Dressed to Kill (1946)

Director:

Roy William Neill

Writers:

Arthur Conan Doyle (story) and
Frank Gruber (adaptation)

Release Date:

7 June 1946 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Crime | Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Queen . . . of a Crime Cult !

Plot:

A set of cheap music boxes that people are willing to kill for puts Sherlock Holmes on the case.

Plot Keywords:

Doll | Scotsman | Burglary | Cockney | Knife In Back

Cast

Basil Rathbone	...	Sherlock Holmes
Nigel Bruce	...	Dr. John H. Watson
Patricia Morison	...	Mrs. Hilda Courtney
Edmund Breon	...	'Stinky' Emery (as Edmond Breon)
Frederick Worlock	...	Colonel Cavanaugh (as Frederic Worlock)
Carl Harbord	...	Inspector Hopkins
Patricia Cameron	...	Evelyn Clifford
Holmes Herbert	...	Ebenezer Crabtree
Harry Cording	...	Hamid
Leyland Hodgson	...	Tour guide
Mary Gordon	...	Mrs. Hudson
Ian Wolfe	...	Commissioner of Scotland Yard

Also Known As:

Prelude to Murder (USA) (working title)
Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Code (UK)
Sherlock Holmes in Dressed to Kill

Runtime:

72 min (video version) | 76 min (copyright length)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:U (video rating) (1992) | USA:Approved (PCA #11512, General Audience)

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Mention is made by Watson of two stories from the original canon, "A Scandal in Bohemia" and "The Solitary Cyclist."

Goofs:

Anachronisms: "Dressed to Kill" takes place in contemporary times at the end of World War II. Watson refers to the events in his story "A Scandal in Bohemia" taking place two years earlier. In the story Bohemia was a independent kingdom, but in 1943 it was obviously part of Hitler's Third Reich.

Quotes:

Colonel Cavanaugh: By this time Mr. Holmes has exchanged his violin for a harp.
Mrs. Hilda Courtney: Oh, well, we're assuming Heaven is his destination.

Movie Connections:

Follows Sherlock Holmes in Washington (1943)

Soundtrack:

Londonderry Air (Danny Boy)

Can you name that tune?

Basil Rathbone stars in his fourteenth and final movie as Arthur Conan Doyle's super detective Sherlock Holmes. An interesting plot and mystery for Holmes and his faithful assistant Dr. Watson(Nigel Bruce)to solve. The title I assume must be referring to the winsome antagonist(Patricia Morison)that tries to find three music boxes before Holmes. Three identical music boxes were made by a prison inmate and sold at auction to three different collectors in London. One of the boxes was traced to one of Watson's old schoolmates(Edmund Breon), who is murdered and robbed of the newly purchased music box. The plot thickens as Holmes and Watson discover that the musical boxes contain more than just playing an old Australian folk song. Also in the cast are: Fredrick Worlock, Patricia Cameron and Carl Harbord.