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40 of 42 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Legendary Sherlock Holmes Movies VHS Cassette Review, March 30, 2002
Although the casting and acting are right on the money (as you'd expect, and usually get from classic Hollywood films), I'm sorry to say that the quality of the video itself is not up to snuff. The picture is fuzzy, and the soundtrack unclear. This Canadian made video looks as if it was boot-legged in someone's home using amateur equipment. Before I ordered this title, I kinda thought that three movies on one cassette for such a low price was too good to be true - I was right.
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28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Just as I Remembered Them, May 30, 2002
This review is from: Legendary Sherlock Holmes (Dressed To Kill / The Woman In Green / Terror By Night) (DVD)
This DVD brings back these three movies exactly as I remember them. I was not yet born when these movies debuted on the silver screen, however...my memories of these movies is from when I was a child, watching them on late-night television with my grandmother. Since then, I have been a fan of Basil Rathbone and enjoy his rendition of the infamous resident of 221B Baker Street. These movies are original material (as opposed to, say, The Hound of Baskervilles which is adapted from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's writings) but still capture the epitome of Sherlock Holmes. The quality of the reproduction certainly is not perfect. However, if you remember watching these movies on television as I do, then you will be familiar with the quality of the film. The sound is a little scratchy, and the picture is a little grainy, but the movies are viewable and very much enjoyable. If you remember these movies, you will not be disappointed by this DVD. If, however, you are looking for adaptations of original Conan Doyle material, you may wish to look to the Jeremy Brett renditions.
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24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Tremendous Nostalgic Value, March 26, 2002
This review is from: Legendary Sherlock Holmes (Dressed To Kill / The Woman In Green / Terror By Night) (DVD)
Many people, especially those who grew up during the 1930s and 1940s, have fond memories of Basil Rathbone's famous Sherlock Holmes series. My own exposure to the popular series came in the 1970s, when I encountered them on the late-late show; "The Scarlet Claw" was a particular favorite. Unfortunately, few of these films have ever been released to the home market in either VHS or DVD, and those that have reflect their need for serious restoration. This is particularly true of the films seen here. Although not unbearably fuzzy, the pictures are far from being crisp and clean, and the sound is occasionally problematic. DRESSED TO KILL finds Holmes investigating three mysterious music boxes--and events quickly turn to murder. Of the three films, this is the weakest: the story is very slow to start and it never really achieves a good pace; the sound quality is also very, very poor in spots. THE LADY IN GREEN concerns Holmes' investigation into several murders that seem to be the work of a serial killer, and although the film elements remain problematic this film is quite a bit more enjoyable than the first. The third and final film, TERROR BY NIGHT, is easily the best of the three in both story and elements, setting a cracking pace with its story of murder and a diamond theft onboard an Edinburg-bound train. Film restoration issues aside, Rathbone's Holmes has held up extremely well over time. As interpreted here, Holmes is sometimes as much action hero as he is thinking machine, and Rathbone plays him with a snappy clip, dry humor, and enough intensity to suggest untold depths. He is well matched by Nigel Bruce, whose truly dunderheaded Dr. Watson nonetheless has considerable wit and charm. The stories and scripts are pure formula, of course, and the supporting casts and production values quite mild--but Rathbone and Bruce's performances and chemistry have more than enough charm to gloss over these inadequacies. Not every one will enjoy these films, for they have a naive quality that many may consider unsophistocated to the point of absurdity, but fans of the series would rather fight than switch. Just bear in mind the quality issues, don't expect too much, and you'll have a very good time.
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