6.7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
A series of Sherlock Holmes adaptations, based on the stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Starring: Peter Cushing, Nigel Stock, Douglas Wilmer, Peter Madden, Grace ArnoldMystery | 100% |
Drama | 4% |
Crime | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p (upconverted)
Aspect ratio: 1.25:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.33:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 2.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of Severin Films' Cushing Curiosities set.
Severin has celebrated arguably lesser known efforts featuring one of the more legendary horror actors often associated with Hammer Studios with
both
The Eurocrypt of Christopher Lee
Collection and The
Eurocrypt of Christopher Lee Collection 2. Now they're doing similar service for that other legendary horror actor often
associated with
Hammer Studios, and one who of course famously co-starred with Lee in any number of films. As the title of this collection may suggest, the offerings
in Cushing Curiosities are a bit peculiar at times, but that perhaps only gives them added allure for a certain demographic. Severin has
assembled an impressive array of supplements, including some excellent commentaries by Jonathan Rigby, who also contributes an incredibly
thorough overview of Cushing's career in a perfect bound booklet included with this set. Adding to the allure here are some generally solid
technical merits (with perhaps one notable exception).
Sherlock Holmes is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with AVC encoded 1080p transfers in 1.25:1. For my "cut to the chase" reaction to the appearance of these episodes, I'll simply refer those to my reviews of another British icon, namely releases like Doctor Who: Jon Pertwee: Complete Season Two from the relatively early years of that long running institution. Those releases, like this one, simply can't evade their upscaled source material, though I have to say even the filmed sections (typically on location) here may not offer the same admittedly minor upticks in detail that some of the early Doctor Who outings can show. As can be seen pretty easily in some of the screenshots I've uploaded to accompany this review, the on set video scenes can look decidedly ragged, with wavering color, baked in deficiencies like ghosting and some pretty bad pixellation. Occasionally, though, especially when extreme close-ups are utilized, detail levels can actually be relatively decent (see screenshot 6 for one example). The filmed moments may be marginally better, but that's probably damning with faint praise.
Luckily, the soundtracks of these episodes have weathered the gauntlets of time and tide considerably better than the video side of things, and the DTS- HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono tracks sound nicely problem free. There's still some obvious differences in ambience between set bound and location sequences, and the relatively paltry budgets mean there aren't a glut of sound effects (even where you might expect there to be, as in The Hound of the Baskervilles). Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.
Disc One
One of the really "curious" things about this collection is seeing Cushing play roles that he frankly may not have been perfectly cut out to play, and while I'm still trying to erase memories of Matt Frewer as far as miscast actors playing Holmes goes, Cushing, while certainly preferable to Frewer, doesn't quite have the snap of Brett. These surviving episodes should certainly be of interest to Cushing completists, though, even if the video is pretty lackluster. All of the commentaries are first rate, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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