Product Description
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A contemporary take on the classic Arthur Conan Doyle stories,
Sherlock is a thrilling, funny, fast-paced adventure series set
in present-day London. Co-created by Steven Mof and Mark
Gatiss, Sherlock stars Benedict Cumberbatch as the new Sherlock
Holmes and Martin Freeman as his loyal friend, Doctor John
Watson. Rupert Graves plays Inspector Lestrade.
John Watson: doctor, soldier, war hero, lost soul. Fresh from
fighting the war in Afghanistan, a chance encounter brings him
into the world of Sherlock Holmes: loner, detective, genius. A
woman in pink lies murdered in an abandoned house. The fifth
victim of a seemingly motiveless killer. Inspector Lestrade is
the best Scotland Yard has got. But he knows he’s nothing
compared to a young man called Sherlock. Sherlock can tell a
software designer by his tie, an airline pilot by his thumb. He
has a unique analytical brain unlike anyone else in the world,
who earns his living and staves off boredom by solving crimes.
The weirder and more baffling the better…
The two men couldn’t be more different, but Sherlock’s inspired
leaps of intellect coupled with John’s pragmatism soon forge an
unbreakable alliance. Across three, 90-minute, thrilling, y,
action-packed and highly entertaining television movies, Sherlock
and John navigate a maze of cryptic clues and lethal killers to
get at the truth.
The world’s favourite detective has come out of the fog. With
sparkling scripts and unforgettable performances from the two
leads, this is Sherlock for a new generation. This set contains
all three episodes and the original Pilot.
.co.uk Review
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In the wake of Guy Ritchie's re-imagining, the BBC puts its own
stamp on Arthur Conan Doyle's sleuth--and sets him in a London
filled with cell phones and laptops. In the pilot, director Paul
McGuigan (a keen visual stylist) introduces Sherlock Holmes
(Atonement's Benedict Cumberbatch) as a "high-functioning
sociopath" and Dr. John Watson (The Office's Martin Freeman) as
an army veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder. Through a
mutual friend, the two become flatmates at 221B Baker Street (Una
Stubbs plays their landlady). Holmes, who consults with Scotland
Yard inspector Lestrade (Rupert Graves) on his trickier cases,
drafts Watson to assist him.
In "Study in Pink," four people commit suicide by poison. When
Holmes sets out to establish a link, he falls right into the
culprit's clutches. Other cases concern a smuggling operation
("The Blind Banker") and a mad bomber ("The Great Game"). Though
he doesn't make a formal entrance until episode 3, Sherlock's
archenemy, Moriarty (Andrew Scott), has a hand in each mystery,
while the detective's brother, Mycroft (co-creator Mark Gatiss),
first appears when he tries to hire Watson as a , an offer the
good doctor refuses. Through his job at a medical office, Watson
also meets Sarah (Zoe Telford), who becomes his girlfriend.
Part of the fun of Jeremy Brett's Holmes (and Agatha Christie's
Poirot) came from the period details, so this update takes a
little getting used to--as does the occasional mumbled line--but
Cumberbatch and Freeman share an enjoyable Odd Couple rapport,
marked by flashes of deadpan wit, which compensates for the
absence of deerstalker caps (Holmes favors ves) and journals
(Watson maintains a website). Extras include commentary on the
finale, the original pilot, and a featurette, in which co-creator
Steven Mof (Doctor Who) notes that Cumberbatch was his only
choice for the title role. --Kathleen C. Fennessy