The Sign of Four (2001)

Greed, betrayal and vengeance set the stage for this Sir Arthur Conan Doyle classic. Mary Morstan, a young governess, has been receiving a rare and lustrous pearl annually from an anonymous... See full summary »

Director:

Rodney Gibbons

Writers:

Arthur Conan Doyle (novel), Joe Wiesenfeld

Stars:

Matt Frewer, Kenneth Welsh, Sophie Lorain

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Matt Frewer	...	Sherlock Holmes
Kenneth Welsh	...	Dr. Watson
Sophie Lorain	...	Miss Morstan
Marcel Jeannin	...	Thaddeus / Bartholomew
Michel Perron	...	Inspector Jones
Edward Yankie	...	John Small
Kevin Woodhouse	...	Williams
Cas Anvar	...	Sikh #1
Samir Mallal	...	Sikh #2
Ganesha Rasiah	...	Sikh #3
Johni Keyworth	...	Major Sholto
Kathleen McAuliffe	...	Mrs. Hudson
Fernando Chien	...	Tonga
Una Kay	...	Mrs. Bernstone
Chimwemwe Miller	...	Achmet

Storyline

Greed, betrayal and vengeance set the stage for this Sir Arthur Conan Doyle classic. Mary Morstan, a young governess, has been receiving a rare and lustrous pearl annually from an anonymous benefactor. This mysterious person now wants a meeting. Anxious and bewildered, Miss Morstan enlists Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson to escort her to this meeting. Together they go to the home of an eccentric novelist, Thaddeus Sholto, who recounts to them a tale of secrecy, hidden treasure and sudden death. Thaddeus reports that his father, Major Sholto, was in the army in India with Miss Morstan's father where the two had come to possess a fabulous treasure. Subsequently, her father mysteriously disappeared without his promised share. A guilt-ridden Major Sholto hid the treasure and sent Miss Morstan the annual gift of pearls. Years later, a letter arrives which leaves Major Sholto in a state of shock and despair. On his deathbed, Major Sholto prepares to tell his twin sons about the treasure's ...

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Plot Keywords:

sherlock holmes | based on novel | number in title | 

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Taglines:

Sworn in Secrecy. Signed in Blood.

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Genres:

Mystery

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Details

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 March 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

A négyek jele

Filming Locations:

Montréal, Québec, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Muse Entertainment Enterprises,Sign of Four Inc.

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

While bluffing to get information from Mrs. Smith about the Aurora, Holmes says "Judge Jeffereys and Dr. Crippen have beaten us to it". This is clearly intended as a joke, as well as perhaps a nod to Holmes' encyclopedic knowledge of crime. Of the two, the only one Holmes would have known about is Jeffereys, a seventeenth century judge famous for handing down executions. Dr. Crippen was an alleged murderer who was accused of poisoning his wife, caught, tried, and executed. However, this event did not happen until 1910. "The Sign of the Four" takes place in 1890, a good 20 years before Crippen's name would have hit the papers.

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Connections

Follows The Hound of the Baskervilles (2000)

User Reviews

Trash - plain and simple

I only caught the last 40 minutes or so of it on TV thank goodness. The accents are appalling, the acting wooden and artistic license has meant that the plot deviates from the original book in too many ways. I doubt very strongly that there was a dialogue coach - but if there was then he was taking money under false pretences.

Matt Frewer was an awful choice for Holmes - it's almost as though he plays the part for laughs. The best actor who has played the part was Jeremy Brett - he was a manic-depressive and so fitted the part quite well.

So far as I'm concerned this insult to a good story should never have been released and quietly burnt!