The character of Sherlock Holmes has seen quite the resurgence over the last few years. He’s been the subject of two new Guy Ritchie films, as well as two new television series, CBS’ Elementary and BBC’s Sherlock. All four of these adaptations have been respected as unique interpretations of the character, and ones that fans can appreciate. Today, it was announced that there will be a new interpretation of the character coming in the future, starring the legendary Ian McKellan as Sherlock Holmes.
This new film will be based off of Mitch McCullin’s novel, A Slight Trick of the Mind. The story is set in 1947, and a retired Sherlock Holmes is living in a Sussex village, haunted by an unsolved case from fifty years ago. He can only remember fragments of the case itself: an angry husband, and his beautiful wife. Though his legendary mental powers are waning, and he no longer is accompanied by Dr. John Watson, Holmes decides to solve the toughest case of his life.
A Slight Trick of the Mind will be directing by Bill Condon, the director of Kinsey and Dreamgirls. Condon and McKellan have previously worked together on the 1998 film Gods and Monsters. They were both nominated for Academy Awards in that picture, for both acting and writing respectively, with Condon winning for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Production for the film is expected to begin in April for a 2014 release.
In a decade where the character of Sherlock Holmes has been saturated almost to the point of ubiquity, this sounds like a truly unique and engaging story. With an actor as talented as Ian McKellan portraying Sherlock, they already had my money.
What do you think about the ideas behind A Slight Trick of the Mind? Are you excited to see the film, or are you already tired of all the Sherlock-themed stories lately? Why don’t you just tell us what you think in the comments below?
Source: Collider