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SCREENED AT THE 2015 SAN FRANCISCO Silent FILM FESTIVAL: Last October's announcement that a complete nitrate negative of a Sherlock Holmes film starring William Gillette made in 1916 had been found in the Cinemathèque Française may not have had quite the same impact on the film world as, say, a similar announcement about Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" a few years prior, but it's still a big deal to film-lovers in general. For fans of the character, it's mind-blowing; many pieces of imagery associated with Holmes have always been said to come as much from Gillette's much-revived 1899 play as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's original stories, but for many decades, we've had to take the scholars' word for it. Now it can be up on the screen in tinted black-and-white for the first time in nearly a century, and generations of fans should be pleased.

It follows the stage production closely, introducing Alice Faulkner (Marjorie Kay), whose sister has recently died leaving her in possession of correspondence that could undermine the Grand Duke of a small European country, and when she refuses to hand it over, a pair of nearby grifters (Mario Majeroni & Grace Reals) see an opportunity. Once they hear that the government has hired Sherlock Holmes (Gillette) to retrieve the letters, they join forces with James Moriarty (Ernest Maupain), a master criminal intent on both blackmailing the Duke and having his revenge on Holmes.

It is an inestimable loss to pop-culture history that the first American feature-length film based on Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes is no longer in existence. Particularly frustrating is the fact that 1916's Sherlock Holmes was a literal adaptation of William Gillette's famous stage play, with Gillette himself in the leading role. Departing somewhat from the Doyle "canon," the film (like the play) ends with Holmes marrying heroine Alice Faulkner (here inexplicably rechristened Mary Faulkner) after rescuing her from a complicated conspiracy to rob her of important diplomatic papers. Undoubtedly the highlight of the film was Holmes' confrontation with arch-villain Professor Moriarty (Ernest Maupin), a sequence that never fails to induce loud and sustained applause when presented on stage. Produced by Essanay, Sherlock Holmes was remade by Goldwyn in 1922, with John Barrymore as the Great Detective; fortunately, the Barrymore version has been preserved more or less intact, thanks to the diligence of movie historian Kevin Brownlow.

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As usual Flicker Alley add significant value with interesting and extensive supplements. From Lost to Found: Restoring William Gillette's Sherlock Holmes is 24-minutes long presented by film restorer Robert Byrne at the 2015 San Francisco Silent Film Festival explaining and detailing the process to bring Sherlock Holmes to it's restored condition. Sherlock Holmes Baffled is a very short clip made in 1900 - courtesy of the Library of Congress and presented in HD, this is the earliest known film to feature the character of Sherlock Holmes. A Canine Sherlock was made in 1912 and runs 15-minutes. It is from the EYE Film Institute, and the film stars Spot the Dog as the titular character. Più forte che Sherlock Holmes runs 6.5 minutes and is from 1913 - also from the EYE Film Institute; this entertaining Italian trick-film owes as much to Méliès as it does Doyle. Included are HD transfers from the Fox Movietone Collection of an Interview with Arthur Conan Doyle and outtakes from a 1930 newsreel with William Gillette showing off his amateur railroad entitled Sherlock Holmes Turns Engineer. There is a 'Promotional Photograph Gallery' with 6 images and a 'Lobby cards and Flyer Gallery' with 10 images. From the root of the disc(s), via a PC, you can access a PDF typescript of the 1899 Sherlock Holmes play by William Gillette and a PDF of the original contract between William Gillette and the Essanay Film Manufacturing Company. The package contains a 20-page booklet featuring images from the film and information about the restoration project and two DVDs of the feature presentation + extras.

BOTTOM LINE:
Wonderful. I thoroughly enjoyed this 4-epsiode Sherlock Holmes on Blu-ray. Doyle fans will appreciate the authenticity and Silent Era aficionados will be right in their element. There really is nothing like turning down the lights and turning on the time machine to settle in and watch as others did a century ago. My goodness! What a triumph for Flicker Alley! I was getting very anxious to see each subsequent part! We give this a VERY strong recommendation! 

Gary Tooze

November 6th, 2015

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