A unique take on the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle sleuth, Billy Wilder and longtime co-writer/producer I.A.L. Diamond, take the viewer inside the reclusive world of the enigmatic detective, or as the title suggests, The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes.
Released in 1970, it was originally intended to be a three hour Road Show epic (with intermission in the middle), featuring three shorter vignettes and one larger narrative driving the story forward – sadly, the final product found only the main portion as well as one mini-segment (United Artists having a run of flops in 1969, they felt the best way to market the film was to cut it back to its present two hour, five minute runtime – Wilder’s thoughts upon seeing it, “when I came back [from Paris], it was an absolute disaster, the way it was cut. The whole prologue was cut, a half-sequence was cut. I had tears in my eyes as I looked at the thing. It was the most elegant picture I’ve ever shot.”).
An adventure crime film with that classic Wilder comedic touch, the tale begins with the opening of a long locked trunk from one Dr. Watson (Colin Blakely), instructions having been left that it only be opened fifty years after his death. Why? Well, the records found within were so controversial that he felt that they should be buried until long after the famed detective’s demise.
A quasi-parody, the film really has two Sherlock Holmes, the real detective (Robert Stephens) and Watson’s published take on the man (found in The Strand magazine) – something his longtime roommate often rails against. Annoyed that Watson has exaggerated his stature and expertise (he is not six foot four, merely one inch above six foot, while his sidekick has also added artistic license to his skill on the violin), they are like a bickering old couple, knowing each other so well that they can tinker and prod, quickly getting a rise out of the other (but, as always, Watson is usually on the losing end).
The introductory vignette finds the bored, misogynistic detective (who, when unchallenged, turns to cocaine to give him a boost) going to the opera at the behest of his best friend, a potential case from the manager has piqued the interest of the doctor. The performance is “Swan Lake”, the star, the famed Madame Petrova (Tamara Toumanova), a woman who has a rather unorthodox ‘job’ for the genius that is Sherlock Holmes. . . scrambling out of the less than satisfying case (at least mentally), he leaves Watson the butt of the joke – you will get it when you see it.
The real case comes when a woman, Gabrielle Valladon (Geneviève Page), whacked over the head and thrown into the Thames (now suffering from a form of amnesia), is rescued by a cabbie and transported to 221B Baker Street (the address is found on her person) – a perplexing midnight quandary appearing on the doorstep for the blasé mastermind.
Soon called to meet his very powerful brother Mycroft (Christopher Lee – the only actor to play both Holmes brothers on the silver screen), he warns Sherlock that he should not pursue it. Defying his brother, the perplexing clues lead Sherlock, Dr. Watson and Valladon to Inverness, Scotland (the home of Loch Ness) – something foul is clearly afoot, but what lies in the green hills, the foggy valleys, the ancient castles, and at the depths of the mysterious lake?
Demonstrating a side of Sherlock Holmes that is not often seen, he is more human here than ever before – making blunders, building a connection with a female that may go beyond a simple brain-bond, and other sly insinuations – one thing is clear, flawless he is not.
With solid performances, a quality score by Miklós Rózsa (reworked from his 1956 Violin Concerto), and all-round competent film making, The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes may not be the gem Wilder had originally shot, but it is still an amusingly intriguing take on one of literature’s most famous characters (and a major influence on Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss’ critically acclaimed series Sherlock). A final anecdote worth noting, as Wilder and Lee strolled around Loch Ness one evening (the film was shot at some amazing locations), the bats swirling around their heads. . . the director dryly said, “you must feel quite at home here”, – a wonderful reference to Lee having played Dracula so very many times. To conclude this one, I think there is no better way than to paraphrase how the American poster described it: this film is anything but elementary.