The Hound of the Baskervilles (1978)

A Sherlock Holmes spoof about a family that has been haunted for years by the curse of a horrible hound.

Director:

Paul Morrissey

Writers:

Peter Cook (screenplay), Dudley Moore (screenplay)

Stars:

Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Denholm Elliott

1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Cook	...	Sherlock Holmes
Dudley Moore	...	Doctor Watson / Mrs. Ada Holmes / Mr. Spiggot / Piano Player
Denholm Elliott	...	Stapleton
Joan Greenwood	...	Beryl Stapleton
Hugh Griffith	...	Frankland
Irene Handl	...	Mrs. Barrymore
Terry-Thomas	...	Dr. Mortimer
Max Wall	...	Arthur Barrymore
Kenneth Williams	...	Sir Henry Baskerville
Roy Kinnear	...	Selden the Axe Murderer
Dana Gillespie	...	Mary Frankland
Lucy Griffiths	...	Iris
Penelope Keith	...	Massage Receptionist
Jessie Matthews	...	Mrs. Tinsdale
Prunella Scales	...	Glynis

Storyline

A Sherlock Holmes spoof about a family that has been haunted for years by the curse of a horrible hound.

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Plot Keywords:

bestiality | bestiality joke | bestiality played for laughs | low brow | effeminate man | 

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Taglines:

You may simply DIE laughing . . .

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Horror | Mystery

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Final English language cinema movie of actor-comedian Terry-Thomas.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Nun: Monsieur le Doctor Watson, what is keeping Monsieur Holmes so long?
Doctor Watson: Oh, reassurez-vous yourselves sisters, your holy relic will be with you momentarily.
Nun: But we have been waiting almost one hour!
Doctor Watson: Mr. Holmes is a very busy man sister. Monsieur Holmes is an, erm, tres occupée sister.
Nun: But tomorrow is the festival of St Beryl, already thousands of blind cripples are flocking to the chapel hoping to kiss the relic. In the name of all the flocking blind cripples, I beseech you...

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Alternate Versions

The UK R2 DVD contains 2 versions of this film. The original 1978 theatrical print that runs 85 mins and a re-edited re-release print that runs 74m. The major differences are (a) in the theatrical print the opening credits are postioned after the scene with the 3 nuns and roll over various amusing shots of Holmes and Watson in their Baker Street study (Holmes is reading a book by Freud called Guilt without Sex). In the re-edited print, the credits are positioned over the pages of the book after the intro scene with Dudley Moore on the piano. These credits are much abbreviated compared to the theatrical print and run much shorter. (b) When Holmes is first seen in shadow playing the violin the re-edited version then cuts back to Watson with the nuns saying he is Budapest and Holmes appearing behind him. The theatrical print extends the footage of Holmes in shadow so he now gets up, turns a light on, turns off a gramophone player and spits out his coffee before meeting the nuns. (c) the scene in which Watson meets Dr Franklin is much abbreviated in the re-edited version. In this version the scene ends after a brief conversation between the two in front of Franklin's shack. The theatrical print continues on with the scene for several minutes as Watson enters the hut with Franklin, views various stuffed animals' heads, and they have a conversation about why Franklin hated the late Sir Charles - jealously over his mistress. Franklin's mistress then enters the hut, the conversation continues, and then Franklin gets insanely jealous and starts strangling his young mistress as Watson crawls out of the building. The longer theatrical cut makes more sense and is better than the shorter print.

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Connections

Version of Sobaka Baskerviley (1971)

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Soundtracks

Twelve String Ties
(uncredited)
Music by John Churston (pseudonym of H.M. Farrar)
De Wolfe Music Ltd

User Reviews

Elementary my dear Watson! this stink bomb makes Arthur II: on the Rocks look like Citizen Kane

Looking at today's conveyor belt of mind-numbing remakes of old shows, idiot teen comedies and action fests that have great special effects but little else, it's easy to get very nostalgic about the 1970s. But the decade of Coppola, Scorcese, Altman, Malik, Bogdanovic etc produced its fair share of cow pats and what an 'Annis Mirablis' 1978 was for truly wretched cinema. Hot on the heals of 'Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' (with the Bee Gees), 'Carry on Emmanuelle' and 'Renaldo and Clara' (a Bob Dylan vehicle..don't ask), came this fetid attempt to satire Holmes and Watson. First off, it has to said that the Cook-Moore contribution to postwar British comedy is immeasurable and would probably fit in third place after the Pythons and Goons. But even the greats have their off days and Pete and Dud were well off when they agreed to let Paul Morrisey direct a comedy that manages to bungle every comic moment. The falsetto Welsh accent of Watson (Moore) and the stage Jewish accent of Holmes (Cook) simply irritate and a very strong cast is completely wasted. Why, for example, is Spike Milligan only afforded a 'fleeting appearance'? Others do their best with lamentable gags. The urinating dog of Denholm Elliot isn't funny, simply disgusting and Roy Kinnear's flasher could have been funny but simply falls flat. Morrisey doesn't know whether to be clever and satiric, akin to 'Life of Brian', or cheerfully bawdy like a Carry On movie. The result is a movie that's neither seaside postcard humour nor the anarchistic satire that Pete and Dud had presented so well a decade before. A truly washed out Kenneth Williams, fresh off 'Emmanuelle' (Jesus wept) is slotted in, his usual flared-nostril, bulgy eyed caricature demolishing the myth that he was a great actor trapped by the Carry Ons. Better artistes like Henry 'Arthur Sultan' Woolf and Prunella 'Sybil' Scales simply have walk ons. Meanwhile, the look of the movie is cheap and stagey while Moore's piano score is out of place in a comedy. Given that he and Cook were successfully belting out the punk humour of Derek and Clive at the same time, this dog can't be explained by the fact that Cook was by then alcoholic and depressed. Perhaps Morrisey was really Moriarty in disguise.

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

November 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Hund von Baskerville

Filming Locations:

Bray Film Studios, Windsor, Berkshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Michael White Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

85 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1