Cumberbatch is Going Down!

[rusty_armour]

Going down to #5 on my mental list of favourite Sherlock Holmeses. While it's possible that the quote was taken out of context, I'm still not happy with what Benedict Cumberbatch had to say about Jeremy Brett's portrayal of Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock: The Casebook:

"...I think Brett's interpretation, masterful though it is, is always going to be something of its own. It becomes something that isn't Sherlock Holmes."

Now, if Cumberbatch was arguing that there are moments when Brett's interpretation is more Brett than Holmes, I'd be okay with that because, quite frankly, it's probably true. I'd even understand if Cumberbatch was referring to Brett's interpretation in the Granada episodes from 1990 and beyond because they were absolute crap -- though I blame this on the writing more than Brett's performance. Unfortunately, this sounds like Brett's interpretation in general isn't Sherlock Holmes and that's just not on. No, I'm sorry, Cumberbatch, but until my temper cools (or I rewatch an episode of Sherlock), Douglas Wilmer is moving up to the #4 and you're sliding down to #5. If I was angrier (or feeling a bit more patriotic), you might be falling down to #6 and trading places with Christopher Plummer.

My issues with Cumberbatch aside, I'm really enjoying Sherlock: The Casebook. It's worth it for Sherlock's catty post-it notes alone. *g*

Comments

[njc2007.livejournal.com]

I don't follow Sherlock Holmes in any form and I think I have only ever seen Basil Rathbone's version (aside from Sherlock Hemlock on Sesame Street) so I can't really comment on that. I just popped in to say I really enjoy when you get grumpy about something like this. Your arguments are always very articulate and reasoned.

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

LOL! That's awesome! It's very kind of you to say that my arguments are articulate and reasoned! I think you're being too generous in your praise, but I'm happy you get a kick out of my grumpy posts! :-D Here's some Sherlock Hemlock just for you:

[njc2007.livejournal.com]

Thank you for Sherlock Hemlock. He actually reminds me of a book I'm reading right now called Why People Believe Weird Things. This interaction puts me in mind of the section on cold readings done by psychics.

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

No problem! I'm glad you got a kick out of it. :-) Actually, it worked out nicely because my sister needed cheering up, so I sent her this vid -- along with a couple of other Sherlock Hemlock sketches. She loves Ernie, so I thought they might amuse her.

That book you're reading sounds really interesting! :-)