The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson: Mortal Fight

It has been claimed that Vasili Livanov, the actor who plays Holmes in this excellent Soviet TV series from the 80's, is one of the best Holmes actors. I do not speak Russian but I was able to get hold of a Russian DVD with English subtitles. This episode is a version of "The Final Problem" which is accurately told although there have been some additions and alterations. And yet you can feel that these small alterations do not contradict the spirit of the original story. This TV series is able to portray the atmosphere of the Victorian daily life perfectly as I imagine it and certainly stands on one level with contemporary British productions.

I had long heard about the high quality of the Lenfilm adaptations of Sherlock Holmes for Russian television starring Vasili Livanov, and now, through the grace of the internet and subtitles, I am getting the chance to see them. Their reputation is more than borne out. "Deadly Fight" picks up where its predecessor in a three-part arc left off, and uses Conan Doyle's story "The Final Problem" as a basis for embellishment and the creation of a wonderful film. It's a great attitude to take towards the original stories, and here "The Final Problem" is blended masterfully with elements from "Charles Augustus Milverton" in the previous film. One wouldn't have expected the one of the best film versions of this completely English character, and one that should feel so very right, should have been filmed in Russian.

Livanov's Holmes is one of the best I have seen: calm and friendly but totally in-command and both suited to an intellectual display through dialogue and quietly prepared for springing into action. He can change the tenor of a scene with ever-so-minor variations in his performance. Vitali Solomin is just about perfect as Watson. He rally becomes a full character here with the help of some great touches in the script -- and seemingly effortlessly as everything is still drawn from the spring of what we know from Conan Doyle. Viktor Yefgrafov is a slithering, creepy, and truly unnerving Professor Moriarty here in a great piece of casting.

The direction and pacing keep this film totally suspenseful and macabre all the way through. The viewer can really feel the sense of claustrophobia and impending doom as Moriarty makes his presence subtly known everywhere Holmes goes, leading up to a brilliant scene before the Reichenbach Falls as Holmes contemplates his destiny. It all balanced with just enough humor (such as in the scene where Watson unexpectedly runs into Lestrade) to keep it from being too oppressive. The ending is legitimately affecting no matter how well one knows that Holmes survives. In all, it's almost flawless, and looks gorgeous as well, with plenty of impressive location footage. If you couldn't tell, I recommend it and will be watching more.

Following DUEL TO THE DEATH, this installment in the Russian Sherlock Holmes series finds bereaved Dr. Watson back in London after Holmes' assumed death in the Swiss mountains, where he becomes the primary suspect in the assassination of a young gambler. Although Professor Moriarty was plunged to his death in his "duel to the death" with Sherlock Holmes in the end of the previous movie, his underlings are still large at work it seems. Another quality, intriguing and stylish entry in the consistently enjoyable Soviet rendition of A. C. Doyle's stories. A few holes in logic like Lestrade's suspicion of Dr. Watson as the murderer slightly detract from it, yet even though the charismatic Vasili Livanov as Holmes is absent from the first half of the movie, it still remains dark and suspenseful.

Serving as a mid-season cliffhanger of sorts for the Russian Sherlock Holmes saga, Duel to the Death (or Mortal Fight according to IMDb) finds the sharp-witted detective following on the letter signed with an "M" made of swords that he received in the end of the previous entry by a woman whose husband died under mysterious circumstances. He discovers that the letters contain the member list of a dangerous criminal organization lead by one Professor Moriarty, the mastermind behind London's underworld. Following his discovery, the 221 Baker Street apartment is burnt, and Holmes with Dr. Watson find themselves on the run for their lives, seeking hideout in Switzerland. Climaxing with the titular duel between Holmes and a black-clad Moriarty (or is he?) atop the Swiss mountains and ending with a cliffhanger of sorts, this is one of the strongest episodes the series has to offer.