Capital Celluloid 2013 - Day 126: Mon May 6

The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (Wilder, 1970): BFI Southbank, 8.30pm
This film is also showing at BFI Southbank on May 2nd and May 7th. Details here.

A personal favourite. If you can get hold of Adrian Turner and Neil Sinyard's book Journey Down Sunset Boulevard there's a wonderful chapter on this movie, while for novelist Jonathan Coe it was an an obsession and for BBC Sherlock author Mark Gatiss it featured in the Observer's 'The Film that Changed my Life' series.

Chicago Reader review:
Billy Wilder, in an exceedingly mellow mood, portrays Holmes as a tortured man, trapped by his own legend and paying the price for his reputation of invincibility (1970). Robert Stephens is superb as a very real Holmes, and Colin Blakely is equally good as Watson. The cutting of more than 40 minutes from the original film hurts its initial continuity, but once the action begins, this takes on a magical quality that makes it one of Wilder's best efforts. Affectionately conceived, chock-full of marvelous subtleties, this meticulously constructed adventure-romance shouldn't be missed.
Don Druker

Here are the opening titles.

Here is the trailer.

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