The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939)

Director:

Sidney Lanfield

Writers:

Ernest Pascal (screenplay)
Arthur Conan Doyle (novel)

Release Date:

31 March 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson investigate the legend of a supernatural hound, a beast that may be stalking a young heir on the fog-shrouded moorland that makes up his estate.

Plot Keywords:

Moor | Death | Sherlock Holmes | Boot | Doctor

Cast

Richard Greene	...	Sir Henry Baskerville
Basil Rathbone	...	Sherlock Holmes
Wendy Barrie	...	Beryl Stapleton
Nigel Bruce	...	Dr. Watson
Lionel Atwill	...	James Mortimer M.D.
John Carradine	...	Barryman
Barlowe Borland	...	Frankland
Beryl Mercer	...	Mrs. Jennifer Mortimer
Morton Lowry	...	John Stapleton
Ralph Forbes	...	Sir Hugo Baskerville
E.E. Clive	...	Cabby
Eily Malyon	...	Mrs. Barryman
Lionel Pape	...	Coroner
Nigel De Brulier	...	Convict (as Nigel de Brulier)
Mary Gordon	...	Mrs. Hudson
Ian Maclaren	...	Sir Charles (as Ian MacLaren)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Leonard Carey	...	Hugo's Servant (uncredited)
Kenneth Hunter	...	Ship's Officer (uncredited)
Vesey O'Davoren	...	Ship's Steward (uncredited)
Rita Page	...	Chambermaid (uncredited)
John Graham Spacey	...	Ship's Porter (uncredited)
Ruth Terry	...	Betsy Ann (uncredited)
David Thursby	...	Open Carriage Driver (uncredited)
Peter Willes	...	Roderick (uncredited)
Mary Young	...	Betsy Ann's Mother (uncredited)

Directed by
Sidney Lanfield

Writing credits
Ernest Pascal		(screenplay)
Arthur Conan Doyle		(novel "The Hound of the Baskervilles") (as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Produced by
Gene Markey	....	associate producer
Darryl F. Zanuck	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
David Buttolph		(uncredited)
Charles Maxwell		(uncredited)
Cyril J. Mockridge		(uncredited)
David Raksin		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
J. Peverell Marley		(photography) (as Peverell Marley)

Film Editing by
Robert L. Simpson		(as Robert Simpson)

Art Direction by
Richard Day
Hans Peters

Set Decoration by
Thomas Little

Costume Design by
Gwen Wakeling

Production Management
Darryl F. Zanuck	....	executive in charge of production

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Gene Bryant	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department
W.D. Flick	....	sound
Roger Heman Sr.	....	sound (as Roger Heman)

Music Department
Cyril J. Mockridge	....	musical director

Other crew
Harold Lloyd Morris	....	technical advisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Distributors

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (1939) (USA) (theatrical)
• Netherlands Fox Film Corporation (1939) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• CBS/Fox (????) (USA) (VHS)
• CBS/Fox (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1976) (USA) (TV) (network premiere)
• MPI Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• MPI Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Optimum Home Entertainment (2005) (UK) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | UK:PG | Norway:16 | USA:Approved (certificate #5037) | Netherlands:14 (original rating) (1939)

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

The first of fourteen films based on Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional consulting detective Sherlock Holmes starring Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Doctor Watson.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The film is set in 1889, but when Holmes searches the moor with his pocket lantern, it is obvious the prop had been retrofitted with an electric light-bulb instead of an alcohol fueled flame.

Quotes:

James Mortimer, M.D.:Mr. Holmes, we've admired you in the past as does every Englishman. Your record as our greatest detective is known throughout the world. But this - seeing how you work - knowing that there is in England such a man as you gives us all a sense of safety and security. God bless you, Mr. Holmes!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Tortellis: An Affair to Remember (#1.2)" (1987)

Watson Plays It Straight In This Series Opener

Despite the famous title - perhaps the most famous of all the Sherlock Holmes stories - I found the movie to be just an average Holmes tale. It was entertaining and well-done but nothing spectacular. I am certain not knocking this film. I love these old Basil Rathbone-Nigel Bruce SH movies. An "average" Holmes film with these two guys still gets an 8-star rating!

This was the first pairing of the above-mentioned two actors and Bruce, as "Dr. Watson," was not the bumbling buffoon as he was in subsequent episodes. However, I prefer Watson in that role because he added a lot of humor and entertainment. In this movie, Watson is pictured as fairly intelligent, for a change!

I enjoyed the lighting in this story. It made for some superb cinematography. The stark black-and-white shots inside the Baskerville mansion were great, as were the many facial closeups in this movie. The gray of the moors outside were in stark contrast to the indoor shots.

Although the séance fizzled, the credence given the occult in the story put a frown on a my face. It's amazing how many ignorant, superstitious people there have been in the world who actually believe they can talk to dead people. The rest of the story was a lot more intelligent and credible.