Customer Reviews

Sherlock Holmes: The Scarlet Claw [VHS]

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

On the surface, SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE SCARLET CLAW is just another entry in Universal's Sherlock Holmes series. One could make an argument that it's a Holmes-by-numbers production. Indeed, I can't think of any major story element that wasn't done in some earlier or later picture. There's the ghostly apparition, the grisly murder, the mysterious marshland, the secretive villagers, the disguises, etc. Yet, all the standard elements are done exceedingly well here. Everything is firing on all cylinders. It may not be the most original of adventures, but it is one of the most enjoyable.

THE SCARLET CLAW is an above-average atmospheric movie in a series that thrived on providing a grim, tense feeling. Director Roy William Neill was more than used to delivering a stark thriller, but he's really going all out here. There's nothing extremely out of the ordinary, which is perhaps why the movie is such a success. With no propaganda to ram through, no experimentation, and no surprises, the cast and crew can simply concentrate on what they do best -- making a damn entertaining movie.

The direction is superb. The acting is up to it's usual high standard. By this point, Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce could play these characters in their sleep, so their performances are precisely what you would and should expect. Bruce's Dr. Watson is again relegated to comic relief, but it's a role he plays very well. The supporting cast is made up of the usual entertaining character actors.

The script contains enough of the standard Sherlock Holmes elements for it to feel familiar, even considering that it is not a straight adaptation of story actually written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Although I've not seen all of the Holmes Universal movies (I have watched most of them), this is the one I think of as the standard by which all others are measured. It did a lot of the things we expect these movies to do and it did they very well. If you're only interested in viewing one in this series, then a very strong case could be made for making this the one.

"The Scarlet Claw" (aka: "Sherlock Holmes And The Scarlet Claw") was made in 1944, and represents the 8th Sherlock film in the fourteen-movie series starring the ever-pleasing duo of Basil Rathbone as Mr. Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Dr. John H. Watson. This is most certainly one of the better films in the Rathbone/Bruce franchise of Sherlock flicks -- a successful and entertaining franchise that began with the outstanding 1939 version of "The Hound Of The Baskervilles", and ended with "Dressed To Kill" in 1946.

"The Scarlet Claw" was one of three Sherlock Holmes' entries produced in the calendar year of 1944. Basil Rathbone was one busy Sherlock during this mid-'40s time period, cranking out yet another three Holmes' motion pictures the following year of 1945 as well.

"Claw" exudes a feeling of tension and dread right from the very first scene. The viewer is reeled into the mysterious happenings immediately, as we wonder "Who -- or What -- is ringing that church bell at this hour of the night?". A very effective, and eerie, opening to the picture.

Our favorite pipe-smoking detective from London's 221B Baker Street is soon called into this baffling case, which features murder victims being found with their throats torn open -- presumably caused by the elusive "Monster of La Morte Rouge".

The film conveys a realistic sense of the foggy, damp atmosphere that permeates the marshes surrounding the small village where these gruesome murders are taking place. This "atmosphere" is particularly powerful during the climactic scene at the end of the film.

This DVD version of "Claw" comes via MPI Home Video, and displays nicely-restored video quality, thanks to the praise-worthy preservation efforts undertaken by the "UCLA Film and Television Archive". This black-and-white Holmes' classic has most certainly never looked better on any home video format.

The DVD's soundtrack is pleasing enough, although not completely free from all background "crackle". It's a Dolby Digital 2-Channel Mono track used here, with no alternate-language track employed.

This stand-alone, single-disc edition of "The Scarlet Claw" contains nothing but the film itself. No supplemental bonus features are present whatsoever. There's a simple static Main Menu, with just one lonely Sub-Menu (for the 11 Chapter Selections).

Additional information concerning this DVD ...........................

>> Video Aspect Ratio -- Full Frame (1.33:1), which is the original theatrical ratio.

>> Audio -- DD 2.0 Mono (English only).

>> Subtitles -- English.

>> Running Time -- 74 minutes. (Which is actually one of the longest of the 14 Sherlock Holmes' films in this Rathbone-starring series. Generally, Basil's Holmes was required to wrap up the mystery and get his man in just a tad more than 60 minutes.)

>> Insert Included? -- Yes. A one-sheet enclosure with Chapter List.

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In this reviewer's opinion, the immensely-likeable and ingeniously-cast tandem of Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce shall forever represent the quintessential "Sherlock Holmes" and "Doctor Watson". "The Scarlet Claw" is a shining example of the twosome's appeal and talent. And these traits have never looked more visually alluring than on this beautifully-restored DVD from MPI Home Video.

Here's the very best of the Rathbone-Bruce Universal pictures. No, it's not set in the proper Sherlockian period (none of the Universal films were), but it seems "timeless," with no contemporary (1940s) references. It's dark, spooky fun...featuring a really well done MYSTERY. Some of the best banter between Rathbone and Bruce is in this film. And the bad guy ranks up there with the best of the non-Moriarty movie Holmes villains. THIS is the Rathbone movie from the Universal series that I return to again and again. The DVD quality is superb. No extras, but it's a treat to have a terrific copy of this little gem.

The best film in Universal's Sherlock Holmes series is also the best Holmes mystery ever put on the screen. I first saw "The Scarlet Claw" in July 1967 when a local TV station aired it at the last minute in honor of Basil Rathbone who had passed away earlier that day. It was the first time I had seen Rathbone in something other than a latter day American International horror film, but sentiment aside, this film is a classic, a macabre thriller perfect in every department.

When we first see Holmes and Watson, they are attending an occult convention in Canada where the great detective is the lone dissenter, expressing skepticism and challenging the theory that a supernatural creature is behind a series of grisly murders in a nearby village. The great detective is soon on the case, and the setting is a perfect one for Holmes to ply his trade.

Everything about "The Scarlet Claw" works. The director, Roy William Neill, reaches a peak here, providing moments that will make your skin crawl and cloaking the mystery in a rich atmosphere as memorable as the story. The cast is simply perfect. Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce have never been better, and they receive fine support from Paul Cavanaugh, Kay Harding, and especially Gerald Hamer, a series regular who almost steals the movie from its stars.

It isn't based on a story by Arthur Conan Doyle, and unlike most entries in the series, doesn't claim to be, but "The Scarlet Claw" is the best Sherlock Holmes film made by Universal or any other studio.

For only the second time Rathbone's Holmes and Watson are taken out of the UK (the first was their visit to Washington), this time into the Canadian backwoods.

Some strange apparition appearing in the village, La Morte Rouge (The Red death), kills Lady Penrose. Holmes travels to the village to look into the murder but is met with hostillity from the people. Soon, more murders take place, and the villagers place their blame on the monster of the village.

What follows is one of the darker entries in the series with the worlds most famous consulting detective putting the pieces of the mystery together in an adventure that bares more than a passing resemblence to the earlier "Hound of the Baskervilles".

Definately recommended

Holmes heads to Canada in this Universal series entry that is, I believe, the first to have no basis in the Doyle canon. There are some good atmospherics, though a taste of the works of the Universal special effect department are a little hokey. This may be the most violent picture of the series. Plus, there's a patriotic tribute to Canada at the tag end.

First, I want to point out that THIS is the copy of this film that you want. It's been re-worked by the UCLA film lab and was digitized from a very pristine black and white 35 mm print. All other copies are inferior to this one. The aspect is full-screen.

As to the story, it takes place in a small Canadian Hamlet where an aristocrat's wife has been murdered. She had tried to contact Sherlock Holmes by letter of her impending demise, but alas, too late!!! However, Holmes and Dr. Watson (Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce) commit to avenging Lady Penrose's death by unveiling her murderer, a dastardly serial killer who uses a toothed gardening trowel as his weapon of choice.

The mysterious aristocrat, (played by the amazing Paul Cavanaugh), wants Holmes off the case but, of course, Holmes ignores the man's veiled threats and persists in his inquiries. Soon, another murder sets Holmes and Watson to redouble their efforts before futher disasters follow, (which they do).

In this film, we get a little reincarnation of "The Hound" as Holmes and Watson track their shrewd nemesis into the nearby swamps where this killer lurks like a phosphorescent apparition. But, of course, Holmes has been this route before!

The movie is a film-noir, moreso than previous Rathbone/Bruce entries, due to one particular murder in the story, (can't say which one because it's a SPOILER!), which makes this particular killer all that much more of a rotten scoundrel. Viewers will also note that the cast is bulging with crusty old curmudgeons, perhaps the most profound, and the best ever cast, of any in this renowned film series.

I have my favorites in the Rathbone/Bruce Sherlock Holmes series of films, (I'm really hot on "Sherlock Holmes Faces Death"), but I have to say that this entry certainly upholds the excellence for which these great old black and white British mysteries are known.

The single most famous Sherlock Holmes story...as well as the most popular...is, without a doubt, "The Hound of the Baskervilles". It has been in publication forever and is anthologized, eulogized, and satirized endlessly. And it has appeared on film almost as much as it has in print. Likely no other Holmes story has seen more screen incarnations as this one.

In the late 1930s Twentieth Century Fox did a classic version of this story with Basil Rathbone as Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson...and created a version of this detective team that became the long-standing yardstick for judging Holmes/Watson screen portrayals.

Oddly, though, Fox didn't really seem to have an inclination to carry on with this concept in series format, and so "Hound" was basically a "one-off" for them (Though they DID do one weak sequel, "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes", which paled in comparison). Not so with Universal Pictures, however. They liked the idea of a Rathbone/Bruce series and cranked one up in the 1940s that did well.

In the mid 1940s Universal decided to re-tool "Hound" and this film, "The Scarlet Claw", is the result. The Baskervilles got dropped from the storyline, as did Dartmoor and the giant "hellhound"and its demonic legend.The story got moved to a desolate marshland in Canada and the hound became a ghostly,glowing, manlike "marsh monster"(in "Hound" the villain paints the killer dog's mouth with luminous paint, in "Claw" the villain wears luminous clothing...a twist on the original, but very effective). Some characters,relationships and motives got reworked and Holmes & Watson were then set on the trail. The Result? The hands-down BEST film in the Universal Holmes series. Without a doubt. Tense, eerie, exciting. "Claw" is all of these things and more. If you like Sherlock Holmes then you'll love this. A real Keeper on DVD.

What was that??? Did you hear something behind you???? Maybe you should walk a little faster with this fog creeping in.

This 1944 entry in this beloved film series is perhaps the best of the lot (certainly the best of the contemporary [1940's] set Universal films). Holmes and Watson find themselves involved in the mystery of 'La Morte Rouge' (was Lady Penrose the victim of a supernatural monster, or was her throat ripped out by an ogre of the human variety?) in this brilliantly eerie suspense drama. Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce are their usual wonderfully cast selves and are matched by a marvellous supporting cast. Directed by Holmes veteran Roy William Neill, the film has a great, suspenseful (naturally) climax that may surprise the most adept Holmes fans (provided they haven't seen it before!). My only complaint is (as with all of this series) at a mere 70 minutes it is over all too soon.

Sherlock Holmes and the Scarlet Claw is a first class example of the fine series of films featuring Basil Rathbone as the great detective and Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson.

Holmes and Watson find themselves in Canada attending a conference when two events happen in close sequence. His main debate opponent at the conference gets word of his wife's death, and moments later Holmes receives a letter from the dead woman asking for help as she fears for her life.

The excellent plot and acting are complimented by a feature concerning the restoration of all the old Rathbone Holmes films, the background and commentary are very informative and explain much concerning the varying quality of the prints available.

The commentary offered also gives insights on the movie but I would take one exception to an opinion shown. The commentator points two a couple of flubs and bumps that would normally have been cut out of the picture if it had a better budget, he speakers as if they were serious problems but to me they seem like the normal bumps and stumbles over speech that normal people actually have. I think it adds rather than subtracts from the film and I'd like to see more of it.

Anyway you will pay a premium for this video but you will be entertained.