“A Study in Terror”的意思、由来-开放百科全书

A Study in Terror is a 1965 British thriller film directed by James Hill and starring John Neville as Sherlock Holmes and Donald Houston as Dr. Watson. It was filmed at Shepperton Studios, London, with some location work at Osterley House in Middlesex.

The film had its world premiere at the Leicester Square Theatre in the West End of London on 4 November 1965.^[2] A Study in Terror presents the first film appearance of Mycroft Holmes.^[3]

Plot

Although it is based on Conan Doyle's characters, the story is an original one, which has the famous detective on the trail of Jack the Ripper. In the dark alleys of nineteenth century London, the notorious Jack the Ripper committed a series of gruesome murders. The story of A Study in Terror challenges Sherlock Holmes to solve these horrific crimes. This leads Holmes through a trail of aristocracy, blackmail and family insanity. Unlike Scotland Yard, and the real-life story, Holmes eventually discovers the identity of the Ripper.

Holmes and Watson, already intrigued by reports of the Jack the Ripper murders, become involved when they receive a parcel from Whitechapel containing a case of surgical instruments with the scalpel, possibly the murder weapon, missing. By a family crest on the box, they come into contact with the Duke of Shires who admits his elder son Michael Osborne dreamed of becoming a doctor. His younger son, Lord Carfax, tells them Michael has disappeared. Holmes deduces the instruments were pawned to a broker, Joseph Beck, who tells them he received them from an Angela Osborne, who gave her address as a soup kitchen run by Doctor Murray.

Holmes and Watson meet Murray, also a police pathologist, after convincing Lestrade to let them view the body of the most recent victim, Annie Chapman. Holmes convinces Watson to go to the soup kitchen and make a fuss of looking for Angela. A disguised Holmes then follows Murray's niece Sally when she goes to meet Carfax. They explain Carfax was blackmailed by a man who threatened to tell his father that Michael, who was helping Murray at the soup kitchen, had married a prostitute. Carfax now works there himself but Michael was gone before he and Sally arrived. The blackmailer, Max Steiner, now runs a local public house.

The Prime Minister asks Mycroft Holmes to convince his brother to investigate the Ripper case, unaware he is already involved. Holmes and Watson nearly catch the Ripper when he kills another prostitute who invites him into her room. Holmes confronts Murray who explains Michael learned Angela assisted Steiner with the blackmail. During an altercation between the three of them, Angela was disfigured when acid was thrown in her face. Murray also reveals his crippled and mentally disabled assistant is Michael, the result of a beating from Steiner. Holmes and Watson discover Angela in the upper room of Steiner's inn and she admits she sent them the surgical instruments, having removed the scalpel herself, to get them involved. Holmes and Watson return Michael to his family.

During the night, Holmes discovers Carfax attempting to kill Angela in her room; he is the Ripper. The pub catches alight during a struggle; Carfax, Steiner and Angela are all killed in the blaze but Holmes escapes. He explains to Watson that Carfax had no way of identifying Angela so killed every prostitute he came across in the hope one of them would be her. With all those involved dead, Holmes elects to keep the truth from the police.

Cast

Reception

Producer Herman Cohen originally wanted to title the film Fog but Columbia insisted on the title A Study in Terror to tie in with the Sherlock Holmes novel A Study in Scarlet.^[4] Cohen also recalled on its US release Columbia advertised the film as a then popular tongue in cheek Batman type film rather than a horror or detective film.^[5]

Post-release history

In 1966, the film was made into a novel by Ellery Queen and Paul W. Fairman. The novelisation is unusual in that it adds a framing story wherein Ellery Queen reads a manuscript that re-tells the actions of the film. The framing story was written by Ellery Queen and the novelisation of the film itself by Fairman.^[7]

The Holmes-Ripper idea was later taken up in Murder by Decree (1978), in which Frank Finlay reprised his role as Lestrade^[3] and Anthony Quayle once again had an important part (though this time as Sir Charles Warren of Scotland Yard).

The film inspired the writing of Sherlock Holmes's War of the Worlds, blending the story of Sherlock Holmes and the world of H.G Wells' science fiction novel The War of the Worlds.{{citation needed|date=November 2018}}

Soundtrack

A Study in Terror (1965) was composed by John Scott in his first feature film score conducting the Hollywood Symphony Orchestra (HSO 333)

See also

References

1. ^John Hamilton, Beasts in the Cellar: The Exploitation Film Career of Tony Tenser, Fab Press, 2005 p 67
2. ^The Times 4/11/65, page 2
3. ^¹²³{{cite book |last=Barnes|first=Alan|authorlink=Alan Barnes (writer) |title=Sherlock Holmes on Screen |year=2002 |publisher=Reynolds & Hearn Ltd |pages=211–212 |isbn=978-1-903111-04-8 }}
4. ^{{cite book|last=Boström|first=Mattias|title=From Holmes to Sherlock|publisher=Mysterious Press|year=2018|page=336|ISBN=978-0-8021-2789-1}}
5. ^{{cite book|last=Weaver|first=Tom|title=Double Feature Creature Attack: A Monster Merger of Two More Volumes of Classic Interviews|page=76|publisher=McFarland|year=2003|ISBN= 978-0786413669}}
6. ^{{cite web|last=Crowther|first=Bosley|title=The Screen::Burt Lancaster in 'The Professionals' Noisy Western Opens at 2 Local Theaters|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=940ce3d61530e43bbc4b53dfb767838d679ede|work=The New York Times|date=November 3, 1966|accessdate=January 8, 2018}}
7. ^{{cite journal|last=Picker|first=Lenny|title=Screen of the Crime|page=22|journal=Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine |volume=1|issue=4}}

External links