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The Seven-Per-Cent Solution

Play trailer Poster for The Seven-Per-Cent Solution PG Released Oct 24, 1976 1h 53m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
78% Tomatometer 18 Reviews 68% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
In this bizarre twist on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic detective tales, Sherlock Holmes (Nicol Williamson) finds himself experiencing vivid hallucinations resulting from his cocaine addiction. Concerned about his friend's personal and professional welfare, the loyal Dr. Watson (Robert Duvall) contracts Sigmund Freud (Alan Arkin) to analyze Holmes' drug-addled mind, while the legendary sleuth also investigates the mysterious kidnapping of Lola Devereaux (Vanessa Redgrave).

Critics Reviews

View All (18) Critics Reviews
Pauline Kael The New Yorker The film is a civilized light entertainment -- somewhere between the genial little English comedies of the fifties, with their nifty plots and over qualified performers, and the splashy, stylized James Bond pictures. Jan 19, 2024 Full Review Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times Rated: 3.5/4 Oct 23, 2004 Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy The focus on Holmes’ drug habit dominates the first hour, with the mystery only coming into play during the second half. Rated: 3/4 Feb 5, 2025 Full Review Rene Jordan El Nuevo Herald (Miami) Each person appears to be acting in completely different films, in a drama, or a farce, a portrait or caricature, gesture by gesture, or minute by minute. [Full review in Spanish] Aug 15, 2023 Full Review David Nusair Reel Film Reviews ...somewhat tedious... Rated: 2/4 Jul 22, 2021 Full Review David A. Nardozzi Philadelphia Gay News With all clues too obvious and Ross uncertain whether to present a comedy or drama, Seven-Percent Solution is best left alone. May 26, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (50) audience reviews
CodyZamboni Z Solid comic adventure, Well cast with Nicol Williamson, Alan Arkin, Robert Duvall, i like that Dr Freud is Holmes intellectual equal, Film is more about curing Holmes of cocaine addiction and the deep emotional reason for it, Holmes' treatment soon leads to the search for an abducted patient, as Holmes, Watson, and Freud team up to find her. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 10/24/24 Full Review Manoj kumar D Rotten tomatoes a nice website for movie information. To see and or to seek truth' is our nature. And we like detective characters Sherlock Holmes, a name readers will not forget. One of the way to keep an active, developing and evolving mind of teenagers is to Read and particularly 'Searching' stories. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/08/24 Full Review Audience Member We need more movies that combine classic fiction with historical figures, with say Colombo meeting Lacan (who naturally makes a connection to Bataille) or Jack Reacher beginning an analysis with Jacques Alain-Miller for autoacrophobia. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review Audience Member Fantastically enjoyable Sherlock Holmes romp, blessed with an intelligent literate screenplay by Nicholas Meyer, pacy direction (Herbert Ross), and wonderfully ripe theatrical performances from Nicol Williamson, Robert Duvall, Alan Arkin, Laurence Olivier and Charles Gray. The plot weaves in Freud, the Orient Express, squash matches, duels, cocaine addiction and a mystery deep inside Holmes' subconscious. Massively entertaining and bizarrely forgotten. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/27/23 Full Review Audience Member Wonderful film. Intelligent and classy. My only complaints are that Nicol Williamson (and his voice) are so annoying, Duvall’s hammy English accent is overdone and his screen presence just cannot pull off an Englishman. (Christopher Plummer and Ian Holm would have been far smoother). But elegant style like this (aside from Duvall’s phony presence) was sometimes hard to come by in the 70’s so I put up with all that. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 07/11/19 Full Review Audience Member Wonderful performances. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/26/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Seven-Per-Cent Solution

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Cast & Crew

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Herbert Ross

Director

Nicol Williamson

Sherlock Holmes

Alan Arkin

Dr. Sigmund Freud

Robert Duvall

Dr. John H. Watson

Vanessa Redgrave

Lola Deveraux

Laurence Olivier

Professor James Moriarty

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The Seven-Per-Cent Solution

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Movie Info

Synopsis In this bizarre twist on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic detective tales, Sherlock Holmes (Nicol Williamson) finds himself experiencing vivid hallucinations resulting from his cocaine addiction. Concerned about his friend's personal and professional welfare, the loyal Dr. Watson (Robert Duvall) contracts Sigmund Freud (Alan Arkin) to analyze Holmes' drug-addled mind, while the legendary sleuth also investigates the mysterious kidnapping of Lola Devereaux (Vanessa Redgrave).
Director
Herbert Ross
Producer
Herbert Ross
Distributor
Universal Pictures
Production Co
Universal Pictures
Rating
PG
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 24, 1976, Original
Release Date (DVD)
Jul 27, 2011
Runtime
1h 53m