The Hound of the Baskervilles Reviews

After riding the success of a new cycle of horror films that they had nearly single-handedly created, Hammer Studios decided to resurrect a beloved British character by the name of Sherlock Holmes and give him his first full-blown color treatment. The film begins with a flashback detailing the brutal murder of a young girl who had escaped an orgy staged by the lecherous Sir Hugo Baskerville (Oxley). After the murder, there is a terrifying sound and Sir Hugo is found dead, having been killed by a mysterious beast. The story then shifts to contemporary times and we learn that what we have just seen is the legend of the Baskerville curse, as related by Dr. Mortimer (De Wolff) to Sherlock Holmes (Cushing). Eventually Holmes and Watson (Morell) wind up trying to save the current Baskerville heir (Lee) from the horrible fate that awaits him. Hammer lent its usual lush production values to this Holmes effort, filling the regrettably claustrophobic sets (the film was shot in a suburban studio that was actually a large house) with accurate period detail and creating an unforgettably creepy moor. The film is something of a disappointment, but the color and production values add a certain flair to it, as do the performances of Cushing and Lee.