Review of The Sign of Four

I like the book very much, and love the Jeremy Brett version. This film was very entertaining and fresh, plus it was faithful while taking some strange liberties(ie. Small hiding the jewels in his wooden leg). The production values are excellent, the score haunting, the script well written, the river sequence superbly staged and the final solution magnificent. Then we have a great cast, Ian Richardon is suitably sly and sardonic which is what I mean by the adaptation's freshness, Cherie Lunghi is charming and David Healy is good as Watson. Joe Melia was the only disappointment for me, his Small lacked the wonderful understated approach that John Thaw conveyed so well in the Brett version. Then there are one or two scenes that are slightly lacking in atmosphere(Tonga wasn't as scary or as imposing this time around) and the direction is occasionally a little too slight. Overall, it is a good film and a solid adaptation. 7/10 Bethany Cox