In which Holmes and Watson travel to America in search of a single match folder. Watson, meanwhile, wants to know “what’s cooking.” We, on the other hand, are more interested in Indiana Jones.
***
Nick: Well, just as quickly as it began, the “Nazi Trilogy” is coming to an end. So far I think it’s fair to say that the previous two entrees in Universal’s attempts to pit Sherlock Holmes against the Third Reich have been a fairly mixed bag. Would you agree?
Cat: I think that’s a very accurate statement, to be entirely honest.
Nick: Not quite the Indiana Jones-level adventures you at first suspected?
Cat: Well...no. But, out of all of them...this chapter in the Nazi Trilogy felt the most Indiana Jones-y to me? Maybe the missing factor was America.
Nick: Well, to go off on a tangent, I found this picture after a quick Google search and I think it’s an interesting topic worthy of discussion:
Cat: OH MY GOD. NO. I physically cannot do that. That is...NO. That’s the worst kind of ultimatum possible. I mean, wow, is that hard. There are eight things on there I’d want to pick. EIGHT. Nick, this is the worst tangent you could put us on because now this is going to plague my mind. Whatever were you searching for anyway? And, of course, what three things would you pick? (Well...I know it’s more like two because Sherlock Holmes wouldn’t even be a question.)
Nick: I wanted to see if I could find a funny Sherlock Holmes meets Indiana Jones picture to go along with this portion of the review but, surprisingly, nothing exists. Anyway, I don’t find this to be all that difficult because - to be honest - I haven’t seen a majority of the things on this list or they’re not my cup of tea. So, Sherlock Holmes is obvious. And then I’d go with Doctor Who and last but not least Indiana Jones. If I could pick four, I’d also select Batman The Animated Series. Just so you know Catharine, I’ll expect an answer by the end of this post…[Insert evil Vincent Price laughter here]
Cat: Nick, I thought we were friends. I feel so betrayed. (Also, Batman over Star Wars?! I can’t believe you.) ANYWAYS, we have a topic to get back to. One that does not involve totally hypothetical but still morally challenging questions.
Vital Statistics:
Sherlock Holmes in Washington (1943)
Major motion picture
Starring: Basil Rathbone (Sherlock Holmes), Nigel Bruce (Dr. Watson), Marjorie Lord (Nancy Partridge), George Zucco (Richard Stanley)
71 minutes, black-and-white
Thoughts:
Nick: Well...uh...what can I say? This one’s interesting. I’m not even really sure where to start. How about the central idea behind this film’s plot: Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson traveling to the United States in pursuit of a single match folder. That is, in itself, a pretty cool concept.
Cat: Well, I’m glad you think so. When you told me that was the basic premise of the movie, I kinda lost it. Saying it outloud makes me giggle. To be honest, my expectations for what this movie was going to be, just based off that quick summary, were totally met, if not exceeded.
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| Dat hair...and dat microfilm (I'll stop trying to be cool) |
Nick: The idea that the detective duo fly across the Atlantic in search of a single document and end up in Washington D.C. is neat and, for the most part, the plot of this movie is handled pretty well. We get some really neat bits of investigation from Holmes while he’s still in London, there are some rumblings about an evil criminal society at work (*cough* the Nazis *cough*) and then it’s off. In terms of breakneck pacing, this does rather fit the bill.
Cat: I actually really did like the pacing and styling of this movie, and how it didn’t start with Holmes and Watson. You don’t see them for roughly the first ten minutes. I thought that was actually pretty cool. With the opening scene on the train, because Holmes wasn’t there (though I will be the first to admit that I was scrutinizing every character to see if he was there in disguise - I’m going to be overly vigilant about that now), you didn’t really know where it was going. I actually liked that.
Nick: Well, while we’re talking about the plot of this movie it is interesting to think that this movie was the first in the Rathbone/Bruce series (and one of the few of the Universal films overall) which feature no elements whatsoever from an original Arthur Conan Doyle story/novel. Voice of Terror was inspired by the story “His Last Bow” and Secret Weapon featured not only the character of Moriarty but also a plot inspired by “The Dancing Men.” (It’s interesting to note that one of the screenwriters for this film was a man named Bertram Millhauser who, in the early ‘30s, wrote a script for a movie simply entitled Sherlock Holmes. I’ve never seen the thing all the way through - it’s very hard to come by - but it’s generally not well regarded amongst fellow Sherlockian aficionados.)
There are a few elephants in the room which need to be discussed:
Nick: I think it’s fair to say that Nigel Bruce’s Watson doesn’t fare so well in this movie. Is that statement an accurate one?
Cat: When isn’t it? I know I always harp on him, but really. Wow. Not to jump to the end too quickly, but we see him shoot and kill a man on screen and he’s STILL a bumbling idiot! I hate with love, though. He’s still a charming idiot, though an idiot nonetheless. However, he was a bit more idiot here than normal. I didn’t know that seeing Watson as a tourist in America was something that was missing in my life, but it was. If only he had had a straw hat and an ugly Hawaiian shirt, then he’d REALLY look the part. Nick, I’ll leave you the honor: why don’t you tell everyone about what is honestly the greatest Nigel Bruce Watson moment ever?
Nick: Why, thank you...and Watson with a Hawaiian shirt, cargo shorts, and a big camera around his neck is a mental image I really don’t want to think about ever again. Anyway, the GREATEST thing which I think I have ever heard come out of Bruce’s mouth occurs when Holmes and Watson are greeted by the Washington D.C. police after arriving in America. Watson, trying to be as American as possible says to one of the officers: “Hello buddy, what’s cooking.” HONESTLY. HONESTLY, that is the best thing that Bruce’s Watson ever says and I never cease to burst into uncontrollable laughter whenever I watch this movie and hear that line. Nigel Bruce is amazing.
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| Watson, go home |
Cat: Watson also strikes me as the kind of person who would wear socks with sandals...just to further destroy your perceptions of one of your most cherished favorite characters. :) So Nick built up for me that this movie contained his most favorite Nigel Bruce moment in it. I don’t know WHAT I expected to happen, but it wasn’t that. But I was not disappointed in ANY WAY. It was legitimately fantastic. I feel like that moment sums up the tone of the movie (for me, anyway) pretty well: it’s unexpected, but hilariously so!
Nick: Catharine, that is an evil thing to do: I DO NOT want to picture Watson wearing socks and sandals. That is awful. Actually awful. And, you’re absolutely right: This movie is filled with all manner of strange surprises. But, this is the kind of movie which you need to know is really strange before going in. Unlike a lot of the Rathbone/Bruce films you cannot take this one seriously at all. And I guess that’s where the vaguely Indiana Jones-esque vibe comes from. It’s an unashamedly entertaining movie.
Cat: I’m convinced that this wasn’t a drama or a mystery or anything, this was legitimately a straight up comedy. I honestly loved every second of it. Now, we also marathoned all of the Nazi Trilogy in one day, so by this point, I might have been a bit unable to take anything seriously, but I think that only made this movie better.
Nick: I agree. By the time we got around to this, the Mystery Science Theatre 3000 comments were flying left and right and this is honestly the perfect film to watch in that frame of mind. So, let’s talk about one or two of the other things which make this movie just so crazy: Case-in-point, Basil Rathbone impersonating a prissy art collector. OH MY GOODNESS...that scene is wonderful.
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| I want Rathbone to appraise art in every film |
Cat: Yeah, that was pretty freaking amazing. I think my favorite part was Watson casually watching from outside the antique store? Something about him idly sitting by while this happened really amused me. But that whole scene was pretty amazing, and wonderfully out-there.
Nick: And, that whole scene leads up to the confrontation with the villain of the piece: The one, the only George Zucco. Only, Zucco’s up to no good as an agent of the Third Reich and not the Napoleon of Crime. However, just like his earlier turn as Moriarty, Zucco’s great and he really hams it up which is totally in keeping with the over-the-top tone of this movie. I mean, he tries to kill Holmes with a crossbow hidden inside an antique chest! Surely not the most efficient means of killing the great detective, but so out there you can’t help but find the whole scenerio fun. Any scenes that we’re forgetting which really ought to be mentioned?
Cat: There’s not much that I can think of right now, no. That was sort of an odd thing about this movie. I have NO idea if this is going to make any sort of sense, but this movie felt very American. No duh, I know it was in America, so that’s to be expected, but I mean that the writing and pacing felt very American. They didn’t really hold on any one scene for awhile, and I felt like some of the other movies leading up to this point did that much more frequently and that they just flowed in an entirely different way. But that could just me. (I’m never any good at knowing when I’m actually onto something when talking seriously about films or if I’m just reading too deeply into things. And again, this was the third movie in a row and I had eaten way too many Swedish Fish by this point - so it’s highly likely that I’m not making any sense here.)
Nick: That does make a lot of sense. This movie feels very different from both Voice and Terror and Secret Weapon. It feels sleeker and faster moving - almost as if it were a serial from the same period. There are even scenes which could be cliffhangers leading into the next installment. I’m personally not a big fan of this style so the subsequent films in the Universal series which are far closer in tone to the previous entries are rather more up my alley.
Perhaps this is a tangent...perhaps it’s a conspiracy theory...perhaps it’s neither, but Cat has stumbled into something which links Sherlock Holmes in Washington to a film franchise which we’ve been discussing multiple times throughout this post:
Nick: For the purposes of this post you’re the Indiana Jones expert Cat, so...the stage is yours.
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| What if the Baz played Indiana Jones? (Credit to: Lisa Halverson and found on basilrathbone.net) |
Cat: Alright. Everyone, prepare to have your minds BLOWN. This movie could in fact be an inspiration for Indiana Jones. Or the result of time-traveling and a crossover. Or some third, equally implausible option that links everyone’s favorite adventurer/archaeologist to everyone’s favorite consulting detective. Let’s review the facts.
- They’re both fighting Nazis. An obvious observation, but an important one nonetheless. Whereas Indy literally beats the crap out of the Third Reich, Holmes is a bit less physical.
- The art collector scene. Much like the scene in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, both heroes pose as fancy-schmancy art people in order to sneak into the bad guy’s hideout. It is hilarious in both scenarios. (And yes, this does theoretically make Watson the equivalent of Elsa - the “lovely assistant”)
- Nancy Partridge’s party pass around. In the scene leading up to Nancy Partridge’s kidnapping (a character/plot point we didn’t really mention much about), she’s in the middle of a party celebrating her engagement. Little does she know, but she has been slipped the elusive matchbook and unwittingly passes around the important little object. It passes hands of seemingly EVERYONE at this party in a very frustrating exchange where you want to pick the thing up before someone else touches it. What is this like? The scene in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom where Willie and Indy are both trying to find and secure something in a huge crowd (a diamond and antidote, respectively).
- The aforementioned antique chest of death. You wouldn’t think that Sherlock Holmes and Indiana Jones have death traps in common, but they do. In Last Crusade, Indiana has to avoid decapitation from god-knows-how-old saw blades in the Temple of the Grail. Here, Holmes is faced with an antique chest with an oddly specific purpose. They both outsmart the device and keep their heads. (Literally and figuratively). Weird, but true. And, finally….
- Both heroes have bizarre names. At least Indiana Jones has an excuse, but really, what kind of name is Sherlock anyway? Mr. and Mrs. Holmes (and ACD) had a very strange book of baby names….
Nick: I’d also like to add that both characters wear very cool hats….but I digress. Anyhow, I don’t think the similarities are coincidences. Steven Spielberg and George Lucas admitted that Indiana Jones is based off of characters from the serials of the 1930s and ‘40s and as we both said, there is something decidedly serial-like about Sherlock Holmes in Washington. And, if you thought that is movie is like an Indiana Jones film...well...wait until until we get to another film down the line. The similarities are even more obvious.
It’s time for Final Thoughts:
Nick: This one is a hard one to talk about. It’s hard to take it seriously and it’s way over-the-top in places but it is entertaining. Watson, I think,is at his loveable, buffoonish best and Rathbone’s Holmes is great too. His scenes with Zucco’s villain are scintillating. I honestly cannot think of that much to say about this one that we haven’t covered already. It’s a fun, entertaining way to end something as crazy as “The Nazi Trilogy” but it really isn’t much more than that. And you Cat?
Cat: I think that I enjoyed this way more than I should have. Now, I have no idea if I would enjoy it as much without someone to make ridiculous comments with, but this was definitely as off-kilter and over-the-top as I could have hoped it would have been. I didn’t expect to actually find this as amusing as I did. Because it certainly isn’t anything super amazing, but it’s so freaking hysterical that you don’t mind at all. (Holmes praising America at the end was the figurative cherry on top of the fantastically crazy sundae for me.)
Nick: So, what would your official deerstalker rating be then?
Cat: Mine is a 3 out of 5. It’s hilarious and fun, but extremely difficult to take seriously. Not exactly good, but certainly not bad. And you, Nick?
Nick: The same. My sentiments mirror yours exactly.
There is one piece of unfinished business left:
Nick: You’re only allowed to pick three series. I’m going to be completely evil and ask you once more what they’ll be…
Cat: Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Doctor Who. I hate you. (My loophole? One of my other best friends would pick Lord of the Rings, Star Trek, and Sherlock Holmes. ;) Much like Captain James T. Kirk, I don’t believe in no-win scenarios.)
Nick: How very clever Catharine. I promise I won’t ask you anymore impossible questions.
Nick’s fingers are crossed behind his back…
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| Nick's Rating |
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| Catharine's Rating |
Next Time: Ghosts, ravens, and chessboards
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