Sherlock Holmes is the most translated subject in the world after The Bible. Arthur Conan Doyle’s Holmes stories have not been out of print since they first appeared in 1887 – 125 years ago. The Real Sherlock Holmes (BBC America, Tonight, 6/5C) looks at the incredible influence the character has had – and not just on criminal investigations.
We all know that Sherlock Holmes was a pioneer in forensic sciences, crime scene investigation, information analysis and more. He was also the source of the first fandom – when Conan Doyle killed him off, public outcry practically forced him to bring Holmes back (Star Trek fans, Roswell fans and more can relate). The idea of a duo investigating crime – one a genius and not particularly personable, and the other a stand-in for the man in the street (Kirk/Spock, Star Trek; Riggs/Murtaugh, Lethal Weapon, and so forth) – originated with Holmes and his Boswell, Dr. John H. Watson.
Over the course of The Real Sherlock Holmes, we see how Conan Doyle’s character influenced real life forensics, espionage, space science, and, as mentioned above, fandoms and buddy movies. Various experts and interested parties chime in: Mark Gatiss (co-creator of the BBC’s series Sherlock – in which he also plays Mycroft Holmes), E.J. Wagner (Crime Historian and Author, The Science of Sherlock Holmes), decorated spy Lt. Gen. Samuel V. Wilson (Ret.), Ian Laverty (President, Environmental Criminology Research Inc.), Theo Hollamby (Investigative Polygraph Examiner) and even Chief Scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Dr. James Garvin.
The hour is a fast-paced, yet contemplative look at the impact this one fictional character has had on the real world. We learn how various aspects of Holmes’ investigative techniques were years, decades or even a century ahead of real world science. The many and varied talking heads who contribute show how Holmes’ methods are utilized in the real world – and how they were inspired to enter their respective fields because Holmes sparked their imaginations.
The hour is peppered with clips of various versions of Holmes, ranging from Basil Rathbone to Jeremy Brett to Benedict Cumberbatch – all of which illustrate some aspect of Holmes’ talents: master of disguise, solver of puzzles, scientist. It’s a fascinating hour that will entertain fan and non-fan alike because it doesn’t just talk about Holmes, it shows how his methods have been adapted to our times and the technology we have available to us (a lot of the computer analysis is interesting, but it’s just plain cool to see weapons being fired to check ballistics!). We even hear from Conan Doyle in some very old interview clips.
The Real Sherlock Holmes works because it doesn’t get bogged down in pontificating talking heads. Once speakers and their credentials have been established, what they’re saying is illustrated by photo montages of movie and television clips, or footage of actual investigative work (a section dealing with the use of disguises and undercover work is pretty cool, too!). As a result, it is one excellent documentary – and a whole lot of fun, to boot.
Final Grade: A