The Hound of the Baskervilles

The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939) is a classic mystery thriller you can watch online on iFILM, directed by Sidney Lanfield for 20th Century Fox. It marked the debut of Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce as Holmes and Watson — a pairing that would go on to define the screen versions of both characters across fourteen films.

Sir Charles Baskerville is found dead on the Dartmoor moors. His heir, Sir Henry, arrives from abroad to claim the estate and promptly receives an anonymous warning to leave. A centuries-old family legend blames a spectral hound. Holmes dispatches Watson to Devonshire to observe while he works the case from a distance, unseen. Richard Greene plays Sir Henry; Lionel Atwill and John Carradine round out a strong supporting cast.

Eighty minutes, no fat. The film holds up as a tight period detective picture, and Rathbone's Holmes still sets the template that later actors measure themselves against. Stream The Hound of the Baskervilles online on iFILM.