Without a Clue (1988)

Director:

Thom Eberhardt

Writers (WGA):

Gary Murphy (written by) &
Larry Strawther (written by)

Release Date:

21 October 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Mystery

Tagline:

The flip side of Sherlock Holmes.

Plot:

A drunken Sherlock Holmes is really just a cover for the real detective - Dr Watson.

Plot Keywords:

Actor | Sherlock Holmes | Detective | Doctor | Forgery

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Michael Caine	...	Sherlock Holmes
Ben Kingsley	...	Dr. John Watson
Jeffrey Jones	...	Inspector Lestrade
Lysette Anthony	...	Impostor Leslie Giles
Paul Freeman	...	Professor James Moriarty
Nigel Davenport	...	Lord Smithwick
Pat Keen	...	Mrs. Hudson
Peter Cook	...	Norman Greenhough
Tim Killick	...	Sebastian
Matthew Savage	...	Wiggins
John Warner	...	Peter Giles
Matthew Sim	...	Real Leslie Giles
Harold Innocent	...	Lord Mayor Gerald Fitzwalter Johnson
George Sweeney	...	John Clay
Murray Ewan	...	Archie

Also Known As:

Sherlock and Me
The Imposter of Baker Street (UK) (working title)

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Iceland:L | West Germany:12 (f) | Australia:PG | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Blenheim Palace, Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England, UK

Company:

Incorporated Television Company (ITC)

Trivia:

The opening sequence of the movie is inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's original Sherlock Holmes story "The Red-Headed League." In the story, Sherlock Holmes captures John Clay and his accomplice, Archie. John Clay even calls out at one point, "Jump, Archie, and I'll swing for it!"

Goofs:

Continuity: When Sherlock Holmes is looking at Leslie Giles undressing, he makes a sound when she removes one stocking. Without removing the other she stands up and opens the door to check if someone's there. When she opens the door, both stockings are removed.

Quotes:

Inspector Lestrade: You're alive!
Watson: Astounding observation, Inspector. We must discuss it.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Time Shift: A Study in Sherlock" (2007)

A true lost gem

The premise is so clever. Sherlock Holmes never really existed. It was Dr. Watson (Ben Kingsley) who had been solving these cases all along, and simply hired bumbling actor Reginald Kincaid (Michael Caine) to play the fake Sherlock Holmes.

To those who are hard-core Holmes fans, this film will be cherished. Sadly, the VHS is out of print in the USA (I bought mine used at a flea market), and DVDs are available only in Europe.

(UPDATE: The film has been released on DVD in the USA, but in Pan & Scan.)

Also, the film received hardly any promotion in the USA. But it is lavishly directed, cleverly written, and magnificently cast.

Everything about this film deserves exclamation points!

Track it down any way you can, and prepare to laugh out loud.