The fanciful meeting-of-the-minds concept (patented by Steve Allen, among others) opens the door to endless intriguing possibilities, but the get-together of Sherlock Holmes and Sigmund Freud touches off few sparks in this underdeveloped mystery movie, shot all in yellow, for no good reason. Rather than providing any sort of personality clash or complement, Holmes and Freud simply take turns making perceptions that all sound rather Holmes-ian. Indeed, Freud has little to contribute from his own field of specialization, and he must fill up his allotted space by leaping between railroad cars and firing guns. At the finish, he coaxes Holmes, under hypnosis, to divulge a secret that explains, in one swoop, the detective's choice of vocation, his hatred of Professor Moriarty, his cocaine addiction, and his suspicion of the female sex. This coup is not an example of Freudian literary appreciation à la Ernest Jones. Nicholas Meyer wrote the script from his own best-seller. Nicol Williamson is Holmes, Alan Arkin is Freud, Robert Duvall is Watson, and Laurence Olivier is Moriarty. Herbert Ross directed. (1976) — Duncan Shepherd
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