68 Minutes, Black & White, UK, 1943
Written By: Edward T Lowe, W Scott Darling, & Edmund T
Hartmann (based on the characters created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
Directed By: Roy William Neill
Dramatis Personae:
Basil
Rathbone is Sherlock Holmes, British detective,
spy, master of disguise, and apparently the one man standing between England
and Nazi domination.
Nigel
Bruce is Doctor John Watson, HolmesÕs befuddled but loyal sidekick.
William
Post, Jr. is Doctor Franz Tobel, Swiss engineer on the
run from the Nazis.
Kaaren Verne is Charlotte
Eberli, TobelÕs beloved and custodian of his secrets.
Dennis Hoey is Inspector
Lestrade, Scotland YardÕs dimmest bulb.
Holmes Herbert is Sir Reginald
Bailey, RAF bigwig sponsoring TobelÕs asylum in England in exchange for his
knowledge.
Lionel Atwill is Professor
James Moriarty, HolmesÕs arch-nemesis, working with the Nazis in this
movie, since heÕs apparently just not evil ENOUGH already.
Commentary:
Once more into the breach. Once more do I
tackle another icon of cinema ripped from the pages of literature. In this
case, none other than Sherlock Holmes himself. Of all fictional men of law,
Holmes is perhaps the most enduring. YouÕd have to travel far and wide to find
someone not familiar with the adventures of Arthur Conan DoyleÕs brilliant
proponent of logical reasoning and his easily-impressed chronicler and
sidekick. An intelligent man who solves crimes with his mind is a rare thing
even these days, and for that Holmes endures. Holmes and Watson have been put
on film more often than any other characters in literature, and of the
interpretations, the most iconic is that of Basil Rathbone. With Nigel Bruce as
Watson, Rathbone cranked out over a dozen Sherlock Holmes films in the 1930s and
1940s, as well as portraying Holmes on stage and radio. As a consequence, when
moviegoers think of Sherlock Holmes, they think of Basil Rathbone; his is the
image most cemented in our imagination.
And, somehow or other, I have managed to get
halfway through life without ever seeing a single one of his films.
And I may never have gotten around to it, if
not for THiS TV, a new network on my
recently-upgraded cable service. I have to admit that I love the channel: it evokes
memories of the heyday of UHF stations, broadcasting all those old movies and
TV programs that I never thought IÕd get a chance to see again. Gritty 1970s
cop dramas. Strange Saturday morning cartoons from Canada. Endless reruns of M.A.S.H. It reminds me of such
pleasant things, and it was a matter of happenstance that I happened to flip it
on in time to catch Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon. In retrospect, it was
probably not the best film to christen my exposure to the Rathbone-Bruce series
of Holmes movies. But itÕs still pretty fun.
Our story opens in 1943, in a small town in
Switzerland, where two shifty Teutonic-looking men meet at a pub. They are
shortly joined by an elderly bookseller, who immediately begins to hawk his
wares. The transaction is a ruse: the old man, whom they refer to as ÒHerr X,Ó
is a German agent, and he has information for the two of them. Doctor Franz
Tobel, the scientist they have been assigned to capture, is holed up in a house
across the square. The Nazi spies cannot simply break in and take Tobel for
fear of causing an incident in neutral Switzerland, but Herr X has an in with
the scientist. Having approached him as a humble bookseller, Herr X has gained
TobelÕs trust. He will lure Tobel out of his house and to a secluded spot,
where the spies can grab him and make off with him. Herr X also cautions the
agents that there is also a British spy operating in Switzerland, also looking
to extract Tobel. This spy, known as Holmes, is reputed to be quite crafty, but
Herr X has confidence that they can get to Tobel before he does.
Upon leaving the pub, Herr X enters TobelÕs
houseÉand reveals that he is, in fact, Sherlock Holmes, and he has come to
offer Tobel and his invention – a revolutionary new bombsight –
safe passage to England. He dresses two of TobelÕs servants as the bookseller
and Tobel, and sends them out as decoys. While the Nazis follow them on a wild
goose chase, Holmes smuggles Tobel out of town, to a private airfield where
they make a quick jaunt to England. Once safely in London, Holmes takes Tobel
back to 221B Baker Street (scaring the hell out of Watson with his old man
disguise), and advises him to get some rest, as first thing tomorrow they will
be meeting with Sir Reginald Bailey, to demonstrate the effectiveness of the
Tobel Bombsight. Leaving Tobel in WatsonÕs charge, Holmes heads out to Sir
ReginaldÕs to make the final arrangements.
However, Tobel has his own plans. He waits for Watson
to fall asleep, then makes a quick phone call to someone, announcing he is on
his way. Then he goesÉunaware that he is being followed by trenchcoated thugs
of indeterminate allegiance. He has gone to visit one Charlotte Eberli, his
beloved, although his meeting her is more than just pleasure. He makes a
curious sketch on a piece of paper – a series of dancing stick figures
– then seals it in an envelope and gives it to her, telling her to keep
it safe. If anything should happen to him, Tobel says, she must give this to
Sherlock Holmes; he will know what it means. His concerns seem to be
well-founded; he is attacked upon leaving CharlotteÕs house, and itÕs only by
the fortunate appearance of a local bobby that Tobel is not taken prisoner.
By this time, Holmes has returned to Baker
Street, and is giving Watson what-for for falling asleep on the job and letting
Tobel vanish. Fortunately for everyone, at this moment a slightly-battered
Tobel returns to Baker Street. Watson tends to his injuries, and Holmes grills
him on what he can remember about his attacker. All he can recall is the faint
odor of opium about the manÉa detail which strikes a chord with Holmes.
The next day, Sir Reginald and many other
British military bigwigs gather on Salisbury Plain to watch Tobel demonstrate
the accuracy and power of his new bombsight. Everyone is suitably impressed,
but at the reception afterwards Tobel drops one more bombshell: he will not
surrender his prototype or his designs to the British government. He doesnÕt trust
anyone, regardless of how much security heÕs promised or how many assurances of
safety he receives. Instead, he will oversee the production of the new
bombsights himself, privately, and will provide them as needed. Sir Reginald is
flummoxed by this news, but there isnÕt much he can do: Tobel is a foreign
national and a well-reputed scientist, offering his inventions to England
freely and on his own terms. No one in the British government can MAKE him do
otherwise. Fortunately, as a private detective, Holmes is not affiliated with
the British government, and can monitor and protect Tobel with a considerably
greater degree of freedom – and he agrees to do so.
As Tobel gets to work, we see his plan in
action: he has divided his bombsight prototype into four separate components,
and has given each component, and the designs to produce more of them, to a
different scientist working in England. None of the four scientists know each
other, and none of them know what the whole device is. While this is a satisfactory
way to protect TobelÕs device, itÕs not so much a satisfactory way to protect
HIM, and he soon goes missing. Hot on the trail, Holmes traces TobelÕs path
back to Charlotte Eberli. As per TobelÕs last instruction to her, Charlotte
gives the envelope to HolmesÉbut they are both in for a shock. The sketch that
Tobel made is missing, and in its place is a simple message, ÒWe meet again.
Mr. Holmes.Ó Shaken, Holmes demands of Charlotte who else has been in this
room, and learns that there was only a handyman who came up for a few moments
to fix a light. CharlotteÕs description of the man, combined with the note and
TobelÕs story of an opium-using thug, can only mean one thing: Professor
Moriarty is back, and he has Tobel.
As I said, perhaps Sherlock Holmes and
the Secret Weapon was probably not the best feature to be the gateway into the
Rathbone era of Holmes films. This one is the fourth in the series of fourteen
Sherlock Holmes adventures cranked out between 1939 and 1946, and boy does it
feel like it. The short length, the rather pedestrian central puzzle, the
casual air of our main characters toward the goings-onÉit really does feel like
watching a fourth episode without having seen the other three. Perhaps, if
viewed as part of a continuum rather than a solo piece, it might acquit itself
better. As it is, itÕs just soÉaverage. And somewhat off-putting.
I think that part of the feeling of
off-putting-ness comes from the contemporary setting. Apparently around the
third film in the Rathbone-Bruce series, the filmmakers decided to modernize
things a little, setting Holmes and WatsonÕs adventures in 1940Õs England
rather than Victorian England. This is, at least in my opinion, to its
detriment. IÕve always thought of Sherlock Holmes to be very much a product of
his times: Holmes possessed the cool smugness of a 19th-century
Englishman, that detached air of inherent nobility that comes with being a
citizen of the nation that pretty much rules the world. Holmes was a brilliant
man, yes, capable of solving mysteries that baffled entire squads of lesser men
(or at least, Lestrade). But he was solving more genteel mysteries, in a
relatively more peaceful time. In the darkest days of World War II, England was
fast losing its leading role in world affairs; indeed, its very survival as a
nation was in question. This is a world where simply being a genteel, competent
Englishman is not enough to guarantee victory over the equally genteel forces
of evil. A creature like Sherlock Holmes seems very out of place. Almost quaint.
The abject bumbling of Watson and Lestrade, great for comic relief in the
original stories, seems almost infuriating here. I mean, weÕre talking about
the Nazis here. This isnÕt some shifty country gentleman looking to steal his
stepdaughterÕs inheritance; this is fate-of-the-world kind of stuff. More
serious things are going on, and more serious, competent men are required. And
the fact that Holmes often comes across as the only man in England with two
brain cells to rub together makes it seem all the worse.
All that being said, there is still some
entertainment to be found in Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon. Most notably because
the film rests almost entirely on Basil RathboneÕs shoulders, and he carries it
like a master. His Holmes is a man of unshakeable calm and natural authority,
and RathboneÕs acting ability comes through whenever Holmes dons a disguise.
His control over voice and body language are startling; it really is like he
becomes someone else. And once Moriarty enters the picture, there are some
moments of fun, and perhaps unintentional comedy. You really do get the sense
that these two characters just feed off each other, desperate to one-up one
another. Nowhere is this more evident than in the climactic sequence, where a
captured Holmes gets a brief tour of MoriartyÕs hideout. Moriarty is so proud
of his carefully crafted fortress, with its soundproofed walls and secret
passageways (in a nice little bit of set dressing, one of MoriartyÕs
possessions is a decorative abacus with tiny human skulls for beads). ItÕs
almost as if he actually wanted Holmes to find the place, so he could show it
off to his old enemy. The two of them even sit down together, and discuss
interesting ways to kill each other over cigarettes and brandy. ThatÕs a nice
touch. It evokes the gentility of the original Holmes stories, that age of
mannered and tasteful bad guys, who respect their opponents as much as they
hate them. An age that was rapidly disappearing at the time this movie was
made.
So, perhaps just a happy coincidence I managed
to catch this movie when I did. If nothing else, it did make me want to see the
rest of the movies in the series, to see what all the fuss about Basil Rathbone
is about. And if thatÕs the case, then maybe the movie has done its job. I
wonder if ThiS TV will be running more soonÉ?
Things To Look For:
- As I said, itÕs
somewhat disquieting to set this adventure during World War II. I mean, sure,
it elevates the character of Sherlock Holmes, no doubt providing British
viewers with something to rally behind, setting one of their greatest fictional
citizens against their worst enemy in their darkest hour (Sir Arthur Conan
Doyle eventually did something like this toward the end of the Holmes stories,
though this was the First World War, not the Second). On the other hand, it
lowers the character of Moriarty. The James Moriarty of DoyleÕs original
stories was arguably the first supervillain in the history of literature, a
brilliant criminal mastermind and a perfect foil to Holmes. This Moriarty? A
common kidnapper and mercenary, selling his service to the highest bidder. And
in this case, the highest bidder is Nazi Germany. That brings Moriarty WAY
down; from brilliant and charismatic arch-nemesis to the worldÕs greatest
detective, to traitor during wartime. To the filmÕs credit, there is a nice
scene where Holmes points this out to Moriarty, and attempts to appeal to his
patriotism – whatever else Moriarty may be, he is an Englishman after all
– but to no avail. Moriaty is simply in it for the money. Which is kind
of sadÉ
- ItÕs a common thing in
most Holmes adaptations to make Inspector Lestrade a bit thick. All the better
for Holmes to show him up with his amazing powers of deduction. But Dennis HoeyÕs
gangly mouth-breathing Lestrade takes the cake. How on GodÕs Green Earth did
this guy ever become an Inspector for Scotland Yard? He doesnÕt even know how
binoculars work, for PeteÕs sake! Again, it sets me on edge. The Nazis are
bombing the hell out of England and kidnapping scientists right under his nose.
IsnÕt there someone else at Scotland Yard we could put in charge of this?
Someone, maybe, who knows how to properly inspect a sea chest for a false
bottomÉ?
- There is one small
interesting moment in Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon: the pilot flying the
small plane that takes Holmes and Tobel out of Switzerland is female. She looks
like she might be a WAC or something, as she wears a uniform and seems to be no
slouch in handling the plane. Further, nothing is made of this. SheÕs just the
pilot; she just HAPPENS to be female. I donÕt know if youÕd call it a
progressive moment, but it certainly is an interesting one, considering how few
women there actually are in this film.
- Apparently, there is a
longer cut of this movie available, the UK cut, which is some 15 minutes
longer. IÕm not sure what was cut or why, although it does explain a few minor
loose ends that are never resolved (the fate of TobelÕs decoy assistants, the
significance of the opium-addicted thug, etc). It makes me curious. The plot is
so straightforward and threadbare, I canÕt imagine there was much fat to trim.
But it does make me wonder what there is to seeÉ
Written words (c) 2009-2010 Tim o'Brien. Not to be used without
permission. Other content, including images, is intended as a Fair Use pursuant
to 17 U.S.C. sec. 107.
Date Posted: November 9th, 2009
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