Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageWithout a Clue (1988)
Director: Thom Eberhardt
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
You'd think it would make your toes curl: a period buddy movie set in Victorian England, top names in top hats, carriages clattering on cobbles, puffer trains puffing through the Lake District. Without a Clue has all this, but the buddies are Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson, and the usual set-up has been reversed: Watson (Kingsley) is the clever one, Holmes (Caine) is really Reginald Kincaid, an out-of-work actor hired to maintain Watson's credibility. When the boozy Kincaid begins to revel in his role, Watson becomes jealous and gives him the boot, but soon discovers that he can't do without him. Thanks to inspired casting, the result is superior schlock. The plot concerns the theft of the Treasury's £5 note plates; Moriarty (Freeman) is of course the culprit, and Inspector Lestrade of the Yard (Jones) is of course a dimwit. Although a bit long, it's full of incidental pleasures, and the climax in an empty gaslit theatre is slapstick at its silliest and best.Author: MS
Cast & crew
Director: Thom Eberhardt
Producer: Marc Stirdivant
Cast: Michael Caine, Ben Kingsley, Jeffrey Jones, Lysette Anthony, Paul Freeman, Nigel Davenport, Pat Keen, Peter Cook full cast
Genre(s): Comedy
Duration: 107 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Ang Lee talks 'Taking Woodstock'
Ang Lee talks to Tom Huddleston about his tale of the men behind history’s greatest music festival
Hippies who work for The Man
To celebrate George Clooney comedy 'The Men who Stare at Goats', we look back at six memorable onscreen hippies who fought the system from within
Roland Emmerich's guide to disaster movies
Ahead of the release of '2012', Roland Emmerich offers his ten tips on creating the perfect global catastrophe
Grant Heslov: interview
Grant Heslov, director of 'The Men who Stare at Goats' talks about his old pal George Clooney, his interest in the paranormal, and his fond memories of working on 'Happy Days'
The Coen brothers discuss 'A Serious Man'
Masters of contrary comedy, Joel and Ethan Coen have struck gold again with their latest, ‘A Serious Man’
Ten inspirations behind 'Avatar'?
Time Out ponders the influences behind James Cameron's anticipated space-opera on the basis of the trailer
Michael Haneke: The man behind the menace
From Cannes to Munich to London, Dave Calhoun tours Michael Haneke's Palme d'Or winner, 'The White Ribbon'
How Jane Campion brought John Keats back to life
Time Out gets Romantic with the ‘difficult’ New Zealander about her new film, 'Bright Star'
Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam
In celebration of the release of Pixar's 'Up' and Wes Anderson's 'Fantastic Mr Fox', read our rundown of fifty classic feature length animations
What do you think?
Post your review now