Sherlock Holmes: Comparing the Books to the Movies

Hi!

Last year, I read both volumes of The Complete Sherlock Holmes, written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I really enjoyed the books, so I was a little disappointed when I had finished reading the series. But over the summer, I found some movies of the book from the 1940s, where Basil Rathbone plays Sherlock Holmes. In this blog post, I will highlight some key similarities and differences between the book and the movie. (This post also contains some spoilers). 

First, I want to note how the Sherlock Holmes series, though originally written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, has been interpreted many times, so you can find many different versions of similar stories. As a result, there are many different movies for Sherlock Holmes. I will just be focusing on the films starring Basil Rathbone. 

The Complete Sherlock Holmes contains many different mysteries. These mysteries all have different plots. Some are missing person cases, some are murder mysteries, and others revolve around jewel robberies. There are just a few examples, and there are even more unique ones like: The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist, The Adventure of the Three Students, The Adventure of the Engineer’s Thumb, and The Pearl of Death. (The first two are from volume 1, the third is from volume 2, and the last one is a movie). In these mysteries, you will meet different characters. These people are usually Sherlock Holmes’ clients; they come to Sherlock Holmes with problems that the official police force can't solve. You will also meet many antagonists, people who are either responsible for the crime or just try to ruin Sherlock Holmes’ work. 

And of course, there is the main character, Sherlock Holmes. He is a private agent who usually works independent of the police (called Scotland Yard). In the book, he interacts with characters like Inspector Gregson, Inspector Lestrade, and Inspector MacDonald, all part of Scotland Yard. Sherlock Holmes is probably most well-known for his brilliant mind and skills of deduction. He can make really quick observations, and deduce accurate conclusions from that, all in a short amount of time. This is what makes him the best to fight crime. Sherlock Holmes also has a friend called Dr. Watson, who helps the famous detective in his work. In the story, Dr. Watson chronicles Sherlock Holmes' adventures, sometimes publishing them in the newspaper. 

[SPOILER]

The Complete Sherlock Holmes and the Sherlock Holmes movies are similar in these three ways: 1) The personality of Sherlock Holmes 2) The presence of Professor Moriarty and 3) Sherlock Holmes’ relationship with Scotland Yard. The differences lie in 1) The death of Professor Moriarty 2) The portrayal of Dr. Watson and 3) The specific plot of the mysteries. The next couple of paragraphs will explore these similarities and differences in more detail. 

From page one of volume 1, one can immediately recognize the brilliance of Sherlock Holmes’ mind. The very first story describes how Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson meet. Dr. Watson is an army doctor stationed in Afghanistan. He later comes to London when he gets injured in a war. He doesn’t have a lot of money, and a friend recommends that he go to Sherlock Holmes, who he is looking for a roommate to share rent with. Dr. Watson meets Sherlock Holmes in a chemical lab, while Holmes is doing some work. Before Dr. Watson even introduces himself, Holmes deduces that he came from Afghanistan. Dr. Watson is shocked. But as always, Sherlock Holmes, for the sake of a dramatic effect, doesn’t explain the process of his deduction to Watson (who is not used to Holmes’ quick observations). Instead, Holmes just starts talking about hemoglobin and its uses in medicine. This strange introduction finds Watson meeting up with Holmes in 221 B Baker Street, where all the adventures begin. During the very first days of living together, Watson notes the mental strengths and weaknesses of Holmes, trying to categorize the intellect of the detective. Watson is amazed at one peculiar habit. Sherlock Holmes often goes on walks, and naturally gets mud stains on his clothes. He is able to tell the difference between different types of mud, and can even tell which part of London they came from. 

[SPOILER]

These amazing talents are also present in the movies. In the beginning of an investigation, Sherlock Holmes seems to be going after false leads and asking about pointless information, but in the end, he finds the most shocking (and unnervingly accurate) solutions to the most unusual cases. For instance, in the movie Dressed to Kill, an old man by the nickname of Stinky visits Sherlock Holmes. He shows the detective a bruise he received from catching a thief in his house. The thief steals a simple wooden music box (Stinky is a collector of music boxes), knocks out Stinky, and then leaves. Although the police dismiss the case as a petty robbery, Sherlock Holmes is not so sure. He wonders why the thief would want to steal such a small wooden box when there were much more elaborate and expensive music boxes in Stinky’s collection. He warns Stinky to be careful. But Stinky, like the police, doesn’t take Holmes seriously. This costs the man his life. Sherlock Holmes immediately launches an investigation. Not only is Stinky dead, but another music box is stolen. This music box is, again, very simple and inexpensive. Sherlock Holmes is sure that there is some hidden message in these simple music boxes. He is right. The thief stole the first one, thinking it had the message, but came back for the second one, which had the actual code. Using his ear for music (being a violinist), Sherlock Holmes finds that the notes of the tune contain a secret message. Specifically, the position of the note on the keyboard corresponds to a letter of the alphabet. So, if the tune had the note E, the message would contain the letter C, since E is the 3rd key of the piano and C is the 3rd letter of the alphabet. Sherlock Holmes cracked this complicated code in one night (with a little help from Dr. Watson).  

In both the movie and the book, Sherlock Holmes refuses to receive credit for his work. Even when Scotland Yard is struggling and Sherlock Holmes is the one who finds the culprit, even when his deductions are so impressive, he still allows for, even suggests, that the police take all the credit. Sherlock Holmes even insists that Dr. Watson stopped publishing his successes, for the very same reason: He doesn’t want to solve cases for fame and adoration, but just for the fun of his work. I think it might be because Sherlock Holmes doesn’t want his enemies (like Professor Moriarty) to hear about him. 

[SPOILER]

Speaking of Professor Moriarty, this is one of the greatest antagonists in the story. He is a mathematical professor who tries to defeat Sherlock Holmes multiple times. One key difference between the movie and the book is found in the death of Professor Moriarty; in the movie, he stages a fake death and then reappears multiple times, while in the book, he dies and then remains dead. In both the movie and the book, Holmes is clear in his intentions to make the professor face justice. “...if I could beat that man, if I could free society of him, I should feel that my own career had reached its summit…”. This is what Sherlock Holmes says in The Final Problem, a story in Volume 2. This quote shows how focused Holmes is on solving crime. 

As previously mentioned, Sherlock Holmes always lets Scotland Yard get the credit. This does not mean that Sherlock Holmes respects the police force. Oftentimes, he teases and taunts them by keeping Scotland Yard on its toes. Whenever he discovers a lead in the case (which is almost always correct), he doesn’t tell Scotland Yard his findings or how he got to them until the last possible minute. Even then, he describes his deductions as mysteriously as possible, using vague words and lengthy explanations. This of course irritates multiple Inspectors. In the Terror by Night, Sherlock Holmes and Inspector Lestrade are searching for a missing jewel on the train. Sherlock Holmes suspects the work of Colonel Sebastian Moran, a friend of Professor Moriatry and an enemy to Sherlock Holmes. Holmes goes on to talk about the greatness of the notorious professor. Inspector Lestrade then says, “Very pretty, Mr. Holmes. What’s all that got to do with all this?” This quote comes from a movie, and the words, along with the Inspector’s tone of voice, shows how Scotland Yard inspectors disapprove of Sherlock Holmes’ deduction methods. As a result, the interactions between the private agent and the official police force are a little chilly. However, they need his help on many puzzling cases, so they still maintain a somewhat friendly relationship with Holmes. 

Another difference between the book and the movie is the personality of Dr. Watson. In the book, Dr. Watson is depicted as an intelligent colleague, who appreciates Holmes’ work and provides clever insight now and then. In the movie, the character of Dr. Watson adds more humor to the mystery. He is not exactly depicted as naive, but he seems to be more clueless than the book version. In both the movie and the book, Dr. Watson often uses his medical expertise to assist Holmes. 

Finally, the main difference between the movie and the book is in the plot. Similar to how the book contains many different stories for each mystery, there are many different films for each mystery. They have similar plots, but slightly different details. For example, in the movie The Pearl of Death, Sherlock Holmes is up against Giles Conover, a criminal mastermind who appears nowhere in the books. Holmes says “If I could free society of this sinister creature, I should feel that my own career had reached its summit.” This is very similar to what Holmes said about Professor Moriarty in the books. Such minor variations between characters is an example of how the movie alters some of the book’s stories. 

Even though they both have their differences, the books are as fun to read as the movies are to watch. The movie is old, but it’s not boring. It is filled with action and drama, as Sherlock Holmes hunts after missing jewels or foils the devious plots by his enemies. The book version might be difficult to understand, as The Complete Sherlock Holmes is not written in the kind of English we use in our daily lives. But by reading volumes 1 and 2, you can travel the busy streets of London and solve mysteries alongside the great detective. Whether you choose to read The Complete Sherlock Holmes or watch the Basil Rathbone films (or other such translations), the suspense, drama, police chases, and dark humor will prove to be a great way to pass the time!