Change Your Image
jmacleve
Reviews
Centennial (1978)
Incredibly well done ...
I remember that my sister and I had to watch this for school when it was originally on network television; I don't remember being impressed by it, but that's what being young can do for you.
My husband and I have been watching it recently, on loan from the library, and I am so moved by it. Episode 5 ("The Massacre") is especially powerful ... seeing Lost Eagle come out of his tipi and stand crying as his people are massacred ... the deaths of the Pasquinel brothers -- and Clay Basket. I never wanted to hurt anyone in my life, but I would make an exception for "Colonel" Skimmerhorn.
A truly well-done body of work with powerful performances.
The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)
Entertaining, yes -- but I can't believe anyone thinks this is the best Doyle adaptation
This movie owes a great deal more to Hammer than to Doyle -- the whole "Stapleton" subplot is completely changed, Dr. Mortimer is suddenly become an enemy instead of a friend and there's this whole sacrifice thing going on (not to mention the tin mine) which has no part of Doyle's book. Oh, and Sir Henry is supposed to be from America(!), not Johannesburg (a tip of the hat to Basil Rathbone's heritage?).
If you want to see both fidelity to Doyle and a good movie, the Jeremy Brett/Edward Hardwicke version blows this out of the water. Even the Rathbone/Bruce version is better.
If you just want to see a Hammer film and are willing to forget there ever was a book called "Hound of the Baskervilles", then this will do just fine.