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5.6/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 5.6/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. A Study in Scarlet remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you are a die-hard Arthur Conan Doyle purist, you will probably want to throw your remote at the screen within the first ten minutes. It’s barely a Sherlock story. But if you dig old, dusty, black-and-white mysteries that don't take themselves too seriously and have a bit of a chaotic energy, you’ll have a weirdly good time with this.
The whole thing feels like it was put together on a lunch break. Reginald Owen isn't exactly the Holmes you read about in the books; he’s more like a grumpy uncle who’s slightly annoyed he has to solve a crime at all. It’s bizarre.
The plot centers on this secret society, which sounds cool on paper but mostly just involves a lot of people standing in rooms looking nervous. There’s a constant sense that the movie is trying to figure out what it wants to be. One minute it’s a standard whodunit, the next it feels like a low-budget thriller.
I couldn't stop staring at the set design. It’s got that specific 1930s vibe where every shadow looks like it was painted on with thick oil paint. It reminds me a bit of the atmosphere in The Thirteenth Guest, where the background feels just as suspicious as the actors.
There is a moment about halfway through where a character reacts to a death in such an underplayed way that it almost becomes funny. You’re waiting for a scream or a faint, and they just sort of sigh and fix their tie. It’s these little, awkward human moments that make the movie feel alive, even when the script is clearly struggling to keep the plot threads together.
Anna May Wong shows up, and honestly, she’s the only one who seems to realize what kind of movie she’s actually in. She’s got this sharp, focused energy that cuts right through the fog of the other performances. Everyone else is wandering around like they’re waiting for a bus.
It’s not a masterpiece. It’s not even a particularly good adaptation of the source material. But there’s a charm to its imperfections that you don’t get with modern, over-sanitized detective flicks. It feels handmade, even if the hands were a little shaky.
Don't look for logic here. Just enjoy the ride and the weird, foggy streets. 🕵️♂️
IMDb —
1921
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