| Format: | DVD |
| Set in the Victorian Age and regarded by many as the finest of the fourteen films in the Sherlock Holmes/Basil Rathbone series, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes was originally released in 1939 by Twentieth Century-Fox. Professor Moriarty (George Zucco) has at long last been brought to trial for murder. But the "Napoleon of Crime" is acquitted after the court finds a lack of sufficient evidence. Moments after the judge releases the defendant, Sherlock Holmes dashes into the courtroom with proof that will destroy Moriarty's alibi and send the professor to the gallows. Alas, he is too late and the criminal mastermind is set free. Moriarty wastes no time in plotting his next crime, but in order to be successful he must divert the attention of the Great Detective. Enter Miss Ann Brandon (Ida Lupino), who calls on Holmes and his companion Dr. Watson (Nigel Bruce) after she and her brother receive anonymous letters containing a drawing of a man with an albatross hung around his neck, and a date written above the picture. Their father received the same baffling letter years before and was found murdered on the date inscribed in his letter. Are these mysterious letters but erroneous distractions? Are they clues to a case irrelevant to the exploits of the evil Professor Moriarty? Or are these portents of disaster inexorably linked to the master criminal's plan to commit a crime that will shake the very foundation of the British Empire? It is for Holmes and Watson to sort out the mystery and, hopefully, eliminate the menace of Professor Moriarty. |
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Editor's Note
After being acquitted of murder, Sherlock Holmes' (Basil Rathbone) cunning nemesis Professor Moriarty (George Zucco) hatches a plot to steal the famous Star of Delhi from the Crown Jewels at the Tower of London. In order to distract the master sleuth from this crime of the century, Moriarty sends anonymous death threats to young socialite Ann Brandon (Ida Lupino in an early role), forcing Holmes and Dr. Watson (Nigel Bruce) to split up to protect the jewels and prevent her murder. Based on a stage play by William Gillette, this second of the 14 films starring the classic pairing of Rathbone and Bruce is arguably considered the series' finest.
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Alan Marshall |
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Basil Rathbone |
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George Zucco |
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Ida Lupino |
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Nigel Bruce |
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Alfred Werker - Director |
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Arthur Conan Doyle - Based On Novel By |
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Edwin Blum - Screenplay |
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Gene Markey - Producer |
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Leon Shamroy - Cinematographer |
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William A. Drake - Screenplay |
Memorable Quotes
| "You've a magnificent brain. I'd like to present it pickled in alcohol to the London Medical Society." ---- Holmes to Moriarty |
