‘The Final Problem’ series review: The meta game is afoot

Jose Coronado sparkles as the actor who made his name playing Sherlock Holmes, trying his hand at solving a classic locked-room mystery

Updated - September 29, 2026 11:40 am IST

A still from ‘The Final Problem’ | Photo Credit: Netflix

It is 1959 on Santa Águeda, an island near Mallorca. The island is a slice of paradise with only one hotel run by the redoubtable Mrs. Auslander (Maribel Verdú). A fierce storm strands the guests on Santa Águeda. One of the guests, Elisa (Paloma Bloyd), is found dead, apparently by suicide. As bodies pile up, and with no way of contacting the police (the storm destroys the radio), everyone is a suspect.

Benjamin Basil (Jose Coronado), an actor past his prime, was on a yacht with Fonseca (Gonzalo de Castro) a producer, and his girlfriend, a beautiful young actor, Vicky (Cristina Kovani). The bad weather prompts them to stay over on the island.

Foxá (Martiño Rivas) a crime novelist, tries to convince Basil, who made his name playing Sherlock Holmes, to look into the crime. Though Basil says he is only an actor who has played Holmes, Foxá says since Basil has read all the books and stories by Arthur Conan Doyle, he could put Holmes’ theories of detection into practice and solve the classic locked-room mystery.

The island has its fair share of suspicious people, from the maid who might have stolen something to the rich widow, Adela (María Valverde), the doctor who might not be revealing everything he learnt from his examination of the body, and a tetchy German couple.

As the investigation progresses, Basil is not above suspecting Foxá, who was only too eager to be his Watson. Who among this motley crew is the Moriarty or Irene Adler? Based on Arturo Pérez-Reverte’s 2023 novel, The Final Problem is a delicious homage to the golden age of crime fiction with references to Doyle and Agatha Christie.

There are echoes of Christie’s classic And Then There Were None where 10 guilty strangers on an island are picked off one by one by a remorseless killer. Pérez-Reverte’s book has more literary allusions including a crucial clue from the Christie short story, ‘Four and Twenty Blackbirds’. Also, the casual references to “Larry” Olivier and Clark Gable in the book are charming.

The show takes a visual approach. The final denouement takes place during the shooting of a film recalling Hamlet’s Mousetrap (yes, Shakespeare before Christie). The Final Problem is the name of Doyle’s short story, which ends with Holmes and his nemesis, Moriarty, falling off Reichenbach Falls.

Coronado makes for an excellent Basil, revealing the joy and curse of being such a great actor that he subsumes himself in the character. The hotel with its lovely, rich, warm colours and elegant furnishings, patios and lawns provides a wonderful setting for the mystery. The clothes and accessories especially Vicky and Adela’s fitted dresses and necklaces in vivid reds and blues are to die for.

The Final Problem is the ultimate mystery nerd’s delight. There is enough to enjoy even if you do not worship at the altar of a certain consultant detective at 221B Baker Street, as the mystery is quite clever and plays fair with the viewer.

The Final Problem is currently streaming on Netflix

Published - September 29, 2026 11:38 am IST

cinema / English cinema / streaming / television / reviews

Terms & conditions | Institutional Subscriber

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.