Sherlock Holmes on Film - Sherlock Holmes Baffled

One thing that has often interested me is how one fictional character can become so recognizable to the general public that he reaches the status of “icon.”  There are a lot of examples-Superman, James Bond, Frankenstein’s Monster-but the one that I want to examine is the great detective Sherlock Holmes.

In case you are not familiar with the man, allow me to give you a brief rundown.  Holmes was invented by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in a long-running series of stories published in the Strand Magazine.  His first appearance in the 1887 novel A Study in Scarlet set up most of the series’ trademarks such as the stories being told by supporting character Dr. John Watson, Holmes’ ability to notice and analyze the most minute of details at a moment’s notice, and Holmes’ status as “the world’s only consulting detective” meaning that the police call him in whenever they need help.

Holmes holds the record for most portrayals in film, having appeared in over 250 films to date.  He has become one of the most famous characters of all time, an icon of mystery-fiction, his name being synonymous with intelligence.  With such an impressive resume, I can’t help but be curious as to his character’s history.

That’s why I’m starting this new column where I’ll examine the Cinematic History of Sherlock Holmes.  And what better place to start than with his first ever filmed portrayal?  This is Sherlock Holmes Baffled.  What’s even better is that, since it is both public domain and very short, I can have you all watch it first:


I imagine that at the last shot, the director yelled “And… he’s baffled.  Repeat, he is baffled.  Cut tape.”

Despite the copyright date of 1903 at the beginning, this film was actually filmed in 1900 on a New York rooftop.  The American Mutoscope Company made the film to be viewed on their “Mutograph” device, a rival to Thomas Edison’s Kinetoscope.  Here’s a picture of one.  So this wasn’t an actual movie so much as a carnival sideshow attraction, which explains some things about it.



Alan Barnes’ Sherlock Holmes on Screen lists this as a “parody” film, but I think that’s a bit of a cop out.  The title does not imply parody, and while the action might be humorous it does not poke fun at Sherlock himself.

What kind of thief, even with movie-magic teleportation powers, would break into Sherlock’s place?  That guy has got some guts, especially when you consider the fact that he came back after getting away..  And give the man credit, Sherlock was well and truly baffled.  I also like how, at the 0:28 mark, Sherlock just shrugs off the teleporting burglar like it’s no big deal.

Oh and at 0:38, yeah just shoot the guy right in the head Holmes, it’s not like you should try to question him or anything.

So for Holmes’ first foray into the cinema, this was kind of disappointing.  It has a certain entertainment to it, in a silly way, but what does this have to do with Sherlock?

You might be thinking, “isn’t it unfair to expect this film to portray the character from the stories?’  not really.  Keep in mind, this was 1900.  The Sherlock Holmes stories were still relatively new.  In fact, this film only happened to come out during the “great hiatus,” a period in which Doyle temporarily stopped writing about Holmes, but the stories resumed shortly after this.  If I was living in 1900, familiar with Holmes, and happened to see this, I would sure as hell be disappointed.