On Saturday February 23rd, the Bootmakers of Toronto held a very special screening of The Doctor’s Case (2018) co-directed by James Douglas and Leonard Pearl at the Toronto Reference Library. The film has won several awards and is based on the short-story by Stephen King but with a twist ending!
Both directors and Joanna Douglas, who played the role of Tabitha Hull, made a special guest appearance and they shared their experience of the production process, which Douglas had described himself as “serendipitous.” The story about the anonymous, mysterious cat that made a cameo appearance at the beginning of the film was, perhaps, the funniest of them all--and probably a clear sign that the film was meant to be.
As a crowd funded project, the film had a limited budget and a tight deadline. It was also Douglas’s first film. Despite these limitations (or because of them) we learned that the cast and crew worked tirelessly, and their devotion and love for this project clearly paid off as the film was produced with such great integrity. Everything from the music to the actors’ performance was so cleverly executed. J.P. Winslow’s performance of Sherlock Holmes was interesting and refreshing. Unlike Basil Rathbone or Benedict Cumberbatch who exude an air of confidence in their performance of Holmes, I felt that Winslow presented a more “down-to-earth” version of the Great detective. We got to see a slightly more vulnerable and human side to Holmes and this was evident not only in the fact that Holmes was not able to solve the case (due to his severe allergy to cats) but I was impressed by how Holmes genuinely supports Watson (played by Michael Coleman) throughout his investigation of the crime scene. One of my favorite moments in the film was when Holmes describes Watson deduction as “first class.” The pairing of Holmes and Watson was done so tastefully and their friendship was conveyed in a compelling way.
There are many aspects of the film that I really enjoyed and learning about the process made me appreciate the film all the more. Small details such as the song that Holmes plays on the violin at the end of the film, which was an homage to Douglas’s aunt who is a pianist, were really touching. I also found the Captain Norton’s role (played by Denise Crosby) in the film so intriguing and can’t wait to see if there’s going to be a sequel!
Unfortunately, due to copyright reasons the film can only be viewed at certain events and is not available for sale. However, Douglas had mentioned that they hope to make it to the big screen, and when that day comes, I hope the Bootmakers can make a field trip out of it.
Interested in the film? See the official homepage of the “The Doctor’s Case” here.
Join the Bootmakers for more special events here!