What was Basil Rathbone's best role apart from Sherlock Holmes?!
Question: Major Brand in the Dawn Patrol. He played a squadron leader who came close to a nervous breakdown due to having to send young, inexperienced pilots on missions knowing most would fail to return. He is caught between his duty and his conscience - it is the best role in terms of portraying a man haunted by his actions, as opposed to the comic book style of acting required for Guy of Gisbourne (Adventures of Robin Hood) Levasseur (Captain Blood) or Pasquale (the Mark of Zorro)
Answers: Major Brand in the Dawn Patrol. He played a squadron leader who came close to a nervous breakdown due to having to send young, inexperienced pilots on missions knowing most would fail to return. He is caught between his duty and his conscience - it is the best role in terms of portraying a man haunted by his actions, as opposed to the comic book style of acting required for Guy of Gisbourne (Adventures of Robin Hood) Levasseur (Captain Blood) or Pasquale (the Mark of Zorro)
I thought he did a great job as Guy of Gisbourne in "The Adventures of Robin Hood" especially playing against Errol Flynn.
"IF I WERE KING" (1938) Rathbone played the king.
The following plot synopsis is from
http://movies.go.com/if-i-were-king/d794...
Ronald Colman (THE PRISONER OF ZENDA) plays Frances Villon--thief, bacchanal, rogue, and one of the great medieval European poets. Frances Dee (SO ENDS OUR NIGHT, WELLS FARGO) plays Katherine de Vaucelles, the love of Villon's life. A Robin Hood-like character, Villon escapes the Royal Guard with ease and grace until he is at last cornered in a den of thieves. Villon and his men fight, and Villon kills King Louis XI's grand constable before the king's very eyes. The king, superbly played by Basil Rathbone (THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES), offers Villon one chance to save himself from the gallows--Villon is named the new grand constable for one week's time, during which he must find a way to drive off the Burgundian hordes storming the city's walls. With death as the alternative, Villon is up for the challenge even though the French generals and army have refused to fight. A variety of talents combine to make IF I WERE KING a classic swashbuckler, including Colman's suave presence, Dee's comely looks, Rathbone's superb performance, picturesque gothic sets, and the lively and comical repartees from screenwriting great Preston Sturges (SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS).