Sherlock Holmes: The young lady is taking her mother to Scotland for burial.
Inspector Lestrade: In a coffin?
Sherlock Holmes: That is the customary method, I believe.
Terror by Night (1946)
Directed by: Roy William Neill
Starring: Basil Rathbone, Nigel Bruce, Alan Mowbray
Lady Margaret Carstairs: I shall report you both to Scotland Yard.
Inspector Lestrade: ...But I am Scotland Yard.
Sherlock Holmes: Thank you, Lady Margaret. We'll be as unobtrusive as possible.
Lady Margaret Carstairs: That would be a novelty from a policeman.
Question: Holmes says he realised that Inspector McDonald was an impostor because he supposedly knows the 'real' Inspector McDonald of the Edinburgh police. As shown in the other movies and Conan Doyle's original stories, there are several Inspectors working for Scotland Yard in London (another British city), which begs the question: does this resolution Holmes mentioned about two British Inspectors having the same surname make sense and, if so, why?
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Answer: If you're comparing the film to Arthur Conan Doyle's original Sherlock Holmes stories, then any discrepancies do not really apply. The Basil Rathbone films were loose adaptations of Doyle's work, often incorporating plot elements from multiple stories or were original screenplays with new characters. "Terror by Night" was an entirely original story. The later 12 Universal Studio films were mostly set during World War II, and Holmes was often fighting enemy spies and Nazis. The original Sherlock Holmes stories were set in the late Victorian era.
raywest ★
Actually, my question is related to the movies themselves and it's not a comparison. There are still several inspectors working for Scotland Yard in the Basil Rathbone saga too (I've made an entry edition to include this).
Big Game
Thanks for clarifying, though you stated, "as shown in the other movies 'and' Doyle's original stories." Much of my previous answer still applies. The Basil Rathbone movies were not a definitive interpretation of Sherlock Holmes. The first two produced by 20th Century Fox were mostly faithful to the original stories. The 12 later Universal Studios films were lower-budget and cranked out in rapid succession for profit and were, "to simply be entertaining B pictures," mostly set during World War II. There was little regard for historical accuracy or plot continuity from film to film, and they were simultaneously developed by different writing teams. The 12 films had multiple directors and screenwriters who were focused on their individual projects.
raywest ★
Actually, almost all the movies were directed by Roy William Neill (11 of 14).
Big Game
That's true, but there were many different screenwriters working separately on the various movies. It's also typical in Hollywood for uncredited "script doctors" to revise scripts. Universal Studios had a seven-year contract with the Doyle estate to make the Sherlock Holmes films. They produced them quickly, releasing three movies per year. Under the contract, Universal was allowed to make plot revisions, create some original stories, and modernise the setting (becoming more topical and saving on production costs).
raywest ★