Sherlock Holmes in New York

Having recently returned from New York, I took to wondering
if Sherlock Holmes ever made it to the Big Apple. And indeed he did in a 1978 TV
film entitled Sherlock Holmes in New York,
directed by Boris Sagal, known for his work on ‘Columbo’, ‘Twilight Zone’,
‘Alfred Hitchcock presents’ and ‘The Man from Uncle’.

Sagal is also infamous for the gruesomely freaky nature of
his death, having been partially decapitated by the tail rotor blades of a
helicopter.

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While arguments persist as to the best incarnation of Sherlock among the scores of actors who have portrayed him on screen, I doubt whether Roger Moore features high on anyone’s list. Here he plays Holmes as a curly-haired upper class toff with a lovely tan, trying not to go all gooey and preserve a stiff upper lip in the face of Charlotte Rampling’s gorgeous Irene Adler. Patrick McNee meanwhile does a fair take off of Nigel Bruce as a gormless Dr Watson.

Roger Moore initially declined the part but after reading the script decided it was ‘funny and original’ (!!). ‘But what I most like about playing Holmes,’ he said, ‘is that there is more dialogue then I ever had in 120 Saint episodes and two Bond films.’ Well, yes, except that the dialogue is ludicrously clunky (‘Fear not, Irene, you shall not long be parted.’). There’s one good line, however. When a dancer exclaims ‘Mon Dieu’, Holmes replies, ‘Yes, if I were French I’d say the same.’

You can spend an enjoyable enough 90 minutes all the same,
if you’ve nothing better to do, revelling in the ludicrously melodramatic plot,
with John Huston, no less, as evil a Moriarty as one could hope for, despite the
wobbly accent. A minor character rejoices in the suggestive name Fraulein
Reichenbach and there’s even a horse-drawn cab chase.

And who knew one of Holmes’ middle names was Scott?

But for goodness sake, the thing wasn’t even shot in New
York, but on the Fox lot in Southern California.