As a writer of Sherlock Holmes films (two very good ones with Ian Richardson and one very good script that became an awful movie with Edward Woodward) and one Sherlock Holmes play, I have read the entire Holmes Canon (as well as a great bunch of other Conan Doyle, who wrote many fine things besides Sherlock...I'm fond of the Brigadier Gerard stories), my favourite stories would be the two I adpated, SIGN OF FOUR and HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES. I also enjoy the VALLEY OF FEAR, even though the second part of the novel doesn't deal with Holmes at all. But the first half has great detection in it. THE SECOND STAIN, THE COOPER BEECHES, THOR BRIDGE, THE DEVIL'S FOOT, THE CREEPING MAN, THE MAN WITH THE TWISTED LIP...all have their charms.
As far as the films go, Basil was wonderful...his best being THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES which was done in the proper period. Owning and having read Mr. Druxman's wonderful book and having lived very near Mr. Rathbone's house on Los Feliz Boulevard, I must reluctantly say I felt Mr. Brett was the quintessential Holmes...before he got sick and the series trailed off at the end. But he was not afraid to make Holmes thoroughly dislikeable and disagreeable at times...which he was. It was a very daring and dangerous protrayal.
But my favourite movie would have to be my own HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES...solely because the filming of it was one of the happiest most exciting periods of my life. And it is still the most faithful of all the films made from my scripts...and the only one I return to again and again to watch. Ian Richardson is a more-user friendly Holmes than Brett and seems to capture the Holmes of the later stories, where Holmes was more humourous.
Having also acted in THE CRUCIFER OF BLOOD onstage with Charlton Heston as Holmes and Jeremy Brett as Watson, I can tell you Brett was just as wonderful a Watson as he was a Holmes. He said to me at the time, "In England, I get all these Weight of the Empire roles, so it's nice to come over here and play Winnie-the-Pooh...which is exactly how I'm playing Watson. " At the time, he also confided very specific ideas about how Holmes should be played...ideas that he later incorporated into his own portrayal.
I'm also very fond of my Holmes play, THE EBONY APE.