Murder by Decree (1979)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Bob Clark

Writers:

Arthur Conan Doyle (characters)
John Hopkins (screenplay)

Release Date:

9 February 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Sherlock Holmes unveils the secrecy of Jack the Ripper - clue by clue - murder by murder.

Plot:

Sherlock Holmes investigates the murders commited by Jack the Ripper and discovers a conspiracy to protect the killer.

Plot Keywords:

Jack The Ripper | Sherlock Holmes | Murder | Asylum | Conspiracy

Awards:

5 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Christopher Plummer	...	Sherlock Holmes
James Mason	...	Dr. John H. Watson
David Hemmings	...	Inspector Foxborough
Susan Clark	...	Mary Kelly
Anthony Quayle	...	Sir Charles Warren
John Gielgud	...	Prime Minister Lord Salisbury
Frank Finlay	...	Inspector Lestrade
Donald Sutherland	...	Robert Lees
Geneviève Bujold	...	Annie Crook
Chris Wiggins	...	Doctor Hardy
Tedde Moore	...	Mrs. Lees (as Teddi Moore)
Peter Jonfield	...	William Slade
Roy Lansford	...	Sir Thomas Spivey
Catherine Kessler	...	Carrie
Ron Pember	...	Makins

Also Known As:

Sherlock Holmes and Saucy Jack (USA)
Sherlock Holmes: Murder by Decree

Runtime:

124 min | Sweden:110 min

Country:

UK | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Sweden:15 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (original rating) | UK:15 | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Singapore:PG | Netherlands:16

Filming Locations:

Elstree Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

Canadian Film Development Corporation (CFDC)

Trivia:

One of the last actors cast was James Mason. Director Bob Clark had to travel to Spain, where Mason was shooting another picture, to meet with him. Mason agreed to play Watson if he could make him a serious character, not the "silly ass" buffoon character which was the rule. Mason rewrote two sequences including the famous "pea scene."

Goofs:

Anachronisms: When Watson questions the ladies in the Black Horse Tavern a Salvation Army band is playing "Onward Christian Soldiers" in the street. But the tune "St. Gertrude" was not composed and published by Sir Arthur Sullivan until after the purported time setting of the film (1888).

Quotes:

Sherlock Holmes: We've unmasked madmen, Watson, wielding scepters. Reason run riot. Justice howling at the moon.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Cinemania: Oi pio diavoitoi dolofonoi: Alithines istories!" (2009)

Soundtrack:

God Save the Queen

Superbly atmospheric, produced but flawed...

"Murder by Decree" could have been one of THE great Sherlock Holmes films but suffers from problematic scenes that need to be edited or cut altogether. Outstanding art direction and recreation of London in 1888 help to salvage it. It also features winning interpretations of Holmes and Watson by Christopher Plummer and James Mason (my favorite Dr. Watson), and fine performances by a strong supprting cast. It also features one of the scariest moments I've ever seen in a film, when the black eyes of the killer appears in a tight close-up. Scary! Overall: sluggish at time, but entertaining.