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Started By
Message
Harry Potter movies and JK Rowling plagiarized Young Sherlock Holmes (1985)
Posted on 9/8/15 at 12:24 pm
Posted on 9/8/15 at 12:24 pm
Young Sherlock Holmes is one of my favorite movies of all time. It's a wonderful original story written by Christopher Columbus (Goonies, Gremlins)and directed by Barry Levinson (The Natural, Rain Man).
This past Labor Day weekend I hosted family at my house the entire weekend. Everyone wanted to watch nostalgic movies, so it became a weekend of movies like Dragonslayer, Summer School, Twilight Zone The Movie, School Ties, and finally...Young Sherlock Holmes. I hadn't watched YSH in a few years and was eager to experience it again.
However, almost immediately into the movie I began to notice something extraordinary: The Harry Potter movies (and perhaps JK Rowling) ripped off Young Sherlock Holmes.
Essentially, the Harry Potter story is Young Sherlock Holmes set in a magical world. Not only is the story a ripoff, but the first movie in particular, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, absolutely rips off the Young Sherlock Holmes movie. Everything is a rip off: The story, the characters, the setting, the set design, the musical score....almost everything!
I thought to myself, "Maybe there's a connection." Sure enough, a quick google search revealed a startling connection between the two movies: Christopher Columbus.
Christopher Columbus wrote the original story for Young Sherlock Holmes. He was instrumental in that movie's set design and atmosphere. Christopher Columbus also directed Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Therefore, it's not a stretch to believe that Christopher Columbus looked back to 1985's Young Sherlock Holmes as creative inspiration for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
If you don't believe me, just compare images from the two movies:
Three Main Characters
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes:
Scarf and Round Glasses
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes:
Antagonists
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes:
Headmaster of School (who happens to be a close friend to the protagonists)
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes:
Female Lead
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes
Private School Where Story Takes Place
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes:
There's even a few scenes in Young Sherlock Holmes that almost exactly match the Hogwarts mess hall scenes, with exception to the magical floating candles. The only difference? The candles in YSH are sitting on the table. Everything else is the same:
But the similarities between the two movies continue...
In Young Sherlock Holmes there is a fanatical Egyptian cult known as the Rametep that uses blow darts dipped in poison to inflict vivid nightmarish hallucinations upon innocent people which usually result in their suicide. The hallucinations add a Harry Potter-type magical aspect to this film.
Even the character Sherlock Holmes (the Ron Weasley look alike) uses a trick learned in his Chemistry class to turn his school rival's skin white. Therefore, Holmes' character literally uses magic to inflict a spell upon Dudley (the Draco Malfoy look alike).
But perhaps pointing the finger at Christopher Columbus is premature. Perhaps we should assume that JK Rowling was directly influenced by the movie Young Sherlock Holmes when writing her novels.
Sure, sure, we all know what Rowling has said inspired Harry Potter. However, it's not a stretch to believe that other creative works also inspired some of the details of the Harry Potter story specially considering that Rowling was a college student in 1985 when Young Sherlock Holmes debuted at theaters. Most people believe that the college experience is a powerful time of inspiration and creative output.
For example, how odd is it that the three characters in Young Sherlock Holmes almost look identical to the three characters in Harry Potter? Harry Potter and Watson's round eye glasses, scarf, hair, etc. Harry Potter and Watson look like twins. Sherlock Holmes and Ron Weasley look alike, and they both are in love with their female leads, which look exactly alike.
The inside of Hogwarts looks just like the inside of the private school that Watson and Holmes attend. The mess halls are almost exact replicas down to the candlelight. The class rooms, professors, and headmasters all line up. Each story contains a magical fantastical element.
Not to mention that Harry Potter, Ron, and Hermione are essentially Sherlock Holmes and Watson reincarnated. I mean, what do Harry Potter, Ron, and Hermione constantly find themselves doing at Hogwarts?
Answer: They are always trying to solve a mystery.
I suggest all Harry Potter movie fans to watch Young Sherlock Holmes. Not only is it an excellent movie, but you'll have a wonderful time comparing elements of YSH to the Harry Potter movies.
Sincerely,
Killz
This past Labor Day weekend I hosted family at my house the entire weekend. Everyone wanted to watch nostalgic movies, so it became a weekend of movies like Dragonslayer, Summer School, Twilight Zone The Movie, School Ties, and finally...Young Sherlock Holmes. I hadn't watched YSH in a few years and was eager to experience it again.
However, almost immediately into the movie I began to notice something extraordinary: The Harry Potter movies (and perhaps JK Rowling) ripped off Young Sherlock Holmes.
Essentially, the Harry Potter story is Young Sherlock Holmes set in a magical world. Not only is the story a ripoff, but the first movie in particular, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, absolutely rips off the Young Sherlock Holmes movie. Everything is a rip off: The story, the characters, the setting, the set design, the musical score....almost everything!
I thought to myself, "Maybe there's a connection." Sure enough, a quick google search revealed a startling connection between the two movies: Christopher Columbus.
Christopher Columbus wrote the original story for Young Sherlock Holmes. He was instrumental in that movie's set design and atmosphere. Christopher Columbus also directed Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Therefore, it's not a stretch to believe that Christopher Columbus looked back to 1985's Young Sherlock Holmes as creative inspiration for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
If you don't believe me, just compare images from the two movies:
Three Main Characters
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes:
Scarf and Round Glasses
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes:
Antagonists
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes:
Headmaster of School (who happens to be a close friend to the protagonists)
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes:
Female Lead
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes
Private School Where Story Takes Place
Harry Potter:
Young Sherlock Holmes:
There's even a few scenes in Young Sherlock Holmes that almost exactly match the Hogwarts mess hall scenes, with exception to the magical floating candles. The only difference? The candles in YSH are sitting on the table. Everything else is the same:
But the similarities between the two movies continue...
In Young Sherlock Holmes there is a fanatical Egyptian cult known as the Rametep that uses blow darts dipped in poison to inflict vivid nightmarish hallucinations upon innocent people which usually result in their suicide. The hallucinations add a Harry Potter-type magical aspect to this film.
Even the character Sherlock Holmes (the Ron Weasley look alike) uses a trick learned in his Chemistry class to turn his school rival's skin white. Therefore, Holmes' character literally uses magic to inflict a spell upon Dudley (the Draco Malfoy look alike).
But perhaps pointing the finger at Christopher Columbus is premature. Perhaps we should assume that JK Rowling was directly influenced by the movie Young Sherlock Holmes when writing her novels.
Sure, sure, we all know what Rowling has said inspired Harry Potter. However, it's not a stretch to believe that other creative works also inspired some of the details of the Harry Potter story specially considering that Rowling was a college student in 1985 when Young Sherlock Holmes debuted at theaters. Most people believe that the college experience is a powerful time of inspiration and creative output.
For example, how odd is it that the three characters in Young Sherlock Holmes almost look identical to the three characters in Harry Potter? Harry Potter and Watson's round eye glasses, scarf, hair, etc. Harry Potter and Watson look like twins. Sherlock Holmes and Ron Weasley look alike, and they both are in love with their female leads, which look exactly alike.
The inside of Hogwarts looks just like the inside of the private school that Watson and Holmes attend. The mess halls are almost exact replicas down to the candlelight. The class rooms, professors, and headmasters all line up. Each story contains a magical fantastical element.
Not to mention that Harry Potter, Ron, and Hermione are essentially Sherlock Holmes and Watson reincarnated. I mean, what do Harry Potter, Ron, and Hermione constantly find themselves doing at Hogwarts?
Answer: They are always trying to solve a mystery.
I suggest all Harry Potter movie fans to watch Young Sherlock Holmes. Not only is it an excellent movie, but you'll have a wonderful time comparing elements of YSH to the Harry Potter movies.
Sincerely,
Killz
This post was edited on 9/8/15 at 12:48 pm
21
Posted on 9/8/15 at 12:27 pm to mizzoukills
I never thought I'd say this but I think killz should stick with posting on the sec rant.
Posted on 9/8/15 at 12:29 pm to mizzoukills
Posted on 9/8/15 at 12:30 pm to mizzoukills
Please find more vague similarities between two movies
Maybe you can find out how SpongeBob is a ripoff of the Predator
Maybe you can find out how SpongeBob is a ripoff of the Predator
Posted on 9/8/15 at 12:32 pm to mizzoukills
How many pots did you smoke while writing that?
Posted on 9/8/15 at 12:51 pm to mizzoukills
A few mistakes that blow your theory away. I've never seen any of the Harry Potter movies btw.
This is the villain of Young Sherlock Holmes, not the pic you posted
This is the former headmaster of Holmes' school. He is retired and largely seen as a crazy old man by everyone but Holmes.
As for the schools, is it really hard to believe that old schools in England would have similar architecture? Holmes' school building could be 500 years old. All the big old buildings in England look like that.
This is the villain of Young Sherlock Holmes, not the pic you posted
This is the former headmaster of Holmes' school. He is retired and largely seen as a crazy old man by everyone but Holmes.
As for the schools, is it really hard to believe that old schools in England would have similar architecture? Holmes' school building could be 500 years old. All the big old buildings in England look like that.
Posted on 9/8/15 at 1:02 pm to mizzoukills
Solid post, upvoted.
Posted on 9/8/15 at 1:37 pm to mizzoukills
I actually thought someone was suing over this. Should have known better with Killz as the OP
And not one single person is gonna read any of that
And not one single person is gonna read any of that
Posted on 9/8/15 at 1:43 pm to mizzoukills
frick me this thread is terrible
Have you ever even been to England? A school looking like a castle, kids wearing scarves, and being taught by some old fart with a beard are straight up "No shite Sherlock" revelations.
Have you ever even been to England? A school looking like a castle, kids wearing scarves, and being taught by some old fart with a beard are straight up "No shite Sherlock" revelations.
This post was edited on 9/8/15 at 1:46 pm
Posted on 9/8/15 at 1:45 pm to mizzoukills
If I could rip off someone and make a billion dollars I'd do it in a heart beat
Posted on 9/8/15 at 2:32 pm to mizzoukills
Posted on 9/8/15 at 9:36 pm to mizzoukills
I hate to burst your bubble Killz... but this pretty weak sauce. Now, if you want to say that Rowling... borrowed... the look and concept of Harry Potter from Neil Gaiman's Books of Magic series then you probably would have some solid ground to stand on.
Movies, especially those with young characters, tend to be fairly similar for good reason. Now I won't deny Young Sherlock Holmes is the bomb, it is a great movie, but there really aren't any smoking guns connecting the two other then the well established teen hero story.
Whereas Rowling has admitted she was reading the Books of Magic comic books when she first started writing the Harry Potter stuff. It is out there, you just have to look for it. Its like when the late Terry Pratchett bitch slapped Rowling when she claimed she didn't know she was writing fantasy until after the first few Harry Potter books were published. It is a bit sordid, and funny, but if you look online you can find it.
So, yes, Rowling was "influenced" by other people's works. Gaiman was influenced by Pratchett. Pratchett was influenced by Tolkien. Tolkien was influenced by Beowulf and the Kalevela. Those writers were probably influenced by psychedelic reindeer urine.
No. Really. It is revolting but true. Best to not peer too deeply into that abyss though.
Movies, especially those with young characters, tend to be fairly similar for good reason. Now I won't deny Young Sherlock Holmes is the bomb, it is a great movie, but there really aren't any smoking guns connecting the two other then the well established teen hero story.
Whereas Rowling has admitted she was reading the Books of Magic comic books when she first started writing the Harry Potter stuff. It is out there, you just have to look for it. Its like when the late Terry Pratchett bitch slapped Rowling when she claimed she didn't know she was writing fantasy until after the first few Harry Potter books were published. It is a bit sordid, and funny, but if you look online you can find it.
So, yes, Rowling was "influenced" by other people's works. Gaiman was influenced by Pratchett. Pratchett was influenced by Tolkien. Tolkien was influenced by Beowulf and the Kalevela. Those writers were probably influenced by psychedelic reindeer urine.
No. Really. It is revolting but true. Best to not peer too deeply into that abyss though.
Posted on 3/17/16 at 9:00 pm to mizzoukills
Nothing like cracked.com linking to this thread
Posted on 3/17/16 at 9:30 pm to mizzoukills
If anything, Harry Potter steals concepts from Neil Gaiman's Books Of Magic for which he filed a lawsuit against JK Rawling and rather than hash it out in court she chose to settle up.
The core concept:
Chosen one
Boy with lightning bolt scar
Magic
Pet owl.
The core concept:
Chosen one
Boy with lightning bolt scar
Magic
Pet owl.
Posted on 3/18/16 at 1:11 am to mizzoukills
I felt my IQ drop after having read that post
Posted on 3/18/16 at 1:39 am to mizzoukills
Is it really a ripoff of the same guy did both movies?
Posted on 3/18/16 at 2:45 am to mizzoukills
What story isn't said to have influenced HP? Appears to be derivative of everything. ;)
All I know is, Prof. Lockhart doesn't hold a candle to the genius that is Big Daddy Wiz.
All I know is, Prof. Lockhart doesn't hold a candle to the genius that is Big Daddy Wiz.
Posted on 3/18/16 at 6:16 am to mizzoukills
An old homo man who's a headmaster
I'm sure other movies you watch have men that are head masters
I'm sure other movies you watch have men that are head masters
Posted on 3/18/16 at 6:45 am to mizzoukills
Just to be clear, you're comparing Young Sherlock to the MOVIES of Harry Potter, as far as looks, not necessarily the books? If Christopher Columbus had a hand in both, then duh, directors typically have a distinct look to their work.
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