The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)

Director:

Terence Fisher

Writers:

Arthur Conan Doyle (novel)
Peter Bryan (screenplay)

Release Date:

3 July 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Sherlock Holmes' Most Terrifying Adventure! [UK]

Plot:

When a nobleman is threatened by a family curse on his newly inherited estate, detective Sherlock Holmes is hired to investigate.

Plot Keywords:

Curse | Sherlock Holmes | Detective | Hound | Family Curse

Cast

Peter Cushing	...	Sherlock Holmes
André Morell	...	Doctor John Watson (as Andre Morell)
Christopher Lee	...	Sir Henry
Marla Landi	...	Cecile Stapleton
David Oxley	...	Sir Hugo Baskerville
Francis De Wolff	...	Doctor Richard Mortimer (as Francis de Wolff)
Miles Malleson	...	Bishop Frankland
Ewen Solon	...	Stapleton
John Le Mesurier	...	Barrymore
Helen Goss	...	Mrs. Barrymore
Sam Kydd	...	Perkins
Michael Hawkins	...	Lord Caphill
Judi Moyens	...	Servant Girl
Michael Mulcaster	...	Selden - the Convict
David Birks	...	Servant

Runtime:

87 min | Canada:64 min (Ontario)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Canada:PG | Norway:16 | USA:Approved (PCA #19213) | Finland:K-16 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (re-rating) (1988) | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Bray Studios, Down Place, Oakley Green, Berkshire, England, UK

Company:

Hammer Film Productions

Trivia:

For his role as Sherlock Holmes he of course had to have a pipe but as Peter Cushing was either a non-smoker or didn't like the taste of the pipe, he kept a glass of milk always to hand to remove the taste.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the prologue, after Sir Hugo has stabbed the girl on the moor, there is no blood on the knife. But after he has been attacked by the hound and drops the knife, a close up reveals it to be covered in blood.

Quotes:

Sherlock Holmes: The depth a human being can sink to!

Movie Connections:

Version of Priklyucheniya Sherloka Kholmsa i doktora Vatsona: Sobaka Baskerviley (1981) (TV)

Sherlock Holmes meets Hammer Films!

Before England's Hammer Films went strictly horror, they produced this handsome second-version of what became an oft-filmed Sir Arthur Conan Doyle suspense yarn, previously made in 1939 with Basil Rathbone. Sherlock Holmes (a good--not great--Peter Cushing) unravels the mysterious case of an apparent curse placed upon a prestigious family near the Moors. When we do get to see the hellish hound of the title, it's strangely anti-climactic, and the pacing of the film is inert. The Technicolor photography and production design are very good however, and Christopher Lee gives a solid performance as a 'doomed' descendant (his run-in with a tarantula is a highlight). Apparently, this was meant by Hammer to be the first in a Holmes series, but Doyle's trust--and the public's indifference--scuttled those plans. ** from ****