Of course, I was talking about Nikita Mikhalkov. I watched only his later works, where he was a director and all the films were built for himself, but in this film, in my opinion, without exaggeration, one of the best male roles of the second plan. 99% of the funny moments of the film are related to him, which gives the film such a light atmosphere. In general, Mikhalkov with his presence greatly shaken up, cheered up both this film and the entire series in general. I honestly can’t imagine anyone else playing his role. And his drunken adventures in the swamps with Dr. Watson in the middle of the film, it can be reviewed as much as you want. Even as he portrayed a drunk, Solomin does not even stand next to him. Such a lighthearted, cheerful look, smoking a cigar, chic straight. And his conversations with Berymore about breakfast, the bar, and everything. Yes, all his dialogues, monologues greatly animate the film, after which it looks in one breath. Livanov and Solomin are somewhat pale before him, but this is not their failure, this is completely and entirely the merit of Nikita Mikhalkov. Sherlock Holmes didn’t show up at all, and Watson was with Henry Baskerville all the time. The only thing I didn't like about the actors was Inspector Lestrade. Very little time is given to him in this film, but this is an omission of the writers. In general, I saw the Baskerville Dog before everyone else, and then the Treasures of Agra and so on and so forth. Well, in the rest of the films, Borislav Brondukov liked me so much that when I review this film, it becomes a shame that Lestrade is practically absent in this film. Of course, I can’t help but mention Oleg Yankovsky. His role is far from the first plan, but nevertheless very important. Well, Rina Green in the image of Mrs. Hudson, with her hoarse voice, turned out very great.
The script turned out just gorgeous. The most important thing, and what's missing from the other parts of the series, is that it's mystical. It is clear that in the end everything will be explained by normal, without any fiction, but still, sometimes even some elements of horror appear. In general, this is just a godsend for a crime-detective film. Usually, some kind of murder is just committed and it begins to be investigated, and here is not just a murder, there are traces of a huge dog near the crime scene, and events begin to develop around all this. In general, it is very interesting to follow the development of the plot, and all these constant howls from the swamps, just sometimes the heart freezes, and the soul goes to the heels.
But the script would have failed by 50 percent if it wasn't for the perfect music. There are many shades of it, but motive 2. One is completely mystical, which is played on harmonica, flute, or even just a whistle. And the second is the comedy, which almost always appears in scenes with Mikhalkov. Well, you can also call the third, this is the signature soundtrack in the films about Sherlock Holmes. In general, the mystical motifs of music create about 70% of the entire atmosphere of the film. In general, most of the film takes place in a swamp, so the music should be appropriate, so if not for this wonderful music, then I do not know what the film turned out as a whole.
All in all, I gave almost all of the Sherlock Holmes movies an 8, but adding to that standard set a wonderful supporting role, a cool mystical plot, and cool mystical music, we get an absolutely stunning cocktail. For me, this is the best Soviet film of all time.
10 out of 10
Original