jhboswell

This is a Canadian television production, and it doesn't rise anywhere near the level of a good film. We have been blissfully exposed to much better Holmes films and TV shows. But, in my opinion, it wasn't a wasted effort. Not quite, anyway.

The acting is energetic, but suffers from inadequate direction, editing, and camera angles, all of which are distracting. Macnee was a very experienced thespian, and he had done fairly decent turns as Watson before this, but here he was 71 years old and clearly hired for his name. IMBd offers very little information about the supporting cast, and I had heard of none of them: my impression is that they were stage actors and not very experienced in capturing the camera. Other than that I found them all adequate--no stand-outs. The settings are okay; the costumes are fine; the lighting and other technical aspects again seemed to be transposed from a stage production. The story was vague, rambling, and a pastiche of other Holmes shows--not very much of Doyle is here. And, I think that's the most significant shortcoming. The definition of a poor Holmes production is attempting to re-write or otherwise adulterate Arthur Conan Doyle. I mean--why?

So, it isn't the worst Holmes interpretation I've seen; and I believe in kindness I'll end this review with that.

We are so blessed to have the first episode of the wonderful (Jack) Benny (Kubelsky) television show. This guy was, and still is, absolutely tops. After eighteen fantastic years on radio, most episodes of which still exist, the Benny gang made a triumphant transition to the little screen, in a live production, which is a sheer delight. Announcer Don Wilson, butler Rochester, wife Mary Livingston, and many others, made the trip to New York to do this show, beginning a 15-year reign on TV. Dinah Shore was the guest, too. He continued his radio show for another six yearsEnjoy--you probably won't be able to help it.

This series of eight episodes, produced in Japan in 2018, is an Oriental-flavored take on the brilliant, resourceful crime fighter who was created for Victorian England times. It always seems strange to see him (or in this case, her) re-cast into modern times which actually began with Basil Rathbone in the 1040's; but, the character and his adventures have clearly been proven to work anywhere and in any time. So, after some getting used to, this is a moderately enjoyable series of adventures. The cast is superb: Yûko Takeuchi as Sherlock is brilliant, quirky and fun, and I believe her interpretation will be found extremely valuable in years to come. Shihori Kanjiya as Wato is delightful, and so pretty and charming she often distracts the scene. The supporting actors are also faultless, and show a clear discipline to the long history of Japanese theatre. The stories are somewhat light, and imply some difficulty in interpreting the action-packed stories to the Oriental mind set. The production is very well done.