Murder by Decree
by Bob Clark
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DVD details
Actor: Anthony Quayle, Christopher Plummer, David Hemmings, James Mason, Susan ClarkDirector: Bob Clark
Producer: Bob Clark
Producer: Len Herberman
Producer: Ren? Dupont
Writer: Arthur Conan Doyle
Writer: Elwyn Jones
Writer: John Hopkins
Writer: John Lloyd
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0
Format: Anamorphic, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 124 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-01-21
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Starz / Anchor Bay
DVD Reviews of Murder by Decree
DVD Review: A lot of fun
Summary: 4 Stars
A fun story and the best one involving Jack the Ripper. Plummer plays Holmes with aplomb and is more accessible and likeable than some other portrayals. Mason as Watson is, well, perfect. DVD Review: 2 stars out of 4
Summary: 2 Stars
The Bottom Line:
The production values of this Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper film are decent but Plummer and Mason never seem comfortable in their roles and the movie goes through the motions of a Royal conspiracy without ever engaging the viewer; unless you're a Ripperphile who's already seen From Hell, there's little reason to make time for this turgid bore.
DVD Review: Sherlock Holmes meets the Sea Hag
Summary: 3 Stars
Remember that old Popeye the Sailor female known as "The Sea Hag"? Well, you will find strong competition in this production among the victims of Jack the Ripper and other women consigned to the Asylum. I suspect that the director thought he would be invoking the realism of life in Whitechapel by showing the effects of poverty on the many faces of poor wretches forced to make their living on the streets of London.
The results are rather disturbing, as we are forced to see some rather revolting images among a few rare moments of normalcy.
Christopher Plummer as Sherlock Holmes is rather understated here, save for a few moments among the representatives of the cult of the Masonic Order, who are blamed for the Ripper murders and the subsequent cover up. James Mason's performance as Watson is something that will grow on you as you see the movie over again over the years, especially his upset at Holmes when Holmes "solves" the problem of Watson's attempts to remove the last pea from his dinner plate.
I think Donald Sutherland played his character rather well, considering that he is a rather tall psychic. The film invokes the era of "London Fog" very well and throws the "revolutionary fire" and is constantly at odds between the Aristocracy and the Poor.
Overall an interesting concept, but poor Dr. Gull is not around to defend himself and reminds me of how the revisionist historians now make famous people look bad after they are deceased.
Produced during the great Holmesian revival, this film is a decent piece of work but the sets are rather dull, and cheap save for the opening of Holmes at the Opera House. Worth seeing but not the best tangent from the Holmes stories ever done.
DVD Review: A Delightful Pair
Summary: 4 Stars
By "Pair," I mean Plummer and Mason, quite different from Rathbone and Bruce. Watching Watson fussing with the last pea on his plate, getting uncomfortable when a lady in the pub puts her hand on his thigh, and wondering what took Holmes so long to get him out of jail led much-needed humor to this dark movie. I liked the close-up of the Ripper's eyes near the beginning, and the tender way Mrs. Lee placed her hands on her husband's shoulders. It was fun watching Hemmings in a different role from when he was Modred, Richard Harris' King Arthur's son in Camelot, and Bujold playing so different a character from the one she played with Robert Shaw in Swashbuckler. I gave the movie 4 stars because Plummer came across as a little too emotional at times, but listening to the haunting melody he plays at the end, both sad and hopeful, is a treat to my ears.
DVD Review: Sherlock Holmes takes on the Ripper Killings
Summary: 4 Stars
"Murder By Decree" is a 1979 film that posits the theory that the Ripper killings was a conspiracy. This is also the movie that predated "From Hell", another Ripper movie starring Johnny Depp and Heather Graham. Both are well-made movies, though I felt that the script and acting in "Murder By Decree" was far superior than "From Hell".
In "Murder By Decree", Sherlock Holmes, the gentleman sleuth is called upon by some Whitechapel merchants to solve the Ripper murders. Here Holmes is played impeccably by a dashing Christopher Plummer, who also makes Holmes seem very much human and not just a cold investigator. His sidekick, Dr Watson is ably portrayed by James Mason, and the pair share good chemistry, bantering away naturally, and seem very much at ease in their roles.
As the pair follow each clue, they meet a host of interesting characters, and some really sinister ones as well - there's Inspector Foxborough [David Hemmings] who resents their intrusion, the medium Robert Lees [effectively played by a haunted-looking Donald Sutherland], the prostitute Mary Kelly [Susan Clark] who harbors a dangerous secret, the insane woman in the asylum , Annie Crook [Genevieve Bujold in a brief yet very emotional scene] who may hold the key to solving the mystery, Sir Charles Warren [Anthony Quayle], and even Sir John Gielgud [as Prime Minister Lord Salisbury].
The movie is rich in atmosphere - London looks overcast and gloomy, and the scenes of the murders in Whitechapel are pervaded by an atmosphere of menace. The movie as a whole effectively captures the darkness of the period and the score is well-done as well. Though the story itself is one of murder and evil, there are light moments that offset its grim tone - the camaraderie between Holmes and Watson, the funny situations that Watson finds himself in [he is obviously the comic relief here] are all credibly done and enhance the storytelling.
All in all, I found myself riveted throughout the unfolding of this story and would highly recommend it to fans of period thrillers & Sherlock Holmes.
Description of Murder by Decree
The legendary sherlock holmes & his faithful assistant watson take on the horrific case of jack the ripper. But uncovering the truth turns out to be a nightmare of hidden agendas deadly conspiracies & blood-curdling murder. Studio: Starz/sphe Release Date: 09/07/2004 Starring: Christopher Plummer James MasonMurder by Decree has the distinction of being not only one of the best Sherlock Holmes films, but one of the best pastiches (i.e., a Holmes fiction created by someone other than author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) featuring the late-Victorian Era detective. Christopher Plummer is very good as Holmes, and James Mason redeems the many mishandled screen portrayals of Dr. John Watson with a rare, insightful performance. The story may not be unique in post-Doyle Holmes adventures--the private investigator pursues Jack the Ripper during the latter's reign of monstrous murders in foggy London--but the script by John Hopkins (Thunderball) is keenly intelligent, developing concentric circles of power and evil with great subtlety. Before losing himself in Porky's, director Bob Clark did a masterful job of surprising audiences with Murder by Decree, convincing viewers they were watching one kind of drama but then unleashing something very different, very unsettling. --Tom Keogh
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