The Sherlock Holmes Collection (2001)
Artisan Entertainment
Cast: Matt Frewer, Kenneth Welsh
Extras:
Rating:

Every time some Sherlock Holmes movie ends up on my desk I’m getting excited, and when Artisan home Entertainment’s ’The Sherlock Holmes Collection’ showed, up it was no exception. Coming as a 2-disc set, the collection contains four of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s best-known Holmes adventures, ’The hound of the Baskervilles, ’ The Sign of Four,’ ’The Case of the Whitechapel Vampire,’ and ’The Royal Scandal.’

Once again these Hallmark TV productions excel in their quality with a great cast, atmospheric production and very well directed films, with Matt Frewer as Holmes and Kenneth Welsh as Dr. Watson. While some adaptations, like ’The Royal Scandal’ are not exactly faithful to the original story, still these films manage to entertain and create a great sense of suspense, mystery and lies.

Artisan is bringing these films to DVD in their original fullframe aspect ratio in transfers that are very clean and clear. Grain is at a minimum and the productions color reproduction is faithful at all times with natural skin tones and vibrant sets. Contrast is good as well, creating deep blacks and balanced highlights that never bloom. The compression has been handled nicely, leaving all image details intact and making sure no artifacts emerge.

The audio on all parts is presented as a Dolby Surround track. Well produced with good surround usage, the track is very nicely complementing the images. Dialogues are well integrated and never drowned out and the music has also been given a good placement in the sound field to ensure maximum effect. No extras are included on the release.

For under $20, this DVD set is a great buy that fans of Sherlock Holmes don’t want to miss out on. You’ll get four feature length adaptations of Holmes mysteries, presented with high production values and great images.