"The House of Fear" is a highly enjoyable entry into the Sherlock Holmes series. It stars Basil Rathbone, Nigel Bruce, Paul Cavanagh and Dennis Hoey. Sherlock and Watson go to Scotland to investigate the murders of members of the "Good Comrades Club" - before they die, they receive an envelope containing orange pips (seeds); shortly afterward, they are brutally murdered beyond recognition.
There is a Sherlock Holmes story called "The Five Orange Pips," but this is only very loosely the Conan Doyle plot. Nevertheless, it has all the great mystery elements - a large, old dark house, rainstorms and things that go bump in the night.
One of the faults of this series was the casting of Nigel Bruce who was then directed to act like an idiot. Also, some of the scripts have Holmes being very condescending toward Watson or making fun of him. In "The House of Fear," neither of these things occur, at least as broadly. Holmes seems not only genuinely concerned about his friend but very fond of him as well.
Rathbone is one of the best actors to play Holmes and looks the part - for the most part, the whole series is enjoyable, and this one is a cut above average.
There is a Sherlock Holmes story called "The Five Orange Pips," but this is only very loosely the Conan Doyle plot. Nevertheless, it has all the great mystery elements - a large, old dark house, rainstorms and things that go bump in the night.
One of the faults of this series was the casting of Nigel Bruce who was then directed to act like an idiot. Also, some of the scripts have Holmes being very condescending toward Watson or making fun of him. In "The House of Fear," neither of these things occur, at least as broadly. Holmes seems not only genuinely concerned about his friend but very fond of him as well.
Rathbone is one of the best actors to play Holmes and looks the part - for the most part, the whole series is enjoyable, and this one is a cut above average.