Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

Sherlock Holmes (Basil Rathbone) and Dr Watson (Nigel Bruce) investigate the myth of the supernatural hound of the Baskervilles. Sir Henry Baskerville (Richard Greene) returns home to take up residence in the family estate on the moors of western England. Unfortunately a beast is set upon killing Sir Henry. It's up to Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watsons to deduce who or what is trying to commit this murder most foul, and to prevent it. This was the first time Rathbone and Watson had performed together as the detective duo, for me they are the go-to icons of the roles, and here they are brilliant. This isn't the typical bumbling portrayal of Dr Watson, this is something that the studios and Nigel Bruce evolved over time. Rathbone is as charming and engaging as ever, suave and solid as a lead. The film is only about 80 mins long and has a nicely enjoyable pace to it. There have been lots of versions of this Sir Athur Conan Doyle story, this for me is the best. The setting delivers an eerie atmosphere and is tastefully done, despite being shot in Hollywood. A great black and white film from the 1930's that never fails to fill a lazy Sunday afternoon with fun and nostalgia.

This is my favourite of all the Sherlock Holmes tales and this is an excellent film version of it. It pairs the superb partnership of Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, surely the best ever Holmes and Dr Watson. Here they investigate reports of a beast roaming the estate of a rich heir. The setting is suitably atmospheric with the fog shrouded set of the moors evoking a real sense of menace. The tale twists and turns with various suspects thrown into the mix. It's a relatively fast paced film and always entertaining with a number of expertly filmed scenes especially the one with the hound. If you only ever watch one Sherlock Holmes film then this is the one to watch.

The first Sherlock Holmes movie starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce is one of the most impressive things ever put on screen. It turns out that this was also the first Sherlock Holmes movie set in the Victorian era, as previous cinematic adaptations - even a series starring Arthur Wontner made a few years before this one - had updated the setting to later eras.The moors are as much of a character as any of the people (or the hound). The eerie, foggy environs are the perfect place for a mystery. I understand that the Sherlock Holmes books helped revolutionize criminology, due to Holmes's methods of solving the cases. I haven't read any of the books, although I've seen "Young Sherlock Holmes" and the recent movies starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law. There's no doubt that "The Hound of the Baskervilles" has held up very well over the years. I hope to see the rest of the Rathbone-Bruce series.So how about regaling us with the violin?

"The Hound of the Baskervilles", arguably the most famous of all of Sherlock Holmes' cases, was filmed in 1939 - not for the first time, of course (there had already been at least five tries, most notably in 1932 with Robert Rendel), but probably in the most impressive way possible. And it was the first time that Basil Rathbone portrayed the world-famous sleuth from Baker Street - the beginning of a very successful, and very high-class film serial produced by 20th Century-Fox that would comprise all in all 15 movies over the next eight years.And Rathbone certainly was an ideal choice for the role, both physically and regarding his (on-screen) image: very British, and slightly haughty, but still with a sense of humor - only most of the time at the expense of his friend and assistant, amiable Dr. Watson, who was wonderfully played by Nigel Bruce. In fact, many Sherlock Holmes fans regard Rathbone as THE personification of Holmes (only we mustn't forget Arthur Wontner, who had also played Holmes in five movies, and was at LEAST as close to Conan Doyle's original character, if not even a little bit more...).Actually, the whole cast is superb: idyllically handsome young Richard Greene as Sir Henry Baskerville, the heir of the huge estate of the Baskervilles, whose father has died under mysterious circumstances in the moor recently, Lionel Atwill as the strange Dr. Mortimer, Wendy Barrie as beautiful Beryl, Morton Lowry as her young step-brother... And no less superb is the direction: foggy Dartmoor probably had never been photographed in such a uniquely creepy way before, providing a perfect background for the murderous ongoings that revolve around the old legend of a horrible hound that scares or bites people to death... But Sherlock Holmes, of course, has got another, much more reasonable theory! The whole film is immensely suspenseful (with England around 1900 being marvelously recreated in every detail), but especially the dramatic climax in the end is REALLY made for strong nerves - a real, thrilling, classic MUST for every fan of the crime genre!