The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939)

'The Hound of the Baskervilles' is a mystery movie thriller made in 1939 and starring Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson. It was the first of fourteen Sherlock Holmes films starring Rathbone and Bruce to be made. The film was directed by Sydney Lanfield and was based on the 1902 novel of the same name by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

There had been at least five previous Sherlock Holmes films - but this was by far the most successful.

This and the succeeding Holmes films were so successful that Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce were hired to play Holmes and Watson on the radio series "The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. This radio series consisted of brand new Sherlock Holmes stories written by Anthony Boucher and Denis Green.

Plot

The action takes place in 1889. The famous London detective, Sherlock Holmes, is asked for his help in investigating the death of Sir Charles Baskerville, a rich landowner in Devon who was believed to have been frightened to his death.

The nephew of Sir Charles, namely Sir Henry Baskerville, played by Richard Greene, who has returned to England following the death of his uncle, is grateful for help and protection from Holmes.

Holmes is intrigued by a supposed curse on the Baskerville family dating back nearly 200 years to when a Baskerville was supposedly killed on the moor by a ghostly hound.

Holmes dismisses the supernatural elements of the case but an escaped convict in the area and a number of strange happenings stir his deductive powers.

Production

When the film was made neither Rathbone nor Bruce were as well known as Richard Greene, which is why Greene got top billing. Greene later became more famous playing Robin Hood in the British TV series.

The supporting cast is of high quality and includes John Carradine and Lionel Atwill, both leading character actors.

In the original novel, and in all later film versions, the butler is named Barrymore. In this version, the butler was renamed Barryman to avoid confusion with the famous Barrymore acting family.

The Baskerville Hound was played by a dog named "Blitzen", but this was considered too German sounding in 1939 and for the purpose of the credits he was renamed "Chief".