The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970) Billy Wilder

The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970) Billy Wilder


Actors: Robert Stephens, Colin Blakely, Christopher Lee, Genevieve Page, Tamara Toumanova

Directors: Billy Wilder

Writers: Billy Wilder, I. A. L. Diamond, Arthur Conan Doyle


Director Billy Wilder adds a new and intriguing twist to the personality of intrepid detective Sherlock Holmes. One thing hasn't changed however: Holmes' crime-solving talents. Holmes and Dr. Watson take on the case of a beautiful woman whose husband has vanished. The investigation proves strange indeed, involving six missing midgets, villainous monks, a Scottish castle, the Loch Ness monster, and covert naval experiments. Can the sleuths make sense of all this and solve the mystery? Written by Joel Preuninger


The acting, photography and score are tops (Leonard Maltin) in this lively satirical homage from legendary director Billy Wilder (Sunset Boulevard) and his long-time writing partner I.A.L. Diamond (The Apartment). When a beautiful woman claims that her dear husband has disappeared, the investigation takes Sherlock Holmes (Robert Stephens) and Dr. Watson (Colin Blakely) to Scotland, where to their surprise they uncover a plot involving a clandestine society, Her Majesty s Secret Service... and the Loch Ness Monster! But before he can deduce matters to the elementary, Holmes makes an error that may jeopardize the national safety of Britain... and ruin his reputation! The stellar supporting cast includes Christopher Lee, Genevieve Page, Tamara Toumanova, Clive Revill and Stanley Holloway.


From the maker of The Apartment and Some Like It Hot, a film about Sherlock Holmes might seem a strange project. But Billy Wilder not only gave us the best of the post-Basil Rathbone movies about the Baker Street sleuth, he came close to making his best film ever. He might have succeeded but for the old story of studio interference. By all accounts, the film was originally intended to consist of four interwoven stories. But fears about excessive running time reduced that to two with one of them being more a diversion than a subplot. Even so, what remains is a thoroughly enjoyable experience filled with memorable performances, droll dialogue, atmospheric visuals and a brilliantly evocative musical score.

Miklos Rozsa's music is an integral part of the film. Primarily a reworking of the composer's Violin Concerto, Wilder reportedly loved the music so much that he constructed entire sequences to fit the music, rather than the other way around. And what music it is. The melody for solo violin taken from the concerto's second movement - which might, in another film, be called the "love theme" - is among the best and most beautiful music Rozsa ever wrote and adds immeasurably to the film's style and feel.

Even more important, of course, are the performances by Wilder's carefully assembled cast. As Sherlock Holmes, Robert Stephens is deliciously camp - even his makeup is more theatrical than cinematic. At first, he seems to be overdoing it, but it soon becomes apparent just how perfectly his performance suits - and dictates - the mood of the piece. Hardly a star name - Stephens was primarily a stage actor - it was probably a risk to cast him, but a risk that paid off with fantastic results. You will not forget Robert Stephen's Sherlock Holmes in a hurry.

Not content with a dazzling lead performance, Wilder surrounds Stephens with a solid supporting cast. Colin Blakely is a perfect counterpoint as Watson - more exasperated than bumbling, full of a medical man's common sense. As the woman who comes into Holmes's life, Genevieve Page is even more ravishing than usual, yet always makes the various shifts in her character totally believable. Christopher Lee cuts an imposing figure as Sherlock's smarter brother Mycroft, while the great Irene Handl fusses and sighs effectively as Holmes's landlady Mrs Hudson. Clive Revill provides a comic Russian while Stanley Holloway pops up as a gravedigger (just as he did in Olivier's Hamlet).

The complicated plot, which takes Holmes from London to Loch Ness, not only provides him the opportunity to (possibly) fall in love but also manages to squeeze in Russian ballerinas, German spies, circus dwarfs, trappist monks, Queen Victoria, an early submarine, and a certain Scottish monster. It's a hard film to take seriously but, luckily, Wilder obviously had no intention of being overly serious. Conan Doyle purists will no doubt find much in the film to shake their heads about. But lovers of imaginative and witty films will revel in The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes.


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