter of his recent engagement, which was announced in a characteristically classy manner earlier this month.
It would be easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of Cumberexposure. But fear not – Digital Spy's handy A-z guide is here to fill in the gaps in your knowledge.
A is for Alan Turing
In what's being widely heralded as the performance that will earn him his first Oscar nomination come January, Cumberbatch...
After months of speculation surrounding the casting of Marvel's next superhero Doctor Strange, fresh reports have emerged linking Cumberbatch to the coveted role, although nothing has yet been confirmed. There's also the small matter of his recent engagement, which was announced in a characteristically classy manner earlier this month.
It would be easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of Cumberexposure. But fear not – Digital Spy's handy A-z guide is here to fill in the gaps in your knowledge.
A is for Alan Turing
In what's being widely heralded as the performance that will earn him his first Oscar nomination come January, Cumberbatch...
- 11/15/2014
- Digital Spy
Benedict Cumberbatch is everywhere. He's got no fewer than three films coming out between now and the end of the year, with Oscar-tipped biopic The Imitation Game in cinemas now, and The Penguins of Madagascar and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies imminent.
After months of speculation surrounding the casting of Marvel's next superhero Doctor Strange, fresh reports have emerged linking Cumberbatch to the coveted role, although nothing has yet been confirmed. There's also the small matter of his recent engagement, which was announced in a characteristically classy manner earlier this month.
It would be easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of Cumberexposure. But fear not – Digital Spy's handy A-z guide is here to fill in the gaps in your knowledge.
A is for Alan Turing
In what's being widely heralded as the performance that will earn him his first Oscar nomination come January, Cumberbatch...
After months of speculation surrounding the casting of Marvel's next superhero Doctor Strange, fresh reports have emerged linking Cumberbatch to the coveted role, although nothing has yet been confirmed. There's also the small matter of his recent engagement, which was announced in a characteristically classy manner earlier this month.
It would be easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of Cumberexposure. But fear not – Digital Spy's handy A-z guide is here to fill in the gaps in your knowledge.
A is for Alan Turing
In what's being widely heralded as the performance that will earn him his first Oscar nomination come January, Cumberbatch...
- 11/15/2014
- Digital Spy
Between the long-awaited confirmation of Sherlock's fourth series, the even longer-awaited confirmation of Sherlock Holmes 3, and the upcoming release of Anthony Horowitz's novel Moriarty, the cult of Holmes is positively thriving.
It's no secret that we're big Baker Street fans here at Digital Spy, so we were predisposed to enjoy the Museum of London's new exhibition Sherlock Holmes: The Man Who Never Lived and Will Never Die.
Incorporating video footage, paintings, written extracts, props from the BBC's Sherlock and some artifacts belonging to Arthur Conan Doyle himself, there are too many Holmesian treasures to name within the multimedia exhibition. But below are the five main reasons it's a must-do for any fan.
1. See the birth of Sherlock Holmes
On paper, that is. One of the rarest and most impressive items in the exhibition is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's notebook, which contains the first lines of...
It's no secret that we're big Baker Street fans here at Digital Spy, so we were predisposed to enjoy the Museum of London's new exhibition Sherlock Holmes: The Man Who Never Lived and Will Never Die.
Incorporating video footage, paintings, written extracts, props from the BBC's Sherlock and some artifacts belonging to Arthur Conan Doyle himself, there are too many Holmesian treasures to name within the multimedia exhibition. But below are the five main reasons it's a must-do for any fan.
1. See the birth of Sherlock Holmes
On paper, that is. One of the rarest and most impressive items in the exhibition is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's notebook, which contains the first lines of...
- 10/17/2014
- Digital Spy
Of the well-over-200 Sherlock Holmes films produced since 1900, one you might not have expected to see was 1916's Sherlock Holmes. Before Benedict Cumberbatch, Robert Downey Jr, Ian McKellen and Jonny Lee Miller; before Jeremy Brett and Peter Cushing; before even Basil Rathbone, there was William Gillette, in the blockbuster 1899 stage play Sherlock Holmes: A Drama In Four Acts. Long thought to have been lost forever, a nitrate copy of the film adaptation has just been uncovered in the vaults of the French film archive the Cinémathèque Français.Gillette toured the world with the play and became indelibly linked to the famous Baker Street detective. It was Gillette that popularised the deerstalker hat and the big pipe (though he in turn got them from Strand magazine illustrator Sidney Paget); coined the phrase "Elementary, my dear Watson"; and was the recipient of the famous telegram from a bored-of-Holmes Arthur Conan Doyle telling him that he could,...
- 10/6/2014
- EmpireOnline
'Sherlock Holmes' movie found at Cinémathèque Française (image: William Gillette in 'Sherlock Holmes') Sherlock Holmes, a long-thought-lost 1916 feature starring stage performer and playwright William Gillette in the title role, has been discovered in the vaults of the Cinémathèque Française. Directed by the all-but-forgotten Arthur Berthelet for the Chicago-based Essanay production company, the approximately 90-minute movie is supposed to be not only the sole record of William Gillette's celebrated performance as Arthur Conan Doyle's detective, but also the only surviving Gillette film.* In the late 19th century, William Gillette himself wrote the play Sherlock Holmes, which turned out to be a mash-up of various stories and novels featuring the detective, chiefly the short stories "A Scandal in Bohemia" and "The Final Problem." ("May I marry Holmes?" Gillette, while vying for the role, telegraphed Conan Doyle. The latter replied, "You may marry or murder or do What you like with him.
- 10/3/2014
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Before Benedict Cumberbatch, Robert Downey Jr., Jeremy Brett, or Basil Rathbone donned the deerstalker, the world’s first film version of Sherlock Holmes was performed by an actor named William Gillette. Never heard of him? That is hardly surprising, as Gillette was primarily a stage actor and made only one film: Sherlock Holmes, from 1916. Long thought lost, Sherlock Holmes was recently discovered by the Cinematheque Francaise, and is currently in the process of a digital restoration with the help of the San Francisco Silent Film Festival.
Directed by Arthur Berthelet and produced by Essanay Studios in Chicago, the 1916 film version of Sherlock Holmes features Gillette in the titular role as he comes into conflict with his arch-nemesis Professor Moriarty. The film contains a number of set pieces that were part of Gillette’s original play, and apparently illustrates how Gillette brought a number of elements from various Sherlock Holmes stories into the plot.
Directed by Arthur Berthelet and produced by Essanay Studios in Chicago, the 1916 film version of Sherlock Holmes features Gillette in the titular role as he comes into conflict with his arch-nemesis Professor Moriarty. The film contains a number of set pieces that were part of Gillette’s original play, and apparently illustrates how Gillette brought a number of elements from various Sherlock Holmes stories into the plot.
- 10/2/2014
- by Lauren Humphries-Brooks
- We Got This Covered
Might the BBC’s Sherlock adapt The Adventure Of The Blue Carbuncle for its 2015 festive special?
Feature
Whether by accident or design, Martin Freeman let the world in on the secret of Sherlock’s 2015 one-off episode weeks ago. Though the C-word was absent from the BBC’s official announcement, Freeman’s rogue comments identified the episode as “a Christmas special”, which is motivation enough for us to fire up the wild speculation engines.
As Arthur Conan Doyle readers will tell you, one Sherlock Holmes story in particular is ripe for adaptation as a Christmas special. With its playful plot, lack of murder or violence, and frothy story of a hapless jewel theft, The Adventure Of The Blue Carbuncle essentially is a nineteenth century Christmas special. It’s a quirky 27-page mystery with a happy ending that finds the Great Detective in a jocund, sportive mood. It features a goose, a...
Feature
Whether by accident or design, Martin Freeman let the world in on the secret of Sherlock’s 2015 one-off episode weeks ago. Though the C-word was absent from the BBC’s official announcement, Freeman’s rogue comments identified the episode as “a Christmas special”, which is motivation enough for us to fire up the wild speculation engines.
As Arthur Conan Doyle readers will tell you, one Sherlock Holmes story in particular is ripe for adaptation as a Christmas special. With its playful plot, lack of murder or violence, and frothy story of a hapless jewel theft, The Adventure Of The Blue Carbuncle essentially is a nineteenth century Christmas special. It’s a quirky 27-page mystery with a happy ending that finds the Great Detective in a jocund, sportive mood. It features a goose, a...
- 7/7/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
My friend Lisa Daniely, who has died aged 84, was a familiar face in the films of the 1950s and 60s. She also appeared on stage and continued working as an actor well into her late 70s.
She was born Elizabeth Bodington in Reading, Berkshire, to an English solicitor father and a French mother. She was educated in Paris, where she trained at the Sarah Bernhardt theatre, and made her film debut in 1950 at the age of 21 in the title role of Lilli Marlene. Her film-star looks were on the cover of Picturegoer the following year. Her notable films included High Jump (1959) with Richard Wyler (who also acted under the name Richard Stapley), The Lamp in Assassin Mews (1962) with Francis Matthews, Stranger in the House (1967) with James Mason and Geraldine Chaplin, and, perhaps most famously, Hindle Wakes (1952) with Leslie Dwyer.
On the stage she played Madame Ranevskaya in The Cherry Orchard,...
She was born Elizabeth Bodington in Reading, Berkshire, to an English solicitor father and a French mother. She was educated in Paris, where she trained at the Sarah Bernhardt theatre, and made her film debut in 1950 at the age of 21 in the title role of Lilli Marlene. Her film-star looks were on the cover of Picturegoer the following year. Her notable films included High Jump (1959) with Richard Wyler (who also acted under the name Richard Stapley), The Lamp in Assassin Mews (1962) with Francis Matthews, Stranger in the House (1967) with James Mason and Geraldine Chaplin, and, perhaps most famously, Hindle Wakes (1952) with Leslie Dwyer.
On the stage she played Madame Ranevskaya in The Cherry Orchard,...
- 2/25/2014
- The Guardian - Film News
Feature Alex Westthorp 19 Feb 2014 - 07:00
Nostalgia ahoy! With Sherlock Holmes more popular than ever, Alex looks back at eighties children's drama, The Baker Street Boys...
The BBC's contemporary take on Arthur Conan Doyle's short stories has made Sherlock the most popular television drama series in many years. Benedict Cumberbatch has made Sherlock his own, his approach to the role as radical for the current era as the late, great Jeremy Brett's was a generation ago. Martin Freeman has banished our memories of his role as Tim Canterbury in Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant's The Office, with his wonderful re-assessment of Dr John Watson. The corporation is making the most of the Conan Doyle franchise. After from two rather lacklustre yuletide cases, firstly with Richard Roxburgh in 2002 then Rupert Everett in 2004; they finally have a hit on their hands. The benchmark hitherto has always been Granada Television...
Nostalgia ahoy! With Sherlock Holmes more popular than ever, Alex looks back at eighties children's drama, The Baker Street Boys...
The BBC's contemporary take on Arthur Conan Doyle's short stories has made Sherlock the most popular television drama series in many years. Benedict Cumberbatch has made Sherlock his own, his approach to the role as radical for the current era as the late, great Jeremy Brett's was a generation ago. Martin Freeman has banished our memories of his role as Tim Canterbury in Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant's The Office, with his wonderful re-assessment of Dr John Watson. The corporation is making the most of the Conan Doyle franchise. After from two rather lacklustre yuletide cases, firstly with Richard Roxburgh in 2002 then Rupert Everett in 2004; they finally have a hit on their hands. The benchmark hitherto has always been Granada Television...
- 2/18/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Feature Gem Wheeler 14 Feb 2014 - 07:00
Gem compares Elementary and Sherlock's approach to adapting Arthur Conan Doyle's original stories...
Warning: contains plot details for Sherlock series three and Elementary season two.
Unless you’ve been hiding out in a mysterious foreign country since 2012, you’ll know that Sherlock recently concluded its third series by presenting us with another tantalising mystery. The last time this happened, it was the thorny question of how Sherlock managed to survive his leap from the roof of St Bart’s. This year, we’re left to wonder how Moriarty apparently brushed aside the small matter of a self-inflicted bullet wound to the head. It’s comforting to know that times may change, but Sherlock’s capacity to induce fevered speculation and waves of online outrage will be with us for some time to come.
We’ve been granted no fewer than three recent interpretations of the consulting detective.
Gem compares Elementary and Sherlock's approach to adapting Arthur Conan Doyle's original stories...
Warning: contains plot details for Sherlock series three and Elementary season two.
Unless you’ve been hiding out in a mysterious foreign country since 2012, you’ll know that Sherlock recently concluded its third series by presenting us with another tantalising mystery. The last time this happened, it was the thorny question of how Sherlock managed to survive his leap from the roof of St Bart’s. This year, we’re left to wonder how Moriarty apparently brushed aside the small matter of a self-inflicted bullet wound to the head. It’s comforting to know that times may change, but Sherlock’s capacity to induce fevered speculation and waves of online outrage will be with us for some time to come.
We’ve been granted no fewer than three recent interpretations of the consulting detective.
- 2/13/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Feature Louisa Mellor 20 Jan 2014 - 07:00
An in-depth look at how His Last Vow, Sherlock’s series 3 finale, adapts the Doyle story of Charles Augustus Milverton…
Warning: contains major spoilers for Sherlock series three.
Having ticked off Moriarty, the Woman and the hell-hound in series two, Sherlock’s third run was in need of a villain. Enter Charles Augustus Magnussen, a Scandi take on Arthur Conan Doyle’s detestable master blackmailer played to grotesque perfection by The Killing’s Lars Mikkelsen.
Though perhaps the most despicable, Mikkelsen wasn’t the first on-screen version of the Doyle character. Barry Jones gave an arch, cruelly playful turn as the blackmailer in the 1965 BBC adaptation with Douglas Wilmer and Nigel Stock as Holmes and Watson. Robert Hardy, recognisable to many as Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge in the Harry Potter series, was an odious, amused Milverton in the 1992 television film with Jeremy Brett...
An in-depth look at how His Last Vow, Sherlock’s series 3 finale, adapts the Doyle story of Charles Augustus Milverton…
Warning: contains major spoilers for Sherlock series three.
Having ticked off Moriarty, the Woman and the hell-hound in series two, Sherlock’s third run was in need of a villain. Enter Charles Augustus Magnussen, a Scandi take on Arthur Conan Doyle’s detestable master blackmailer played to grotesque perfection by The Killing’s Lars Mikkelsen.
Though perhaps the most despicable, Mikkelsen wasn’t the first on-screen version of the Doyle character. Barry Jones gave an arch, cruelly playful turn as the blackmailer in the 1965 BBC adaptation with Douglas Wilmer and Nigel Stock as Holmes and Watson. Robert Hardy, recognisable to many as Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge in the Harry Potter series, was an odious, amused Milverton in the 1992 television film with Jeremy Brett...
- 1/19/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes mysteries are about a lot of things -- crime, clues, social mores, thrilling adventures, weird science and colorful villains. But at their heart is the friendship of two lonely men: wounded war veteran Dr. John Watson and eccentric consulting detective Sherlock Holmes.
Thrown together as flat mates, the two men become investigative partners, confidants and the stars of their own stories, written by Watson. But as close as friends can be, they remain separate people. Sooner or later, life -- and death -- will intrude.
On Sunday, Jan. 19 (check local listings), PBS and the BBC's version of "Sherlock," starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Holmes and Martin Freeman as Watson, returns to "Masterpiece Mystery!" for a third season of three 90-minute episodes, paired with another blockbuster hit, "Downton Abbey."
In the opener, called "The Empty Hearse," Holmes has faked his death in a leap from the roof of St.
Thrown together as flat mates, the two men become investigative partners, confidants and the stars of their own stories, written by Watson. But as close as friends can be, they remain separate people. Sooner or later, life -- and death -- will intrude.
On Sunday, Jan. 19 (check local listings), PBS and the BBC's version of "Sherlock," starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Holmes and Martin Freeman as Watson, returns to "Masterpiece Mystery!" for a third season of three 90-minute episodes, paired with another blockbuster hit, "Downton Abbey."
In the opener, called "The Empty Hearse," Holmes has faked his death in a leap from the roof of St.
- 1/19/2014
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Zap2It - From Inside the Box
It's been a week. The third series of Sherlock ended last Sunday with Steven Moffat's 'His Last Vow', and now all that awaits is yet another painfully indefinite hiatus.
We're promised that series four and five are in the works, but neither has yet been officially confirmed by the BBC, and Moffat certainly didn't skimp on the cliffhangers with his finale. Replacing the overwhelming question mark of series two's 'How did he do it?" was a more general sense of "Wtf?" Is Moriarty really back? Are John and Mary really going to have a child? Does anyone on this show ever stay dead?
Below, we've pulled together our speculation on what's to come at 221B Baker Street.
Moriarty
Did you miss him? The strange thing about Andrew Scott's Moriarty is that he was never an integral enough part of Sherlock in its first two series for his absence...
We're promised that series four and five are in the works, but neither has yet been officially confirmed by the BBC, and Moffat certainly didn't skimp on the cliffhangers with his finale. Replacing the overwhelming question mark of series two's 'How did he do it?" was a more general sense of "Wtf?" Is Moriarty really back? Are John and Mary really going to have a child? Does anyone on this show ever stay dead?
Below, we've pulled together our speculation on what's to come at 221B Baker Street.
Moriarty
Did you miss him? The strange thing about Andrew Scott's Moriarty is that he was never an integral enough part of Sherlock in its first two series for his absence...
- 1/19/2014
- Digital Spy
Benedict Cumberbatch has praised Jonny Lee Miller's performance as Sherlock Holmes in CBS show Elementary.
Like the BBC's Sherlock, the Us show sets Arthur Conan Doyle's character in the modern day. It cast Cumberbatch's friend and Frankenstein co-star in its lead role.
Sherlock vs. Elementary: How the Us drama compares to the UK hit
"I watched it... it's great. It's watching an actor I really like playing a part I really like and enjoy playing," Cumberbatch told Digital Spy and other journalists.
"And to see him relishing it in similar ways is fantastic. I think he's doing a wonderful job."
Quizzed how he would out-Sherlock his friend, Cumberbatch replied: "There are 78 of us all vying for the position, out-Sherlocking one another. So we're in good company."
After initially admitting to feeling "cynical" about Elementary when it was first announced, Cumberbatch later called the show "fantastic" and urged people to watch.
Like the BBC's Sherlock, the Us show sets Arthur Conan Doyle's character in the modern day. It cast Cumberbatch's friend and Frankenstein co-star in its lead role.
Sherlock vs. Elementary: How the Us drama compares to the UK hit
"I watched it... it's great. It's watching an actor I really like playing a part I really like and enjoy playing," Cumberbatch told Digital Spy and other journalists.
"And to see him relishing it in similar ways is fantastic. I think he's doing a wonderful job."
Quizzed how he would out-Sherlock his friend, Cumberbatch replied: "There are 78 of us all vying for the position, out-Sherlocking one another. So we're in good company."
After initially admitting to feeling "cynical" about Elementary when it was first announced, Cumberbatch later called the show "fantastic" and urged people to watch.
- 12/10/2013
- Digital Spy
Interview Louisa Mellor 10 Dec 2013 - 07:00
The last but not least of our Sherlock series 3 round-table interviews from back in April, with John Watson himself, Martin Freeman...
Happily, Martin Freeman will be unavoidable for the next few weeks. First, he's headlining The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, out in the UK and around the world on Friday the 13th of December. Just over a fortnight after that, we'll see him return to the role of John Watson, a man about to have his graveside wish - that Sherlock perform one last miracle and not be dead - granted.
The Holmes/Watson reunion, we're told, will be less about the resolution to the two-year-old question of how Sherlock survived his rooftop fall, and more about John's reaction. No small amount of pressure rests on Freeman's shoulders then, not that it was in evidence as we spoke to him in a round-table interview in April,...
The last but not least of our Sherlock series 3 round-table interviews from back in April, with John Watson himself, Martin Freeman...
Happily, Martin Freeman will be unavoidable for the next few weeks. First, he's headlining The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, out in the UK and around the world on Friday the 13th of December. Just over a fortnight after that, we'll see him return to the role of John Watson, a man about to have his graveside wish - that Sherlock perform one last miracle and not be dead - granted.
The Holmes/Watson reunion, we're told, will be less about the resolution to the two-year-old question of how Sherlock survived his rooftop fall, and more about John's reaction. No small amount of pressure rests on Freeman's shoulders then, not that it was in evidence as we spoke to him in a round-table interview in April,...
- 12/9/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
(Please note that spoilers are included in this article)
Sherlock Holmes is a classic literary figure and a cultural phenomenon . The Great Detective has had an incredible influence over the decades, inspiring everyone from Doctor Who to House M.D. Furthermore he is one of the most portrayed characters of all time, with over seventy actors playing him on screen through the years. However one of the all time great adaptations, along with the Basil Rathbone and Jeremy Brett versions, has to be the ongoing tv series ‘Sherlock’.
Written by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, both of whom are heavily involved with Doctor Who, this is a modern day adaptation of the original Arthur Conan Doyle novels. The programme has been heavily praised for giving the character a resurgence in popularity, by proving that the stories were always about more than the Victorian setting. This was a series with unique mysteries...
Sherlock Holmes is a classic literary figure and a cultural phenomenon . The Great Detective has had an incredible influence over the decades, inspiring everyone from Doctor Who to House M.D. Furthermore he is one of the most portrayed characters of all time, with over seventy actors playing him on screen through the years. However one of the all time great adaptations, along with the Basil Rathbone and Jeremy Brett versions, has to be the ongoing tv series ‘Sherlock’.
Written by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, both of whom are heavily involved with Doctor Who, this is a modern day adaptation of the original Arthur Conan Doyle novels. The programme has been heavily praised for giving the character a resurgence in popularity, by proving that the stories were always about more than the Victorian setting. This was a series with unique mysteries...
- 10/25/2013
- by Michael Burns
- Obsessed with Film
Rex Harrison hat on TCM: ‘My Fair Lady,’ ‘Anna and the King of Siam’ Rex Harrison is Turner Classic Movies’ final "Summer Under the Stars" star today, August 31, 2013. TCM is currently showing George Cukor’s lavish My Fair Lady (1964), an Academy Award-winning musical that has (in my humble opinion) unfairly lost quite a bit of its prestige in the last several decades. Rex Harrison, invariably a major ham whether playing Saladin, the King of Siam, Julius Caesar, the ghost of a dead sea captain, or Richard Burton’s lover, is for once flawlessly cast as Professor Henry Higgins, who on stage transformed Julie Andrews from cockney duckling to diction-master swan and who in the movie version does the same for Audrey Hepburn. Harrison, by the way, was the year’s Best Actor Oscar winner. (See also: "Audrey Hepburn vs. Julie Andrews: Biggest Oscar Snubs.") Following My Fair Lady, Rex Harrison...
- 8/31/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Feature Gem Wheeler 5 Aug 2013 - 07:30
Gem investigates what we know so far about Sherlock's series 3 villain, Charles Augustus Magnussen, played by Lars Mikkelsen...
Contains plot details for Conan Doyle story, The Adventure Of Charles Augustus Milverton.
If Sherlock could survive a nasty fall – however he managed it – surely Moriarty could withstand a self-inflicted bullet to the head? Sadly for fans of Andrew Scott’s mesmerising performance as the consulting detective’s nemesis, it seems that the Napoleon of crime really did come to a sticky end. Though some would doubtless be happy to watch our languid hero lounge about 221B all day, we all know Sherlock doesn’t do bored. That means only one thing – there’s got to be a new adversary for a man never short of enemies among the criminal fraternity. And now, after a very, very long wait, we know who it’s going to be.
Gem investigates what we know so far about Sherlock's series 3 villain, Charles Augustus Magnussen, played by Lars Mikkelsen...
Contains plot details for Conan Doyle story, The Adventure Of Charles Augustus Milverton.
If Sherlock could survive a nasty fall – however he managed it – surely Moriarty could withstand a self-inflicted bullet to the head? Sadly for fans of Andrew Scott’s mesmerising performance as the consulting detective’s nemesis, it seems that the Napoleon of crime really did come to a sticky end. Though some would doubtless be happy to watch our languid hero lounge about 221B all day, we all know Sherlock doesn’t do bored. That means only one thing – there’s got to be a new adversary for a man never short of enemies among the criminal fraternity. And now, after a very, very long wait, we know who it’s going to be.
- 8/5/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Moriarty may be dead (or is he?!), but Sherlock and Watson aren't going to be short of problems to solve in the much-anticipated third series of Sherlock.
Exec producer Sue Vertue announced the first major piece of series three casting news yesterday (July 29), revealing that Dane Lars Mikkelsen would be joining the show as dastardly villain Charles Augustus Magnussen.
But what do we know about Magnussen? And for anyone who doesn't know their Forbrydelsen from their Borgen, who is Mikkelsen? Digital Spy has all the details that every Sherlockology fanatic needs to know.
1. Lars Dittman Mikkelsen was born on May 6, 1964 in Denmark.
He graduated from the National Theatre School of Denmark in 1995 and he is married to actress Anette Støvelbæk.
2. Oh. And did we mention he has quite a famous brother called Mads?
Surely a Benedict Cumberbatch/Hugh Dancy, Sherlock/Hannibal crossover episode beckons. Sherlibal? Hannilock?
3. He is best known...
Exec producer Sue Vertue announced the first major piece of series three casting news yesterday (July 29), revealing that Dane Lars Mikkelsen would be joining the show as dastardly villain Charles Augustus Magnussen.
But what do we know about Magnussen? And for anyone who doesn't know their Forbrydelsen from their Borgen, who is Mikkelsen? Digital Spy has all the details that every Sherlockology fanatic needs to know.
1. Lars Dittman Mikkelsen was born on May 6, 1964 in Denmark.
He graduated from the National Theatre School of Denmark in 1995 and he is married to actress Anette Støvelbæk.
2. Oh. And did we mention he has quite a famous brother called Mads?
Surely a Benedict Cumberbatch/Hugh Dancy, Sherlock/Hannibal crossover episode beckons. Sherlibal? Hannilock?
3. He is best known...
- 7/30/2013
- Digital Spy
The campaign for Jj Abrams' Star Trek Into Darkness has leaned so heavily on Benedict Cumberbatch's mysterious villain John Harrison that it's easy to forget he's still largely unknown in the Us.
But while Trek fever will have died down by autumn, Cumberbatch fever is unlikely to follow suit: he's got a spectacularly awards-baiting trio lined up with Julian Assange biopic The Fifth Estate, Steven McQueen's Twelve Years A Slave and Meryl Streep/George Clooney drama August: Osage County.
With that bright future in mind, Digital Spy takes a look back over Cumberbatch's five most memorable roles to date.
Hawking (2004)
Cumberbatch earned his first BAFTA nomination for playing physicist Stephen Hawking in the BBC's bio-drama, which begins with Hawking's diagnosis with motor neurone disease at the age of 21 and follows him throughout his doctoral years at Cambridge. It's a remarkably physical performance from Cumberbatch, who tracks...
But while Trek fever will have died down by autumn, Cumberbatch fever is unlikely to follow suit: he's got a spectacularly awards-baiting trio lined up with Julian Assange biopic The Fifth Estate, Steven McQueen's Twelve Years A Slave and Meryl Streep/George Clooney drama August: Osage County.
With that bright future in mind, Digital Spy takes a look back over Cumberbatch's five most memorable roles to date.
Hawking (2004)
Cumberbatch earned his first BAFTA nomination for playing physicist Stephen Hawking in the BBC's bio-drama, which begins with Hawking's diagnosis with motor neurone disease at the age of 21 and follows him throughout his doctoral years at Cambridge. It's a remarkably physical performance from Cumberbatch, who tracks...
- 5/7/2013
- Digital Spy
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