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Although this short film appears British, it was actually produced in America in 1933. It is a parody of both the Sherlock Holmes and Fu Manchu characters. The title character is called Sheerluck Jones and it also utilizes the standard villain with a big mustache with a cackling laugh that is fond of spinning the ends of his mustache in his hand.

Intermixed with the blatant racist formula, much of the action reminds the viewer of the Three Stooges of Moe, Larry and Curly. Since the distinctive slapstick antics of the original stooges were developed in the 1920's, it is very possible that they were an inspiration for this movie. There is also a mass fight in an opium den that would do justice to the saloon fights that were so common in later American westerns.

With over the top acting, strongly presented dialog and some physical expressions right out of the silent movies, this movie demonstrates a great deal of how movie comedy is being developed in the early years of the talkies.

This 8 minute plus short is made up of a set of string puppets and is a parody of the Sherlock Holmes character. His name has been modified to Herlock Sholmes and the action opens inside a Chinese opium den. There is a fight, and some people are killed with a female dancer left alive.

The British police are called in and they are baffled, so they consult the great detective Herlock Sholmes and he agrees to investigate. With magnifying glass in hand, Herlock manages to avoid the knife wielding assailant until the police arrive.

Modern viewers will generally find the action of string puppets to be uninspiring, but this was no doubt great entertainment in the early years of television, it was produced in 1930. With as many as seven puppets on the screen at one time, there had to be a great deal of coordination between the puppeteers. The action demonstrates how talented all of the puppeteers were, the puppets move in a surprisingly lifelike manner.

The plot is simple and easy to follow, there are occasional text screens to explain what is happening. This video is a look back at a generally forgotten form of entertainment, the string puppet.

Fans of Sherlock Holmes familiar with the later episodes starring Basil Rathbone will likely be disappointed with this movie. However, if viewed in a historical context where the movie producers and actors were still learning their craft, it can be entertaining. One aspect of this movie is how physically close the actors sometimes are to each other. The dialog is often delivered with a brusqueness that comes across as overbearing and the acting is frequently stiff.

This movie was released in 1931, when the players at all levels were still learning how to include dialog. The first movie with sound had been released in 1927, so the path to crisp and effective dialog was still unproven.

The plot is a simple one. A member of the British government is being blackmailed into transporting counterfeit British pounds out of the country where they could more easily be passed on. Professor Moriarty, the archenemy of Sherlock Holmes is the leader of the criminal enterprise that is behind the plot. He pays a visit to Holmes in a disguise that is overbearing but does not fool Holmes as to his true identity.

My purpose in watching the movie was to get some historical background of the evolution of the Holmes character on film. I am a big fan of the character, having read all of the original stories several times as well as watched most of the movies and read the later books by other writers. Sometimes, to appreciate the later work one must first study the earlier versions. In this case, my plan worked as I now have a better understanding of how the character has evolved on film.