Elementary my dear Ripper! Murder by Decree is directed by Bob Clark and adapted to screenplay by John Hopkins from the novel The Ripper File written by Elwyn Jones and John Lloyd. It stars Christopher Plummer, James Mason, David Hemmings, Susan Clark, Frank Finlay, Anthony Quayle, Donald Sutherland, Geneviève Bujold & John Gielgud. Film pitches Sherlock Holmes (Plummer) and Dr. Watson (Mason) into the hunt for Jack the Ripper in Whitechapel, London 1888... I've been exploited old fellow, by the very people for whom we are searching. The greatest of detectives searching for Britain's most notorious serial killer, it's a killer pitch that had already had a film made in 1965 called A Study in Terror. That was a film that couldn't quite get it right, here, 14 years later, there's a bigger budget and "A" list gloss to help tell the tale. And boy does it work! In the cannon of Sherlock Holmes, Murder by Decree is to Holmes films what On Her Majesty's Secret Service is to the James Bond franchise. Appertaining to the great detective himself, it's the odd one out, a divisive picture, not because it's rubbish or technically shy, but because the main man protagonist dares to be human, a man of conscious; politically, socially and ethically. He's still the same charming, clever and complex character most have come to know and love, but Murder by Decree fronts him out as a human being, with Watson alongside him as a non buffoon bloke doing his bit for the case whilst remaining sensitive about the last pea on his plate! It's these characterisations, splendidly played by two actors of considerable talent, that are at the core of the film's success. If she dies and you come under my hand? Expect no mercy. Period production value is high, it has to be for a Jolly Jack based movie. Bring the dark, bring the smog and bring the Victorian costumes (Judy Moorcroft). Then play it out amongst shadowy lamp lighted cobbled streets and let the sets drip with slum London sweat and tears. All that is required then is to have a source story of compelling interest, of which Murder by Decree scores greatly as well. It's fanciful for sure, but the most spectacular of all Ripper theories. From a secret love child to the Freemasons, and up to Royalty itself, it's a potent notion put forward. That is of course conjecture as a solution, but the makers are to be applauded for taking that idea and successfully combining the Arthur Conan Doyle creations with historical reality, something that A Study in Terror fell considerably short on. Rest of the cast is filled out with some quality as well, where Hemmings, Quayle, Finlay, Gielgud and Bujold don't disappoint, the latter of which gets to really perform with substance in the pivotal scene set in an Asylum. Only real let down is Sutherland, or more like what the makers did (didn't do) with him. His psychic Robert Lees crops up for a couple of small scenes for what we expect will be a telling contribution to the plot, but they aren't. It seems like just an excuse to do Sutherland up like he had just awoken from the grave, and to give the picture some ethereal sheen moments. For the finale and the big reveal of the Ripper, Plummer is simply magnificent. He holds court in front of his peers, including the Prime Minister (Gielgud), and unfurls the explanation with impassioned fortitude, it's then that we realise this was always a Sherlock Holmes movie, and not a Jack the Ripper piece. With that, it's one of the best featuring the Deer Stalker wearing fellow. 9/10
Christopher Plummer dons the famous deerstalker in this well produced and stylish looking outing for "Sherlock Holmes". Here, together with stalwart colleague "Dr. Watson" (James Mason) they find themselves drawn into the mysterious investigation of a series of gruesome Whitechapel murders. What is being locally described as the "Jack the Ripper" crimes is baffling "Lestrade" (Frank Finlay) to the point that his job is on the line after an intervention by the Commissioner himself (Sir Anthony Quayle). This adaptation follows the increasingly more established story of political and court intrigues around the identity of and the reasons for the "Ripper". A solid cast lend well to the overall sense of despair and, to some extent, depravity in which these prostitutes lived - with a good effort from both Susan Clark ("Mary") and Genevieve Bujold ("Annie"); the latter offering a particularly poignant scene towards the end. The denouement drags out rather, and perhaps shows up a little of the limitations of Plummer, but otherwise this is an entertaining enough retelling of a story that benefits from great attention to detail and an effective score. Rathbone and Bruce they are not, but Plummer and Mason make a good fist of this, and it's an easy watch.
One of the last of the silent Sherlock films.
Movie Star Rating : 7 Read More
Holmes and Dr. Watson take on the case of a beautiful woman whose husband has vanished. The investigation proves strange indeed, involving six missing midgets, villainous monks, a Scottish castle, the Loch Ness monster, and covert naval experiments.
Movie Star Rating : 6.8 Read More
Richard Rhys, a painter in Victorian London, is the prime suspect in the Jack the Ripper murders. In a chance encounter he meets a wealthy reformer and socialite, Victoria Thornton, married to the richest man in England. Their passionate love affair results in a pregnancy and possible scandal and ruin. It is a story of redemption and true love.
Movie Star Rating : 2 Read More
Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson meet as boys in an English Boarding school. Holmes is known for his deductive ability even as a youth, amazing his classmates with his abilities. When they discover a plot to murder a series of British business men by an Egyptian cult, they move to stop it.
Movie Star Rating : 6.7 Read More
When a nobleman is threatened by a family curse on his newly inherited estate, detective Sherlock Holmes is hired to investigate.
Movie Star Rating : 6.8 Read More
Sherlock Holmes is as dashing as ever, but with a little secret: Dr. Watson is the brains behind the operation. When Reginald Kincaid, the actor he has hired to play Holmes becomes insufferable, Watson fires him and tries to go out on his own, but finds that he has done too good a job building Holmes up in the public's mind.
Movie Star Rating : 6.6 Read More
What led Arthur Conan Doyle to create, and then destroy the world famous detective, Sherlock Holmes? This compelling drama explores the dark secrets that surround the author and his creation.
Movie Star Rating : 6.1 Read More
When the diabolical Professor Ratigan kidnaps London's master toymaker, the brilliant master of disguise Basil of Baker Street and his trusted sidekick Dawson try to elude the ultimate trap and foil the perfect crime.
Movie Star Rating : 7.1 Read More
The legendary detective Sherlock Holmes and the elusive thief Arsene Lupin will unite their intelligence to stop the evil planes of the dangerous Fantomas.
Movie Star Rating : 8 Read More
Eccentric consulting detective Sherlock Holmes and Doctor John Watson battle to bring down a new nemesis and unravel a deadly plot that could destroy England.
Movie Star Rating : 7.2 Read More
London. A mysterious serial killer brutally murders young blond women by stalking them in the night fog. One foggy, sinister night, a young man who claims his name is Jonathan Drew arrives at the guest house run by the Bunting family and rents a room.
Movie Star Rating : 7.1 Read More
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