"Best Sherlock Holmes" Topic

Who has done the best role of Sherlock Holmes on film or stage?

A. William Gillette. The American actor manager and playwrights portrayed Holmes on the stage and in a silent film. It is Gillette who was the first actor to wear the famous deerstalker hat, and he smoke a curved calabash pipe (which he substituted for the straight one that Holmes smoked in the stories).

B. Robert Downey Jr. His Holmes is not everyone's cup of tea. But the gritty and steampunkish films are a interesting reinterpretation.

C. Christopher Plummer: The most emotional Sherlock portrayal belongs to Christopher Plummer, who played the detective in the 1977 film Silver Blaze and the 1979 film Murder by Decree. If you have ever wanted to see a more human Holmes, who sheds a tear or two, and actually seems to care about the people involved in the cases he's solving, Plummer's atypical yet intriguing performance is not to be missed.

D. Peter Cushing: Cushing's Sherlock is a powerful and important addition to the cannon. The actor first played Sherlock in the 1959 film The Hound of the Baskervilles. He went on to portray the detective in the 1968 BBC series Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, replacing Douglas Wilmer. Cushing's high cheekbones and gaunt appearance were uniquely Sherlock-ian, and, per Screen Rant, he played on the character's "arrogance and impulse" in his memorable performance.

E. Basil Rathbone: The quintessential Sherlock Hilmes. The Sherlock that immediately comes to mind when one pictures the famous detective. Rathbone made 14 Sherlock Holmes movies, starting with The Hound of the Baskervilles in 1939. His famous, pipe-smoking silhouette immediately conjures the character. In many ways, Rathbone set the Sherlock portrayal precedent for all who followed.

F. Benedict Cumberbatch: The Sherlock Holmes for the 21st century. This Sherlock uses modern technology as well as traditional deductive reasoning. His excellent rapport with Watson, played by Martin Freeman, has launched this Sherlock portrayal into the realm of the iconic.

G. Jeremy Brett: The incredible Jeremy Brett is considered by many to have given the best Sherlock Holmes portrayal to date. Brett's obsessive method acting allowed him to embody the character of Sherlock Holmes with a degree of skill and nuance that most agree simply cannot be topped. Brett, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, was also personally familiar with some of the mania present in Sherlock's character, lending his portrayal extra resonance.

H. Other (add your own suggestion here)

Basil Rathbone

Michael Caine in "Without a Clue"

Second Michael Caine in "Without a Clue"!

Basil

Basil

Any of them except the Robert Downey movies. Nothing against him as an actor; those movies just sucked. They portrayed Holmes completely wrong. Holmes is not an "action" hero, but a thinker. He's one of those rare heros who completely relies on his brains.

Basil and yes, USAFpilot, whoever Downey was playing, it wasn't Sherlock Holmes.

I believe Jeremy Brett was best.

Jeremy Brett

+ 1 Jeremy Brett

Jeremy Brett

Jeremy Brett.

I'm not surprised to that Johnny Lee Miller did not make the list.

Rathbone with Brett a close second. But let me also mention the years of Rathbone Holmes radio drama--neither film nor stage, I'll grant you. But when I read Conan Doyle, It's Rathbone's voice I hear. Right behind him there is Clive Merrison. Almost all the canonical Holmes was done by one or the other, and often both.

And you can listen to radio drama while you paint castings.

I loved the Basil versions when I first saw them, let's just say it many years ago.
I'm going to have to try and find the radio dramas.

Gene Wilder

J. Brett.

Jeremy

Basil Rathbone! All others are merely second rate pretenders!

Brett

H. If you've never seen it, the Soviet TV series "The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes And Dr. Watson" (1981) is worth a viewing.

link

Perhaps not "the best" portrayal, but still a lot of fun.

Rathbone

#1 Jeremy Brett is Sherlock Holmes.

#2 Ian McKellen is a distant second.

Basil was good in his time. His Holmes looks comical and over the top now.

"It is Jeremy Brett, though, that makes this Doyle adaptation really shine. His Holmes is so vibrant–he's got the dramatic flair, the tenacity, the attitude, the gravitas, even the odd moment of sentimentality that a lot of other adaptations miss. Indeed, according to David Burke, Brett carried a volume of collected Sherlock Holmes everywhere on set, and made sure everyone around him was dressed correctly and remained as true to the text as they could (in the nicest way possible, said Burke)."

link

Jeremy Brett's second co-star Edward Hardwicke was the best Doctor Watson. He was intelligent, witty and the perfect English gentleman. A stand alone character in his own right.

I can't find it but I am pretty sure we did this pole before.

Jeremy Brett without question for me. He embodied my conception of Holmes.

Vasily Livanov. He received "The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire" for this role.

Jeremy Brett

Jeremy Brett for his look and portrayal and the series production. I enjoyed the early Cumberbatch series, but the last was poor. Rathbone is too much of a caricature for me.

Basil Rathbone

I grew up watching reruns of the Rathbone movies, so always had a soft spot for them. However, it wasn't until I read the books that I realised how accurate Jeremy Brett was. That said, I enjoy Sherlock and Elementary.

Definitely Jeremy Brett

LT

Will always have a soft spot for Basil although I realize Brett did a more accurate portrayal.

Okay, who besides me has even seen William Gillette's Sherlock Holmes?

And since Gillette was included, throw in John Barrymore and Clive Brook who both did passable efforts.

Basil Rathbone

You forgot John Neville

Basil of course … "It's elementary!" …

Jeremy Brett

Basil Rathbone and Jeremy Brett in a dead heat followed by Benedict Cumberbatch.

The 1916 William Gillette film

link

Gotta be Brett

Cumberbatch version is my favorite, although Rathbone is iconic.

But I seem to recall the stories are a lot more action than studied thought, despite the general perception.

Basil. However, I must say that with suspension of disbelief I have really enjoyed the Downy version

Brett with Rathbone a close second. Another favorite of mine is Robert Stephens in the "Private Life of Sherlock Holmes" in which he takes on the Loch Ness monster and Imperial Germany.

Cumberbatch

Basil Rathbone.

It's been a long time since I watched any of the classic Holmes portrayals, and indeed, I don't know whether it was Brett or Rathbone or both I've seen (we're talking childhood, when the actor mattered little to me).
I have thoroughly enjoyed Cumberbatch's modern take (though the latter series were indeed a poor muddle).
And despite expecting to despise it, I wound up very much liking Downey's versions, though it certainly departs very much from the personality of Holmes. (I will quibble that Holmes is not an action hero; in fact, he is a master of both boxing and baritsu, and knows both how to shoot and how to use a sword. Though yes, he rarely does either, but it wasn't that much of a stretch for the movies to "step it up," given the stories in each involved extreme circumstances.)

But I will withhold my vote until I renew my acquaintance with the more classic portrayals!

Downey's versions do have the best music soundtrack, though… ;-)

Bendydick Comfypatch

How about the bloke from "The Seven-Percent Solution"?

Also good. I like Johnny Lee Miller as well.

I can't take Rathbone due to the hideous way those movies treat Watson.