The Complete Sherlock Holmes Collection

This is the Basil Rathbone set to buy. Here, MPI has excelled in reproducing the ORIGINAL "Universal Studios" productions of Sherlock Holmes Series with Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson. Transfer: Excellent. Full (television) screen as I like it. Single-sided disks as I like for handling, especially with kids. Notes on Transfer: ORIGINAL music and introductions are in THIS collection-- much of the original music was cut as the series was passed down through time by various movie outfits.... disk one contains a special on all of the work that these guys did in restoring all of the movies -- pristine quality reproductions on full tv screen (not wide) format the way I like it. Content: excellent! If you enjoy this version of Sherlock Holmes with clever SH and somewhat comical Dr. Watson, you will enjoy the acting (superb), stories, and casting. Menu: The classical music for the menu needs to be adjusted to have the same volume as the series-- also, it needs to be much longer and less repetitive. Remove the silly Watson and Holmes speaking during the nice classical music as it becomes tiresome. Case: Beautiful front embossed case BUT terrible back lettering that is a piece of glossy paper that is glued only at the top. I had to tape it at the bottom to be sure that it would not be torn off. The disks open up somewhat in reverse with a cloth-like pull tab-- UNFORTUNATELY, the disks are mounted into REALLY HARD TO REMOVE PVC type of holders-- the holds "FLIP" because they are TAPED with a single piece of CLEAR TAPE-- my disks became UNTAPED after only a single removal and insertion of the DVD-- shoddy considering the time and care spent on the reproductions-- paper or plastic sleeves would have been better as I can't see this case lasting anytime--COME ON MPI-- DO IT COMPLETELY RIGHT and give us a proper storage case! OVERALL: Thank you MPI for preserving this series so well! The episodes are all very very well done and will provide quality entertainment. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED -- this is the set to buy to have a complete Basil Rathbone collection. Case: nice, but tough to get the double-sided disks out-- can't someone come up with a better way that this? Disks: so far, no problems with playing on any of the disks that I played including those episodes mentioned in other reviews. Conclusion: well worth the price, BUY IT! Please don't make us wait another 50 years to get season 2.

This MPI Sherlock Holmes collection is contained on 5 DVDs, placed in movable plastic leaves inside the keepcase. Each DVD has 3 Holmes films, except the last, which contains 2 films plus some special features (stills, trailers, and a 1-minute video of Arthur Conan Doyle). Six of the Holmes films have commentaries; this includes a new commentary on Dressed to Kill featuring actress Patricia Morison. The films are arranged in order of release, with Hound of the Baskervilles (1939) first, and Dressed to Kill (1946) last. The first two films were by 20th Century Fox; the last 12 were by Universal. The video is pretty good on all films. They are digitally restored, but that does not mean they are perfect-looking; even with digital restoration, the results depend on the original materials available, and for some of the films only poor elements still exist. However, though the image is sometimes a little rough, it is mostly quite good, and sometimes pristine. The sound is almost always good. The commentaries are all very good, especially on The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. The DVD menus are attractive and feature some beautiful violin playing. The stories themselves vary in quality. None of them is bad. Some are very good. The plots are sometimes thin, other times quite solid. Fans differ over the best and worst. (Many fans dislike the ones from 1942 and 1943 with Nazi villains and a wartime propaganda message; I actually don't mind those ones; though they are not the best in the series, they have a period charm of their own.) On average, the 14 films are about equal in quality to the better Universal horror films of the 1940s -- and reminiscent of them in style, with similar polished sets, ominous music, and creepy atmosphere. There is the usual stable of fine Universal character actors, and Basil Rathbone's commanding presence makes every film compelling even where the plot is weak. Overall it is a pleasure to view these films. They are not deep but they are very entertaining. I can find no fault with this collection as a DVD product. It deserves 5 stars.

Considering what RealArt did to Universal's catalog for 10 years I was surprised and pleased with the quality of the UCLA team's transfer to Blu-Ray. They did not restore the 2 Fox movies (Hound and Adventures) because they did not need it, so the challenge was the 12 Universal's, and while they obviously used different prints for most of the Universal 12, the level of detail is astonishing: Hillary Brooke has a small mole on her right cheek (face cheek just to be clear), and Alistair should have blown his nose before the library scene at the end of House of Fear, two things I never noticed before and one I wish I hadn't. Some of the movies have a bit of a brownish tint in some scenes, then in the next the tint vanishes and the GLORIOUSLY pure white, gray, and black palette takes over. The atmosphere is sooooo enhanced by the Blu-Ray that even the lamer efforts (Voice of Terror, Algiers, Spider Woman) are fun to watch if decidedly second-rate as movies. As far as I am concerned if Basil Rathbone ain't in it, it ain't a Sherlock Holmes movie, and if you feel the same do yourself a favor and buy it! 5 Stars all the way!.....P.S., now that I have had the set for a month I finally got around to the commentary tracks and they are a treat! Lots of insider information and the commentator had just the right balance of straight-forward info coupled with some delightful Limey fussiness to supply no end of amusement. Did you know that the buildings in the street scenes look more like Brooklyn brownstones than "proper" English brick and mortar? Neither did I!!!! And I frankly do not care but it's a HOOT on a grand scale to listen to Mr Fusspot complain about it over and over again! I have seen them all several times now and if there is one disappointment for most viewers it is that "Scarlet Claw" has the worst look of them all, it is pretty rough compared to the others and given its status as "the best" of the lot it merits a big Oh Well. My favorite by far is "House of Fear" and it suffers from the brownish tint up until the MacGregor drinking scene when everything changes for the better. Watch the "well Watson, what do you make of it?" scene: after Watson says "I see what you mean" the barest trace of a smile crosses Basil's face for a split second and THAT right there my friends is why this Blu Ray edition is worth buying and enjoying for years to come.

I loved this product. Its both a marvelous compilation and restoration of one of the greatest film series ever made. It includes two films not from the Universal series---"The Hound of the Baskervilles" and "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes", and I have to agree with the gentleman who provided the commentary on "The Adventures" that I also thought it was the best of all the 14 films. Some of the episodes I hadn't seen in years, such as "The Pearl of Death" and "Pursuit to Algiers." In watching them again, it not only brought back fond memories, but really made me appreciate the talents of Basile Rathbone and Nigel Bruce. While I'll never like Bruce's characterization of Watson as a bumbling but well-intentioned buffoon, I'll have to admit that I was deeply touched when he sang "Loch Lomond" in "Pursuit" (and did it very well!). As for Rathbone, he was truly suited for his role---elegant, athletic, and energetic. He depicted Holmes, however, as more of an adventurer than the famous man of deductive reasoning, and as a consequence, he would blunder into more harrowing, dramatic escapes that a deductive mind would be more inclined to foresee and avoid. Nevertheless, he was truly a great Holmes. A great Holmes, but alas, not Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Holmes. That honor will always belong to the great Jeremy Brett. Unfortunately, Rathbone's character of Holmes bears no more resemblance to the author's version than Bruce's preposterous creation of Watson. While I enjoyed the series very much, it makes me incredibly sad that Hollywood did not trust two of the finest actors who ever played the roles to actually perform scripts that were actual reenactments of Conan Doyle's stories and set in Victorian times. It would have been wonderful to have had such film depictions to compare with the wonderful Granada series of Brett's that was made in the 1980's and 1990's. Alas, such a thing will never be.

This is a GREAT set because: ...A... Black & white movies have a special atmosphere. Additionally, the last 12 of the movies are remastered in both picture and sound. The viewing is great. ...B... I love mysteries, and there are some great plots among these movies. ...C... In addition to Rathbone's Holmes, there is some great character acting in this movie series. That includes femme fatales and master criminals. ...D... Though Nigel Bruce's Watson is not my favorite portrayal of the famed sidekick, in this series he is the comic relief and I think he does a good job with that. ...E... Rathbone's versatility is shown. When Sherlock dons one of his costumes, Rathbone really plays the part. No wonder he longed to get away from the character of Holmes. In this Complete Collection, you get all 14 of the Sherlock Holmes movies Rathbone and Bruce made together. That's 16 hours 14 minutes of mystery viewing. All of the movies can currently be purchased separately on disc and some of them have colorized versions, Commentary Tracks and Bonus Features. You can find more detailed descriptions of the plots on the pages for the single movie releases. All of the movies have English subtitles available on the discs. In addition, in this Collection, you get a Commentary Track for six of the movies. All in all, this is a really great set. I've already watched everything through twice. The disc content, with movies in order of release: ...Bonus A... "Introduction by Robert Gitt" (4 minutes, no subtitles) Gitt works at the Preservation Office of the UCLA Film and Television Archive. We have his team to thank for the crisp remastered versions available in this collection. Gitt explains that the first step is to preserve the film, where you copy it on to "modern polyester film, which, I'm told, will have a life of several hundred years." After preservation, there's restoration, which is a huge process. ...1... "The Hound of the Baskervilles" (80 minutes, 4 stars) The classic of the classic Sherlock Holmes. Though I loved the atmosphere, I knocked off a star because they deleted one of the key plot elements in in the original story. Watch it a second time with a Commentary by David Stuart Davies, writer and editor of "Sherlock" magazine. He gives interesting background information. Sherlock Holmes - The Hound of the Baskervilles ...2... "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" (82 minutes, 4 stars) Professor Moriarty threatens to crush Holmes for inconveniencing him one last time. And he plans to do it by using Holmes' own curiosity and restlessness against himself. Also includes a Commentary track by Richard Valley, late publisher and editor of "Scarlet Street" magazine. Recommended for good factoids and humor. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes ...3... "Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror" (66 minutes, 3 stars) It's WWII and England is fighting for its life. The Nazis have a radio broadcast, The Voice of Terror, which not only strikes fear into the hearts, but sets out to prove Nazi superiority by predicting sabotage on English soil. England has a mole. Sherlock Holmes: The Voice of Terror ...4..."Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon" (68 minutes, 4 stars) The Swiss scientist, Dr. Tobel, has developed a new bomb sight, which both sides of WWII want. Can Holmes get him out of Nazi occupied Switzerland? Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon (Colorized / Black & White) ...5... "Sherlock Holmes in Washington" (71 minutes, 4 stars) The British are sending a top-secret document to Washington D.C. The Nazis know the document is on a certain train, but they don't know who is carrying it. Sherlock Holmes in Washington ...6... "Sherlock Holmes Faces Death" (88 minutes, 4 stars) Doctor Watson works at an officer convalescent home at Musgrave Manor. When his assistant is attacked, he asks Holmes to investigate. This film has another Commentary Track by David Stuart Davies. Sherlock Holmes Faces Death ...7... "The Spider Woman" (83 minutes, 5 stars) Seven men have shot themselves in the head while in their pyjamas. Holmes is sure they've been murdered, but how? And why? Sherlock Holmes in the Spider Woman ...8... "The Scarlet Claw" (74 minutes, 4 stars) Holmes and Watson are in Quebec, Canada, for a meeting of an occult society. Strange lights are seen in the woods and animals have been found their throats torn out. When it happens to a woman, Holmes is on the case. Watch it a second time with the Commentary Track by David Stuart Davies. At one point of pulp-ish dialogue he says, "Penny Dreadful stuff in the mouth of a lesser actor.... [but] the brilliance of Basil Rathbone, whose assured, charismatic and dominating performance, lifts these movies out of the commonplace." Sherlock Holmes - The Scarlet Claw ...9... "Pearl of Death" (69 minutes, 5 stars) The cursed Borgia Pearl is heading to London where it will be put on display in a museum. It's protection is fool-proof. Until it's not. Sherlock Holmes in Pearl of Death ..10... "The House of Fear" (69 minutes, 3 stars) On behalf of his client, Holmes and Watson venture to Driercliff House, where members of The Good Comrades are being picked off one by one. Sherlock Holmes - The House of Fear ..11... "Woman in Green" (68 minutes, 5 stars) London women are being murdered, with a finger chopped off as a souvenir. Holmes must stop a diabolical plot. David Stuart Davies provides a Commentary Track to this excellent movie. Sherlock Holmes - The Woman in Green ..12... "Pursuit to Algiers" (65 minutes, 4 stars) The Home Office recruits Holmes to guard a young royal threatened with assassination. Sherlock Holmes in Pursuit To Algiers ..13... "Terror By Night" (60 minutes, 5 stars) The owner of the Star of Rhodesia, a huge and supposedly cursed diamond, is being brought back to England on an ocean liner. Holmes is hired to protect it. Sherlock Holmes: Terror by Night ..14... "Dressed to Kill" AKA "Prelude to Murder" (72 minutes, 5 stars) The Gaylord Art Gallery, London, has its weekly auction, including three music boxes made in a prison. When the man who purchased the first box is murdered, Holmes must find out why, and prevent more deaths. This has a recommended Commentary Track with David Gregory (monitor), Patricia Morison (plays Hilda Courtney) and Richard Valley. Hilda is the femme fatale in this movie and got to wear silly hats. Sherlock Holmes in Color: Prelude to Murder (a.k.a Dressed to Kill) ...Bonus B... Photo Galleries (12 minutes) Five slideshows of movie stills, posters and publicity shots ...Bonus C... Trailers (7 minutes) 6 trailers for Rathbone/Bruce Holmes movies, not restored ...Bonus D... Footage of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1 minute) This looks like one of those news items that runs before a movie. It is in black & white and was issued due to the passing of the author. He sits in his garden and briefly talks to the camera. Happy Reader

This collection is the real deal ! Basil Rathbone was tremendous as Sherlocl Homes. unfortunately he only made 14 films of Sir Authur Conon Doyle's 56 Short stories and 4 Novels concerning Sherlock Homes. Basil Rathbone protrayed Homes better than any other actor, Nigel Bruce also played the best Dr. Watson. You have to be careful when looking for Sherlock Homes DVD's because alot of other DVD's try to disguise the actors protrayed in the movies. I once purchased a set of DVD's of 34 movies but only 4 featured Basil Rathbone. Any mystery can be good, but Rathbone brings the character come alive.

Great movie should make these again as a monthly insertion on Apple TV. Use different people too.

I was very hesitant about purchasing this Blu-ray set. After all, I own the MPI released DVDs which were themselves an enormous step-up in quality from previous incarnations of the 14 Basil Rathbone movies on home video. However, the Blu-ray set, in addition to offering an additional audio commentary is remarkably even superior to the DVDs here presented in glorious HD 1080p/AVC-encoded. Several years ago UCLA restored 12 of the 14 Basil Rathbone movies (the two belonging to 20th Century Fox "Hound of the Baskervilles" and "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" were not restored) and MPI released those 12 in a three-part collection. For completions sake they then released the two non-restored Fox movies as single-disc DVD editions. Having fond childhood memories of watching these movies Friday nights on BBC2 in my native U.K., I found those DVDs an easy purchase, and do not regret that purchase - the set having since offered hours of enjoyment. So, it was with hesitation that I approached the news that the 14 Basil Rathbone movies were to be released as a set on high definition Blu-rays. Exactly how much a jump in quality could be achieved on movies that were essentially B features in the 1940s? Would the leap in picture quality from the DVDs be enough to warrant putting down cash on these classics? Eventually, after discussing the matter with some contacts online who already had these Blu-rays, I took the plunge and am very glad I did. The Blu-rays offer the opportunity to see these movies with such depth and clarity that the DVDs pale in comparison. The amount of detail in these Blu-rays is so stunning that I dare to say this will be the definitive home video editions of these pictures, it's hard to imagine that the picture could be even better presented. In an attractive presentation (that incidentally takes up about one-fifth of the shelf space of the DVD sets), this Blu-ray set is a must-own for any self-respecting Holmesian. The plots of the movies may seem positively pedestrian by today's standards but Rathbone performs the part of Holmes so perfectly that he remains my favorite incarnation of Conan Doyle's iconic character. My personal preference is for the two Fox movies that place Holmes in his proper timeframe, but the remaining 12 Universal movies are also immensely entertaining with my personal favorites being "The House of Fear" and "Terror by Night". Clocking in at 960 minutes the 14 movies included are: The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939, 1:19:43) The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1939, 1:21:42) Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror (1942, 1:05:29) Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon (1943, 1:08:46) Sherlock Holmes in Washington (1943, 1:11:32) Sherlock Holmes Faces Death (1943, 1:08:06) Sherlock Holmes: The Spider Woman (1944, 1:02:11) Sherlock Holmes: The Scarlet Claw (1944, 1:13:48) Sherlock Holmes: The Pearl of Death (1944, 1:08:40) Sherlock Holmes: The House of Fear (1945, 1:09:10) Sherlock Holmes: The Woman in Green (1945, 1:07:45) Sherlock Holmes: Pursuit to Algiers (1945, 1:05:04) Sherlock Holmes: Terror by Night (1946, 59:38) Sherlock Holmes: Dressed to Kill (1946, 1:11:50) All of the special features from the DVDs are included and these Blu-rays include an additional audio commentary to the five that existed on the DVDs. This all new track features David Gregory, Richard Valley, and actress Patricia Morrison, collectively discussing "Dressed to Kill."