The Speckled Band

Before saying anything about the film I must point out that the version I saw was fairly drastically shortened; judging by other reviews this is now the only available version. Sometimes it is fairly obvious where material has been lost, others less so.

The story opens in the house of Dr Grimesby Rylott where one of his two step daughters, Violet, comes out of her room and dies in her sister Helen's arms. Dr Watson, who was a friend of the sisters' family in India, gives evidence at the inquiry and it is determined that no crime has been committed. A year passes and Helen plans to marry and move to India with her fiancé... soon she fears for her safety and seeks the help of Dr Watson and his friend Sherlock Holmes. She explains how her sister died just after getting engaged and how she is now being treated just how her sister was prior to her death. Even being moved into her sister's old room to facilitate building work in hers.

It is a pity that so much of this film has been lost as it means what remains is a bit choppy at times; however that doesn't mean it isn't worth watching. The story is solid with a good central mystery; it was a pity the murder weapon used was spoilt by the DVD box picture as that is probably the best part of the mystery. Early on it becomes clear Rylott is a wrong 'un and there is no doubt that he intends to kill Helen for the inheritance. There is some nice misdirection before the full details of the plot are exposed. Raymond Massey does a fine job as Holmes and Athole Stewart provides solid support as Watson; however it is Angela Baddeley who stands out as Helen; she does a great job depicting her growing fear. Lyn Harding is suitably menacing as Rylott even if the character veers towards being a pantomime villain; if he had a moustache he would have twirled it! The sets were good with a traditional large country pile where Rylott lived contrasting with Holmes ultra-modern, for the time, office. Overall this might not be a must see if you're not a Holmes fan but despite the missing sections it is still a decent way to pass fifty minutes if you like older films.

It is clear to see why Sherlock Holmes has been popular in film, with the care and quality given to this early film as an example. When this was produced, all the stories had been written, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was dead. Audiences of the day had perhaps seen a few screen versions--most likely the awful John Barrymore vehicle--but Holmes was already known all over the English-speaking world. So here, before the B movies of the '40's, we have a really fine production that is beautifully true to Sir Arthur's creation. Raymond Massey, a young Canadian actor in his first film outing, interprets the part solidly, and imaginatively. The pace is a little slow for modern tastes, but perhaps that is respect. An admirable effort.

The only version of this film which survives today appears to have lost some twenty minutes of its running time, and has obvious gaps where scenes, or parts of scenes, are missing.

That said, what remains is very good indeed. Raymond Massey, in his film debut, makes his only appearance as Holmes, wandering about in his technological empire in Baker Street in his silk dressing gown, looking more like Noel Coward than a master of crime prevention. However, his manner and sarcasm when comparing his memory to that of his machine index of criminals saves the day and stops the character descending into caricature.

Watson - Athole Stewart - is convincing as an ex-army man who served in India, and one senses he is more than a match for the villain of the piece, the scene-chewing Lyn Harding recreating his stage triumph as Dr Rylott. Our heroine is played by Angela Baddeley - who is remembered best these days for her work in the 1970s as TV's Mrs Bridges in 'Upstairs, Downstairs'. Here she definitely sounds more upstairs than down, with her cut-glass vowels, and seems to have but one emotion - wide-eyed terror.

With a few character additions, notably a Native servant as befits a Sahib from the Raj, the tale of the 'Speckled Band' is largely faithful to Conan Doyle, although the transformation of Baker Street HQ into a bust office with a secretary and typists is simply a curio, and does not compare to the traditional chaos and pipe smoke we would usually expect.

Massey's Holmes is devious, sharp, clever, and almost fey. I particularly like the ending, which frames the characters of both Holmes and Watson - it would have been interesting to see this develop into a series with the same pair of actors. As it is, it remains an adaptation one can savour even with the cuts and jumps in plot which have become a casualty of time.

Can be obtained on DVD in several budget sets.

I saw this film in 1931at a time when most British movies creaked

along. As I recall, this was a cut above most of its contemporaries,

with convincing performances b y Massey, Baddeley and Harding.

Most impressive was the opening: camera ranged through the

dark halls and passages of an old English manor in a sustained

dolly shot to the eerie sound of some kind of Indian wind

instrument. The sequence ended with a jump cut to the face of a

young woman, screaming in her death throes. Most alarming and

impressive. For me it ranks with one of he best shock openings

I've ever seen. Today, they'd probably play such a scene before the

main title.

An interesting footnote: In later life, Angela Baddeley, the heroine,

was to play Mrs. Hudson, the cook, in the unforgettable British

series, Upstairs, Downstairs.

The Speckled Band (1931)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

After the mysterious death of her sister, Helen Stonor (Angela Baddeley) asks Sherlock Holmes (Raymond Massey) and Dr. Watson (Athole Stewart) to investigate her stepfather (Lyn Harding) who at times can have a mean streak and might have a reason for the sisters to be dead.

Sir Author Conan Doyle always stated that "The Adventure of the Speckled Band" was his favorite Holmes story and it's easy to see why, although it's pretty hard to judge this film. I say that because it was originally at least 66-minutes and possibly 90-minutes but the only thing that survives is a print running 49-minutes. Obviously that's a lot of footage to be missing and it's clear as you watch the film because there are some rough edits at times. With so much footage missing it's hard to fully judge the movie but there's still a fairly complete story here to follow.

I think one of the most interesting aspects was the casting of Massey as Holmes. The actor was still very much unknown when he took on the role but would eventually gain fame playing Abraham Lincoln. In this film, I found him to be a pretty entertaining Holmes and especially with some of the wit and humor that he displayed. He certainly had the look for the character and it's really too bad that he's not on screen more. Stewart, perhaps the only bald Watson, is decent in his role but doesn't stand out too much. Baddeley is charming in her role as the stressed sister but it's Harding who steals the film and not in a good way. His over-dramatic, theatrics like performance is so over-the-top that you can't help but laugh at times. Let's just say he leave to doubt at what type of person the character is.

Again, with so much missing it's hard to judge the film. There's a subplot involving gypsies that might have played out more in the longer version and I'm also curious if Holmes had a bigger role. The film was obviously shot on a small budget and it shows at times but there's still a mildly entertaining movie here. Fans of Holmes will certainly want to check it out.