The Hound of the Baskervilles (1981 film)
Encyclopedia
The Hound of the Baskervilles is a 1981 Soviet film adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle
's novel The Hound of the Baskervilles
. It was the third installment in the TV series about adventures of Sherlock Holmes
and Doctor Watson. A potent streak of humour ran through the film as concerns references to traditional British customs and stereotypes, ensuring the film's popularity with several generations of Russophone
viewers. Other features of this best entry in the series include excellent exterior shots which closely match the novel's setting in the Dartmoor
marshland, as well as an all-star cast: in addition to the famous Livanov
-Solomin
duo as Holmes and Watson, the film stars the internationally acclaimed actor/director Nikita Mikhalkov
as Sir Henry Baskerville and the Russian movie legend Oleg Yankovsky
as the villain Stapleton.
, a fact which becomes a subject of several heated arguments with the butler Barrymore throughout the film.
Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle DL was a Scottish physician and writer, most noted for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, generally considered a milestone in the field of crime fiction, and for the adventures of Professor Challenger...
's novel The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Hound of the Baskervilles is the third of four crime novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set largely on Dartmoor in Devon in England's West Country and tells the story of an...
. It was the third installment in the TV series about adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
and Doctor Watson. A potent streak of humour ran through the film as concerns references to traditional British customs and stereotypes, ensuring the film's popularity with several generations of Russophone
Russophone
A Russophone is literally a speaker of the Russian language either natively or by preference. At the same time the term is used in a more specialized meaning to describe the category of people whose cultural background is associated with Russian language regardless of ethnic and territorial...
viewers. Other features of this best entry in the series include excellent exterior shots which closely match the novel's setting in the Dartmoor
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an area of moorland in south Devon, England. Protected by National Park status, it covers .The granite upland dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history. The moorland is capped with many exposed granite hilltops known as tors, providing habitats for Dartmoor wildlife. The...
marshland, as well as an all-star cast: in addition to the famous Livanov
Vasily Livanov
Vasily Borisovich Livanov MBE is a Soviet and Russian film actor, and screenwriter.-Biography:His father Boris Livanov was a prominent actor of the Moscow Art Theatre...
-Solomin
Vitaly Solomin
Vitaly Mefodievich Solomin was a Soviet and Russian actor, director and screenwriter. He was the younger brother of Yury Solomin....
duo as Holmes and Watson, the film stars the internationally acclaimed actor/director Nikita Mikhalkov
Nikita Mikhalkov
Nikita Sergeyevich Mikhalkov is a Soviet and Russian filmmaker, actor, and head of the Russian Cinematographers' Union.Mikhalkov was born in Moscow into the distinguished, artistic Mikhalkov family. His great grandfather was the imperial governor of Yaroslavl, whose mother was a Galitzine princess...
as Sir Henry Baskerville and the Russian movie legend Oleg Yankovsky
Oleg Yankovsky
Oleg Ivanovich Yankovsky was a Soviet/Russian actor who has excelled in psychologically sophisticated roles of modern intellectuals...
as the villain Stapleton.
Cast
- Vasily LivanovVasily LivanovVasily Borisovich Livanov MBE is a Soviet and Russian film actor, and screenwriter.-Biography:His father Boris Livanov was a prominent actor of the Moscow Art Theatre...
as Sherlock Holmes - Vitaly SolominVitaly SolominVitaly Mefodievich Solomin was a Soviet and Russian actor, director and screenwriter. He was the younger brother of Yury Solomin....
as Dr. Watson - Rina Zelyonaya as Mrs. Hudson
- Borislav BrondukovBorislav BrondukovBoryslav Brondukov was a Ukrainian and Soviet film character actor, People's Artist of Ukraine.He was born in the village of Dubava somewhere in Kiev oblast of Ukrainian SSR in a Russian-Polish family...
as Inspector LestradeInspector LestradeInspector G. Lestrade is a fictional character, a Scotland Yard detective appearing in several of the Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle. Doyle used the name of a friend from his days at the University of Edinburgh, a Saint Lucian medical student by the name of Joseph Alexandre Lestrade.... - Irina Kupchenko as Beryl Stapleton
- Nikita MikhalkovNikita MikhalkovNikita Sergeyevich Mikhalkov is a Soviet and Russian filmmaker, actor, and head of the Russian Cinematographers' Union.Mikhalkov was born in Moscow into the distinguished, artistic Mikhalkov family. His great grandfather was the imperial governor of Yaroslavl, whose mother was a Galitzine princess...
as Sir Henry Baskerville - Alla DemidovaAlla DemidovaAlla Sergeyevna Demidova is a Russian actress internationally acclaimed for the tragic parts in innovative plays staged by Yuri Lyubimov in the Taganka Theatre. She was awarded the USSR State Prize in 1977.- Biography :...
as Laura Lyons - Sergey MartinsonSergey MartinsonSergey Alexandrovich Martinson was a Russian eccentric comic actor, the master of pantomime, buffoonery and grotesque. He became People's Artist of the RSFSR in 1964....
as Mr. Frankland - Oleg YankovskyOleg YankovskyOleg Ivanovich Yankovsky was a Soviet/Russian actor who has excelled in psychologically sophisticated roles of modern intellectuals...
as Stapleton - Aleksandr Adabashyan as Barrymore
- Svetlana Kryuchkova as Mrs. Barrymore
- Evgeny Steblov as Dr. Mortimer
Other Facts
In a comedic departure from the novel, the character of Sir Henry has a profound disdain for oatmealOatmeal
Oatmeal is ground oat groats , or a porridge made from oats . Oatmeal can also be ground oat, steel-cut oats, crushed oats, or rolled oats....
, a fact which becomes a subject of several heated arguments with the butler Barrymore throughout the film.