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Yuting Yao (Ariel)
Lynda Hass
Writing 39B
20 May 2014
Sherlocks Intelligence and Eccentricity
It is so normal to make a popular novel into movies these days; movies do not
only provide a new perspective of the novel, but also make some changes of the story
to create an even attractive story based on the original one by using modern elements.
One of the scriptwriters and directors favorite stories is Sherlock. In the movies and
TV series based on Sherlock Holmes, the most outstanding detective created by
Conan Doyle, creators does not exactly follow all of the conventions but change some
character of the main heroes, Sherlock and Watson, to fit the modern days. For most
of the conventions, they stay what they were in the novels since they appear as a
mirror to reflect back to Victorian era. The most obvious one should be that Sherlock
is still a genius who possesses the three necessities of a qualified detective; and he
tries his best to figure out the truth of every case for his own interest instead of money
or fame. A detective story is not a perfect story without an intelligent detective;
Sherlock plays the most important role in those stories. Like the scholar Leroy Lad
Panek asserts that Sherlock Holmes was actually a mathematically accurate crime-
solving machine (82) in his book An Introduction to the Detective Story. The BBC
TV series, directed by Paul McGuigan and first released in 2010, prove that most
conventions are kept even in the modern society. The story A Study in Pink is about
a woman who is found dead after three other people who are reported died for the
same reason. In the story, Sherlocks intelligence and eccentricity are well described.
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In A Study in Pink, Sherlock first meet Watson and they become roommates.
They solve cases together and Watson is impressed by Sherlocks intelligence, to be
clear, is his ability of deduction. In Conan Doyles The Sign of Four, Sherlock
deduced the closeness of Watson and his brother from a watch. Compared to the
original story, here in the movie, they creators changed the deduction subject from
watch to cellphone since cellphones are more reasonable for 21
st
century. It is
undeniable that Sherlocks deduction ability is impressive. Though the object is
different, the ability to read things and make a deduction remains the same. From
the close observation of the cellphone, he reaches the conclusion that Watson has a
brother but they do not get along well because his brother is an alcoholic. In that
scene, they sit in the cab and Sherlock explain how he successfully finds out the
details about his brother; after Sherlocks close explanation, Watson is shocked by his
impeccable ability. As the scholar audience Mike Hale mentions in his article The
Latest Sherlock Hears a Who that, Holmes tells men hes just met that theyve
traveled around the world twice in the last month or that they spent the night with that
woman over there. Sherlock can deduce a persons whole life just from tiny details
or objects. Before Sherlock makes a conclusion of his deduction, he examines the
objects first. This matches what Conan Doyle proposed in The Sign of Four, a
professional detective must possess three necessities at the same time, observation,
deduction and knowledge (221). He collects clues when he examines the objects, no
matter a real object or a body, and with his crime-related knowledge, he can
successfully make a correct deduction. What surprised the audiences is that his
deductions are barely turned out to be wrong (Binyon 11). Sherlock possesses plenty
of knowledge that would be useful for solving the case; Leroy Lad Panek described
Sherlock as a person who fills his cranial attic only with those things which help
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him solve crimes (82). Just as when Sherlock and Watson are chasing the cab,
Sherlock has a clear mind of where to go. The map of each street that audiences
see on the screen is actually in Sherlocks mind. It is not only a simple map of the
road, but also combines the signals of each intersection. From the map, he is able
to find the most effective way to chase the cab. The use of modern technology
clearly shows what Sherlock is thinking. Meanwhile, this also proves Sherlocks
intelligence, as he is able to remember such complicated things.
When the movie portrays the intelligence of Sherlock, some significant
patterns will appear. In the crime scene of A Study In Pink, when Sherlock is
requested to help the police to solve the case and he comes to the crime scene, he
observes the body and the surrounding carefully. Here the use of sound is
ingenious. The background music is mysterious, creepy and a little bit exciting;
when it combines with the sound Sherlocks thinkingthe scrawling sound and
the scratching sound, it shows a fast-functioning brain, which makes audiences
nervous about the case, and also think with Sherlock together. In terms of the
camera angle, when Sherlock is looking at the body, the camera is at a lower
angle, where audiences can clearly see the head of the body and Sherlock,
Watson and the police officer Lestrade at the same time. The body is lying on the
floor while Sherlock, Watson and Lestrade are standing and looking at the body.
Using lower angle to film this scene makes Sherlock to look more powerful
since he is the main character to examine the scene and he plays an important
role to solve the case. However, the body on the floor is filmed by an extreme low
angle to complete, which shows the weakness of the person. Besides the angle,
the composition of the scene also reveals the importance of Sherlock. Sherlock is
standing on the foreground while Lestrade on the middle ground and Watson on
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the background. It is Sherlock that whose deduction will help the police to solve
the case, so he is in the place where will attract most audiences attention.
Compared to Sherlock, Watson is less important in this scene; as a result, he is in
the background. All the sound, camera angle and composition here work for
pointing out the importance of Sherlocks deduction. These technical skills allow
people to pay more attention on Sherlocks deduction, rather than other peoples
conversation.
Another convention that has remained in the movie is Sherlocks
eccentric. Sherlock is the kind of person that who is obsessed with his job
investigating cases. When he has nothing to do, or no cases to investigate, he will
be bored. On the contrary, when he finds difficult cases, he gets excited; this kind
of characteristic makes him eccentric. In The Sign of Four, Sherlock said, Give
me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram or the most
intricate analysis, and in am in my own proper atmosphere (187). This best
describes how he feels when he has cases to investigate. In A Study in Pink, he
acts exactly the same as what was described in book. After four people are
thought to suicide, Lestrade ask assistance from Sherlock and goes to Baker
Street. When Lestrade leaves, the smile on Sherlocks face shows his happiness.
He is excited to accept a new challenge and he even describes the situation that
he has this case to investigate as Christmas. His expression, his action and his
tone reveal his excitement. Compared to his action now and before, he is more
relaxed. At this time, his eccentric characteristic completely showed up. As the
scholar audiences Alessandra Stanley asserts, Particularly on television, its
almost impossible to find another interesting crime solver who isnt driven by
childhood wounds or crippling psychological flaws or fixations. Therefore, it is
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quite obvious to see how Sherlock differ from other investigators like police
officers; he is much more energetic when facing a new and difficult cases.
Just like the pattern of specific ways to portray Sherlocks intelligence,
there is a similar way to make the eccentric Sherlock stand out. Compared to the
sound that uses to show Sherlocks intelligence, the sound here is more relaxing.
The background music of the scene is quite happy and enthusiasm. Combined
with his talking sound, they successfully shows how excited Sherlock is, which in
other words, how eccentric he is. In addition, he talks with a quicker speed,
which illustrates that he cannot wait to get involved in solving the crime. Besides,
for the scene that after Lestrade leaves, it contains mainly medium shot, which
frames the subjects from the waist and up. Even though when Sherlock jumps up
to show his excitement, it is still medium shot; but the position of camera is sets
perfectly so that his body is fully in the frame. This can clear show the expression
and action of Sherlock; therefore, audiences can have a better understanding of
his eccentric. Besides that, the composition of the scene is different from the last
one. When Sherlock leaves the room, the camera is set from the side of Watson,
so he is in background of the frame while Mrs. Hudson and Watson in the middle
ground. This does not mean he is not important any more. Instead, he is still the
key role through the whole story. Putting Watson in the front makes Watsons
expressionsusceptible look, clearer. From Watsons look, Sherlocks action
becomes even more eccentric. With the help of the sound, camera scale and
composition, it is much easier to follow this conventionSherlocks eccentric
behavior.
Detective stories are even more popular today modern elements. Movies
like Sherlock change some characteristics of the main characters but remain
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most of the story to be the same. Sherlocks intelligence and abnormal are
perfectly showed in the series. It is certain that detective stories will continue
flourishing in the future. Just like John Gary, a famous photographer said, The
fictional detective retains his grip on our imaginations, even in an age when we
have lost faith in the power of reason to solve problems. That is exactly what
audiences and readers expect from the story.



















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Works Cited
Gary, John. A Point of View: The enduring appeal of Sherlock Holmes. 17 08
2012. 20 05 2014 <http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-19268563>.
Hale, Mike. The Latest Sherlock Holmes Hears a 'Who'. 21 10 2010. 20 05
2014
<http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/22/arts/television/22sherlock.html?partner=rss&e
mc=rss&pagewanted=1>.
Stanley, Alessandra. The Logical Sherlock for Our Time. 17 01 2014. 20 05
2014 <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/18/arts/television/benedict-cumberbatchs-
sherlock-is-back-on-
pbs.html?action=click&module=Search&region=searchResults&mabReward=relbias
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DSearchSubmit%26contentCollection%3DHomepage%26t%3Dqry478%23%2Fsherl
ock>.
Panek, Leroy. An Introduction to the Detective Story. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling
Green State University Popular Press, 1987. Print.
Conan Doyle, Arthur. The Sign of the Four. Seattle: Amazon Digital Services, 2013.
Kindle eBook. Online.
Binyon, T.J. "Murder Will Out": The Detective in Fiction. Oxford: Oxford University
Press, 1989. Print.