The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Vol. 2: The Crooked Man/ The Speckled Band
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List Price: $14.98
Our Price: $9.04
Your Save: $ 5.94 ( 40% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Mpi Home Video
Starring: Jeremy Brett, David Burke, Rosalie Williams, Eric Porter
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: DVD
EAN: 9780788603068
Format: Color
ISBN: 078860306X
Label: Mpi Home Video
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Mpi Home Video
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2001-08-28
Running Time: 110
Studio: Mpi Home Video
Theatrical Release Date: 1985-03-14
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Not My Idea of Sherlock Holmes
Comment: I was surprised when I saw how high the avarage customer rating was for this DVD. Then I thought, maybe it is a cult favorite among people who like campy, bad acting. But, after reading the reviews, I see that a lot of people really like it.
So, why didn't I like it? I thought the way Jeremy Brett plays Sherlock Homes was too strange. I know Holmes is meant to be eccentric, but the way Brett speaks is too choppy, kind of angry, and annoying to me. It seemed very affected and unnatural. Dr. Watwon comes off as really dopey.
The scenery and sets were good, most of the other actors were good, but this was not my idea of how Sherlock Holmes should be done.
Customer Rating:
Summary: One up, one down. . .
Comment: Here are two episodes from the better part of the series.
The Speckled Band is considered by both Doyle himself and by most fans to be the best of the Holmes stories. I have read it a couple of times, with the original illustrations by Paget, and have watched the excellent Granada production.
Great care was taken to get this one right, and the actor who plays Roylott looks uncannily like the Paget drawing. Everything is as it should be for the pickiest Holmes fan.
I myself do not understand why this story is anyone's favorite. It is so full of holes that simply can't be ignored. Snakes can not be trained like dogs, and certainly don't come calling after a whistle. And any fatal fang marks would be instantly visible against the alabaster skin of the victim. Also, I find it impossible to believe that neither of the girls knew that the rope that hung from the ceiling and right over the pillow of the bed had no purpose, and that in the two years that they had access to the room one of them would not have tugged at it once or twice.
The rest of it works well enough, and the scene where Sherlock whacks the snake is memorable. This is undoubtedly a great story regardless of its faults, and seems to have an extra element of creepiness not present in most of the other stories.
As for the Creeping Man, I thought it was a boring tale, but very well done production-wise. I have viewed it once, but don't remember much except for the longish flashback scenes, and a wandering around in the storyline of the type that would come to plague the later entries of this series.
Customer Rating:
Summary: We love it!
Comment: Every once in a while, an actor comes along who not only plays the role of Sherlock Holmes, but actually redefines the role. In 1984, veteran actor Jeremy Brett (1933-95) actually did it yet again! And now, these wonderful Granada Television episodes are available on DVD.
This wonderful DVD has two of the 55 minute episodes. My family and I loved this DVD, and think that any fan of Sherlock Holmes, or just plain fan of mysteries, will love it, too! (By the way, if you like Jeremy Brett, you can see him in an entirely different role in My Fair Lady (1964) as Freddie Eynsford-Hill!)
The following episodes are included on this DVD:
The Crooked Man - Series 1, episode 5 (May 22, 1984) - When Colonel James Barclay is found murdered, in a locked room, with his wife who is in a swoon, the wife becomes the prime suspect. But, there is more going on than meets the eye. Only one man can unravel this mystery - Sherlock Holmes
The Speckled Band - Series 1, episode 6 (May 29, 1984) - When a frightened and desperate young woman enters Holmes's sitting room, he refuses to dismiss her fears. In her room at night, she has begun hearing a strange whistling, the same sound her sister heard just before her death! Her step-father is a brute and a scoundrel, but is he up to something even more sinister? The game is indeed afoot!
Customer Rating:
Summary: "My profession is it's own reward"
Comment: +++++
This DVD presents two of the 55 minute Sherlock Holmes' episodes that had Jeremy Brett as Sherlock and David Burke as Dr. Watson. Each episode is based on a story written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859 to 1930) who wrote 56 short stories and 4 novels about Sherlock Holmes.
(1) "The Crooked Man" (13 scenes; based on the 1893 story).
A distinguished colonel is found dead in a room of his villa with his unconscious wife beside him. Sherlock is asked to investigate. His sleuthing leads him to a "crooked man," who is "an old acquaintance" of the colonel's wife. Be sure to see the fantastic acting by Norman Jones who plays the crooked man.
(2) "The Speckled Band" (10 scenes; based on the 1892 story).
A woman asks Sherlock to investigate the mysterious past death of her sister. "Holmes the meddler" discovers that the woman's life may be in jeopardy. The quotation by Sherlock that titles this review is found in this episode.
Brett (who made 41 Sherlock Holmes' dramas between 1984 and 1994) is in top-form in these two episodes since they were made before the time of his health problems. He captures the essence of the famous gumshoe in his performances.
The costumes, background music, and cinematography are quite well done. In my case, I found the picture quality and acoustic quality of this DVD to be practically perfect.
Finally, this DVD has 3 extras. I found these interesting. Newcomers to the series should especially enjoy them.
In conclusion, be sure to view this DVD and see why it won a 1988 Swedish Academy of Detection Award!!
(1983; 110 min; British drama; made for TV; full screen)
+++++
Customer Rating:
Summary: Sherlock Holmes has returned!
Comment: Volume 2 of MPI's great series of mysteries from Granada TV/PBS is as enjoyable as its predecessor. In "The Crooked Man", a distinguished army colonel is found dead, and his unconscious wife is the primary suspect. His regiment is unaware of the colonel's treachery in his younger days and that a man he left for dead due to it is back for revenge. But is the man with the crooked back guilty? In "The Speckled Band" the stepdaughter of a renowned but cruel doctor is about to be married and escape her unhappy home fears for her life when history repeats itself and the events that lead to her sister's death occur again. Jeremy Brett and David Burke as Holmes and Watson are on the case!
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Editorial Reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Not My Idea of Sherlock Holmes
Comment: I was surprised when I saw how high the avarage customer rating was for this DVD. Then I thought, maybe it is a cult favorite among people who like campy, bad acting. But, after reading the reviews, I see that a lot of people really like it.
So, why didn't I like it? I thought the way Jeremy Brett plays Sherlock Homes was too strange. I know Holmes is meant to be eccentric, but the way Brett speaks is too choppy, kind of angry, and annoying to me. It seemed very affected and unnatural. Dr. Watwon comes off as really dopey.
The scenery and sets were good, most of the other actors were good, but this was not my idea of how Sherlock Holmes should be done.
Customer Rating:
Summary: One up, one down. . .
Comment: Here are two episodes from the better part of the series.
The Speckled Band is considered by both Doyle himself and by most fans to be the best of the Holmes stories. I have read it a couple of times, with the original illustrations by Paget, and have watched the excellent Granada production.
Great care was taken to get this one right, and the actor who plays Roylott looks uncannily like the Paget drawing. Everything is as it should be for the pickiest Holmes fan.
I myself do not understand why this story is anyone's favorite. It is so full of holes that simply can't be ignored. Snakes can not be trained like dogs, and certainly don't come calling after a whistle. And any fatal fang marks would be instantly visible against the alabaster skin of the victim. Also, I find it impossible to believe that neither of the girls knew that the rope that hung from the ceiling and right over the pillow of the bed had no purpose, and that in the two years that they had access to the room one of them would not have tugged at it once or twice.
The rest of it works well enough, and the scene where Sherlock whacks the snake is memorable. This is undoubtedly a great story regardless of its faults, and seems to have an extra element of creepiness not present in most of the other stories.
As for the Creeping Man, I thought it was a boring tale, but very well done production-wise. I have viewed it once, but don't remember much except for the longish flashback scenes, and a wandering around in the storyline of the type that would come to plague the later entries of this series.
Customer Rating:
Summary: We love it!
Comment: Every once in a while, an actor comes along who not only plays the role of Sherlock Holmes, but actually redefines the role. In 1984, veteran actor Jeremy Brett (1933-95) actually did it yet again! And now, these wonderful Granada Television episodes are available on DVD.
This wonderful DVD has two of the 55 minute episodes. My family and I loved this DVD, and think that any fan of Sherlock Holmes, or just plain fan of mysteries, will love it, too! (By the way, if you like Jeremy Brett, you can see him in an entirely different role in My Fair Lady (1964) as Freddie Eynsford-Hill!)
The following episodes are included on this DVD:
The Crooked Man - Series 1, episode 5 (May 22, 1984) - When Colonel James Barclay is found murdered, in a locked room, with his wife who is in a swoon, the wife becomes the prime suspect. But, there is more going on than meets the eye. Only one man can unravel this mystery - Sherlock Holmes
The Speckled Band - Series 1, episode 6 (May 29, 1984) - When a frightened and desperate young woman enters Holmes's sitting room, he refuses to dismiss her fears. In her room at night, she has begun hearing a strange whistling, the same sound her sister heard just before her death! Her step-father is a brute and a scoundrel, but is he up to something even more sinister? The game is indeed afoot!
Customer Rating:
Summary: "My profession is it's own reward"
Comment: +++++
This DVD presents two of the 55 minute Sherlock Holmes' episodes that had Jeremy Brett as Sherlock and David Burke as Dr. Watson. Each episode is based on a story written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859 to 1930) who wrote 56 short stories and 4 novels about Sherlock Holmes.
(1) "The Crooked Man" (13 scenes; based on the 1893 story).
A distinguished colonel is found dead in a room of his villa with his unconscious wife beside him. Sherlock is asked to investigate. His sleuthing leads him to a "crooked man," who is "an old acquaintance" of the colonel's wife. Be sure to see the fantastic acting by Norman Jones who plays the crooked man.
(2) "The Speckled Band" (10 scenes; based on the 1892 story).
A woman asks Sherlock to investigate the mysterious past death of her sister. "Holmes the meddler" discovers that the woman's life may be in jeopardy. The quotation by Sherlock that titles this review is found in this episode.
Brett (who made 41 Sherlock Holmes' dramas between 1984 and 1994) is in top-form in these two episodes since they were made before the time of his health problems. He captures the essence of the famous gumshoe in his performances.
The costumes, background music, and cinematography are quite well done. In my case, I found the picture quality and acoustic quality of this DVD to be practically perfect.
Finally, this DVD has 3 extras. I found these interesting. Newcomers to the series should especially enjoy them.
In conclusion, be sure to view this DVD and see why it won a 1988 Swedish Academy of Detection Award!!
(1983; 110 min; British drama; made for TV; full screen)
+++++
Customer Rating:
Summary: Sherlock Holmes has returned!
Comment: Volume 2 of MPI's great series of mysteries from Granada TV/PBS is as enjoyable as its predecessor. In "The Crooked Man", a distinguished army colonel is found dead, and his unconscious wife is the primary suspect. His regiment is unaware of the colonel's treachery in his younger days and that a man he left for dead due to it is back for revenge. But is the man with the crooked back guilty? In "The Speckled Band" the stepdaughter of a renowned but cruel doctor is about to be married and escape her unhappy home fears for her life when history repeats itself and the events that lead to her sister's death occur again. Jeremy Brett and David Burke as Holmes and Watson are on the case!
In "The Crooked Man," Sherlock Holmes (Jeremy Brett) fetches Dr. John Watson (David Burke) on an urgent mission: Colonel James Barclay (Denys Hawthorne) has been found dead in his home, with his comatose wife (Lisa Daniely) beside him. While Holmes and Watson work to clear the widow's name of any suspicion, a weird, badly stooped man (Norman Jones) holds onto the secret of the Barclays' misfortune. This episode in the long-running Granada Television series is a fascinating puzzle all around, highlighted by a long flashback into a grim tale of treachery and revenge. One of the strongest entries in the series, "The Speckled Band" finds distraught Helen Stoner (Rosalyn Landor) coming to Holmes and Watson in fear for her life since announcing her betrothal. The reason: Helen's sister Julia (Denise Armon) died mysteriously and in apparent terror in her bedroom on the night before her own wedding, and her final words were a strange reference to a "speckled band." This episode has it all: a damsel in distress, a considerable villain, lots of suspense, and a solution worth waiting for. Brett and Burke are at the top of their game as Doyle's dynamic duo; this story was, in fact, Doyle's personal favorite from the Holmes canon. --Tom Keogh
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