Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)
Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)
· When Sir Charles Baskerville dies
unexpectedly, his nephew and heir Sir Henry returns from South Africa. Dr.
Mortimer. the local doctor, is concerned about Sir Henry's safety as he is
convinced that Sir Charles was literally frightened to death. He consults
Sherlock Holmes and recounts the tale of one Sir Hugo Baskerville who, several
generations previously, had been killed by a huge hound and which now is
believed by some to be a curse on the family. Holmes agrees to take on the case
and it almost immediately becomes apparent that Sir Henry's life is in danger.
Holmes doesn't believe in the legend of the Baskervilles or the supposed curse
place upon them and sets out to find a more practical solution.
The movie that started it all before
I was even born
The day my mother told my father she was pregnant with me they went to a drive in movie in KY. Hound of the Baskervilles was playing. Unknown to Mom there was a resident dog at the drive in that would go around scarfing up the inedible hamburgers, hot dogs and cardboard pizzas......
A big dog - a Great Dane.
The timing was perfect I'm told. When the Hound on the screen attacked Christopher Lee the Great Dane leaned his head in Mom's window and muffed at her.
My father ended up on his tailbone sitting outside the car and Mom was standing over him trying to calm her racing heart, his ears ringing from her scream. She had somehow gotten out over him and under the steering wheel, knocking him out of the car.
He couldn't get off the asphalt for several minutes because he was laughing so hard. Word spread quickly and she was the rage of the drive-in.
Fast forward to my fifth grade year. One of the books available for a large book report assignment was Hound of the Baskervilles. I chose that one without knowing the story of the drive-in. I was already a Chris Lee and Peter Cushing fan, again without knowing the story. I became a Sherlock Holmes fan. I can also throw in that I'm terrified of spiders - without knowing the story or movie.
Mom always swore that she "marked" me in her womb that night!
The movie is actually close to the book (a rariety in movies) and Hammer made good use of color and lighting to create atmosphere from Holmes and Watson's crowded but comfortable apartment to the moors and the terror that a hound from hell is lurking about. Chris Lee & Peter Cushing were fantastic as Sir Henry and Holmes.
A fun note: the scene where Sir Henry is in danger from a very LARGE spider on his shoulder was tense and it wasn't all acting, Christopher Lee had a "dislike" (i.e. fear) of spiders. After the scene actors and crew congradulated him on his acting - it wasn't acting. I can relate.
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