Sherlock Holmes - The Scarlet Claw

I’ve always liked Sherlock Holmes. I read all the Sherlock Holmes stories.

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.

Top-notch! — This 1944 film has a Terrific, "OMG" Ending!! — PS, Lot's of Hints that Holmes & Watson are Gay ;) See if you think the same thing when they reminisce about their coziest hotel rooms, and many other hints (as much as they could in 1944), and of course they never show the slightest interest in a woman, haha. Very likable, and villainous deliciously-unlikeable, characters. Lots of creepy mystery abounds! — Enjoy!

Excellent classic Sherlock.

Good but ww2 style

The Scarlet Claw is quite a movie full of suspense and innuendo as well as a few comic moments. Basil Rathbone is perfect as the unfazed Sherlock Holmes. It is the eighth film in the Rathbone/Bruce series. I always liked the character actor Gerard Hamer, most familiar in an original Star Trek episode. Here he plays the butler and a few others as well! But I'm getting ahead of the game. Basic Ideas: Holmes and Watson are visiting Canada listening to a Mr. Penrose and his theories on the supernatural. Holmes puts him in his place and says that deductive reasoning would handle any such superstition. Just then a letter. The Lady Penrose has been murdered. A bit earlier we found villagers wondering about a church bell going off and a priest discovering the body of Ms. Penrose. Interestingly, just before her murder, she managed to get a letter to Holmes and Watson that her life was in danger. Holmes remarks that this is the first time he has been retained by a corpse and off we go! Is there a real ghost or is the murderer more of the mortal variety? Well that question is put to rest very fast. By the middle of the film we already know who the murderer is, but we don't know what disguise he is in. The killer is a master of disguise and as the body count increases the viewer becomes more and more involved in the story. There is some silly humor as when Watson ends up on a bog a couple of times or is instructed to remain inconspicuous, which is practically impossible! DVD: The cinematography was great, with the mist & fog, the building of mood through light and shadow. The UCLA renovation was great as well, with proper contrast of the picture and was not muddied up which is what I hate about a lot of these Universal films from the '40s with their muddy, black renditions. Parental advisory A young teenaged girl is murdered in teh picture, not gruesomely so (it is 1942 after all) but still, it is shocking. Bottom Line: Great piece of detective work, great murder mystery. Technically the story was never written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, but clearly has his style. The DVD however has no special features at all which is really too bad and loses a star due to that! Cast & Crew: Directed by Roy William Neill Writing credits Edmund L. Hartmann (screenplay) and Roy William Neill (screenplay) Paul Gangelin (story) and Brenda Weisberg (story) Cast Basil Rathbone ... Sherlock Holmes Nigel Bruce ... Doctor Watson Gerald Hamer ... Potts / Tanner / Ramson Paul Cavanagh ... Lord Penrose Arthur Hohl ... Emile Journet Miles Mander ... Judge Brisson Kay Harding ... Marie Journet David Clyde ... Police Sergeant Thompson Ian Wolfe ... Drake Victoria Horne ... Nora

Classic Sherlock Holmes movie starring the best ever Sherlock Holmes !!!! Would highly recommend it!!

It’s full of noir atmospherics and characters, from a script co-written by the Director, Roy William Neill. (Who, supposedly, also did the occasional narration in the film. BTW: this is the only film, in the Rathbone-Bruce, Sherlock Holmes series of films, that has narration in it!) Of all the 14 films produced in this series of movies, starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, “The Scarlet Claw” is my favorite from before, during and after the WWII period. I still watch it every now and then, to this day. (After that, numbers 2 and 3 would be; 2) “Hound of the Baskervilles” and 3) “Pursuit to Algiers”.)

received in great condition. happy with transaction

I was pleased with the purchase. It was a reasonable price and the shipping was fast. I enjoy the Sherlock Holmes movies that Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce starred in.

Beautiful film which takes place in Quebec. Very well done.

This is the MPI 2003 (US) DVD of 'The Scarlet Claw' with and English audio and English subtitles. The picture is sharp and the sound clear and no extras. The film itself has more of the atmosphere of Universals' earlier films like 'The Invisible Man', in fact I was convinced that is was set in a sleepy little village in victorian England and was surprised to hear that it was set in Canada in the 20th century, even more surprising is that fact that I'm not sure I heard a single canadian accent (or perhaps I was not listening closely enough). Nevertheless is a very entertaining film which slightly resembles 'The Hound of the Basketvilles', one of the best that Rathbone and Bruce did.

Good old Basil Rathbone. If you enjoy the old black & white crime films you will not be disappointed even if at times it does seem a bit far fetched or silly it is still good entertainment. Ideal to watch on a rainy day, curl up on the sofa the time quickly passes. This is one of the better black & white Sherlock Holmes along with the all time classic The Hound of the Baskervilles.