Rating: 
Summary: Holmes and Watson; Plummer and Mason: An Excellent Film
Review: In my view this is one of the best Sherlock Holmes movies yet made, with a strong, literate story, an outstanding cast and great atmosphere. London prostitutes have been gruesomely slaughtered by Jack the Ripper and Sherlock Holmes enters the case. The street women are scared to death but seem to be protecting someone. One, Mary Kelly, wants to help. Another, Annie Crook, has gone missing. The more Holmes probes and searches, the more it appears that some in high places are interfering with his investigation. Annie Crook is found and the secret discovered, but not before more lives are wasted and a secret which could shake the throne is uncovered. Justice more or less triumphs, but for Holmes and Watson it is a sad, bittersweet victory.
The movie features, in my opinion, outstanding interpretations of Holmes and Watson. Christopher Plummer gives Holmes not only brilliance but also humanity. He responds deeply to the terrible injustice he finds behind the Ripper killings. Mason plays Watson as an equal partner, with humor, wisdom and courage, and with none of the blundering and bluster that Nigel Bruce imprinted on the character. The cast features Genevieve Bujold as Annie Crook and Susan Clark (great in Night Moves) as Mary Kelly. David Hemmings, Anthony Quayle, John Gielgud, Frank Finlay and Donald Sutherland give a lot of depth to the movie.
As by way of a modest spoiler, the people who made From Hell by rights should have given a modest credit line to director Clark and writer John Hopkins. One other fascinating point concerns Clark. For some reason, this appears to be by far the best movie he ever made. Clark, shortly after Murder by Decree, gave us one of the broadest and corniest movies around, Porky's, and seems to have stayed more or less at the Porky's level ever since.
If you enjoy Sherlock Holmes along with first-rate acting, I think you'll like this film. The DVD transfer is very good.
Rating: 
Summary: Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper
Review: MURDER BY DECREE (1978): Whilst investigating a series of murders committed by 'Jack the Ripper' in Victorian London, Sherlock Holmes (Christopher Plummer) and Dr. Watson (James Mason) uncover a Masonic conspiracy which leads them to the very heart of the British Establishment.During the summer of 1973, the BBC ran a six-part documentary series entitled "Jack the Ripper" (also known as "The Ripper File"), in which two popular fictional detectives (played by Stratford Johns and Frank Windsor) investigated the 'true' identity of Jack the Ripper, using all the evidence available to them at the time. Their conclusions formed the basis of Bob Clark's all-star period thriller MURDER BY DECREE, which condenses vast amounts of information into a single digestible screenplay. A British/Canadian co-production, the film's lavish recreation of Victorian London (extravagant opera houses, cobbled streets and miles of gloomy Whitechapel alleyways populated by hundreds of costumed extras) belies its modest $4m budget, and for once, the starry supporting cast - including Anthony Quayle, David Hemmings, John Gielgud and Donald Sutherland - seem perfectly suited to their individual roles. For the most part, Clark subordinates his deceptively simple visual style to a wealth of evidence which constitutes the heart and soul of John Hopkins' detailed screenplay. In particular, director and writer outline the political and class divisions which prevailed in England at the time of the Ripper murders, exacerbating a number of problems surrounding the police investigation and leading to all manner of conspiracy theories which persist to this day. However, the script contains a number of memorable character touches (the episode of the 'errant pea' is most prized by the movie's many fans) which prevents the narrative from becoming bogged down in a series of facts and figures. Plummer and Mason are ideally suited to the roles of Holmes and Watson, though Genevieve Bujold almost steals the film during a heartbreaking sequence in a lonely asylum where Holmes discovers the key to the unfolding mystery. You may not agree with the film's conclusions (the same evidence was re-evaluated by author Stephen Knight in his popular non-fiction account 'Jack the Ripper The Final Solution' [1976] and David Wickes' excellent TV movie JACK THE RIPPER [1988] starring Michael Caine), but MURDER BY DECREE is generally ackowledged as one of the best Ripper/Holmes movies ever made. Incidentally, the film was given a PG rating at a time when the MPAA was allowing some extraordinarily vivid material to go unchecked within this particular category, and while MURDER BY DECREE doesn't revel in violence, it conveys the grislier aspects of the Ripper's crimes with enough borderline potency to warrant a PG-13 these days. Unusually for an Anchor Bay release, their disc is region 1 only, and the movie runs 123m 19s (not including the distributor logos which open the video print and weren't part of the original film). The image is letterboxed at 1.85:1 (anamorphically enhanced) for the first time on home video, and picture quality is solid. Sound format is 2.0 mono. Closed captions are included, though this reviewer wishes that 'open' captions - accessible to all via the menu - would become the norm for DVD rather than the exception. Extras include a wide-ranging audio commentary by director Clark, detailed biographies of the film's major personnel, a trailer, and several photo galleries which cover both the production and the advertising materials.
Rating:
Summary: Sherlock Holmes Meets Saucy Jack
Review: Murder By Decree continues the winning streak for Anchor Bay Entertainment. They've done some outstanding work restoring little-seen films and giving them new life on DVD, and Murder By Decree is no exception. The film postulates the fateful encounter between the Sherlock Holmes/Watson duo (Christopher Plummer & James Mason, both excellent in their roles) and Jack the Ripper, or more accurately, the conspiracy BEHIND Jack the Ripper. The forces, both social and economic, at work in London in the late 1800's are explored fully and to great effect by Director Bob Clark, who is perhaps best known for directing the perennial Holiday Favorite "A Christmas Story". A film about Jack the Ripper may seem like an odd fit for Clark, but he handles the film well, and gets some great performances by the cast, including John Gielgud, Frank Finlay, Genvieve Bujold, and Susan Clark; They're all phenomenal in their parts. Plummer's Holmes seems more human than most other cinematic depictions I've seen, and Mason brings an almost unheard-of degree of professionalism and dignity to the oft-maligned role of Watson, who is usually depicted as a bufoon onscreen. The film suffers slightly from a score which doesn't seem to fit the sinister visuals at all; The music is too old-school, and seems to have been lifted from a cheesy 1940's melodrama. The DVD comes with an informative booklet, one of my favorite features of Anchor Bay's DVD line. The DVD itself includes commentary by Director Clark, an extensive photo and poster/ad gallery, and Biographies of Clark, Plummer, & Mason. The film transfer is gorgeous, as usual for Anchor Bay. Murder By Decree is probably the best Sherlock Holmes film I've ever seen, and will make a welcome addition to any Mystery/Thriller fan's DVD collection.
Rating: 
Summary: Doesn't hold up
Review: Personally I get tired of the current movies with their hyper-kinetic MTV editing and pacing (see From Hell). So I am more than open to the movies from 10-20 years ago where the pace was a little more relaxed. But even having said that, this movie is still TOO slow, and TOO talky. The cast is fine, though as other people have mentioned James Mason is perhaps 10 years too old for his role. And a personal pet peeve: it annoys me when you have a period piece film but then the actors have contemporary hair cuts. Christopher Plummer's hairstyle is circa 1980 and NOT 1880 as it should be.
Rating:
Summary: My favorite Sherlock Holmes movie.
Review: Personally, I can't take seriously the old Basil Rathbone Sherlock Holmes movies -- although Rathbone was a competent Holmes -- because Nigel Bruce played Dr. Watson as a buffoon. In the books, Watson was an educated, intelligent man and the fact that Holmes' thoroughly surpassed him helped indicate Holmes' genius. In my opinion, it is essential for Watson to be portrayed correctly for a Sherlock Holmes movie to be correctly done. In the recent TV series David Burke played Watson to perfection and thereby enhanced Jeremy Brett's reputation as an outstanding Holmes. In Murder by Decree Christopher Plummer is the best Holmes of all with able support from James Mason as Watson. The movie, in which Holmes solves the Jack the Ripper murders, is outstanding in virtually every respect. In my opinion, this is the best Sherlock Holmes movie ever made -- and a great movie regardless of genre. I can't understand why this outstanding movie isn't available on DVD yet, but it's so good that I recommend it in whatever format is available.
Rating:
Summary: DVD Manufacturers Just Don't Care
Review: So far, this is the only forum I've located - beyond my local retail outlets - for my complaint about the quality of too many DVD's. I agree with the other reviewers and think this movie is truly one of the great illustrations of Holmes, but I have gone through a half dozen copies of this DVD from two local retail outlets and every one of them has a three-second stall in the transition from Chapter 14 to Chapter 15! So, I rate it 2-stars. I enjoy watching movies, but that enjoyment is ruined by this still scene of a steam locomotive rounding a curve at the beginning of the chapter! I encounter this phenomenon in fully 10% of the DVD's I buy. I don't want another disc in exchange; I don't want my money back. I want the manufacturers to pay more attention to quality control.
Rating:
Summary: Recipe for movie excellence
Review: Take a factual event, in this case the Jack the Ripper Killings. Take one of the more popular theories of the murders such as the involvement of the British Royal family, Add the most famous fictional detective of all, Sherlock Holmes, to investigate and solve the theory, then mix well. Then release on DVD. The resulting movie is a good quality, thought provoking, tasty and very entertaining story. The chemistry between Christopher Plummer (Holmes) and the late James Mason (Watson) is simply outstanding as indeed are the supporting actors, if one can classify John Gielguld, Genieve Bujold and Frank Finlay as merely supporting. Again this 'Ripper' theory is only one of many, but Murder by Decree certainly makes it a convincing one.
One disappointment with the new DVD release, perhaps a documentary on the Ripper Murders in Whitechapel could have been added for interest. Apart from that the film quality and sound are mush better than I expected.
Rating: 
Summary: Holmes vs. Conspiracy?
Review: Taken separately, Plummer (too emotional) and Mason (too old) are miscast. But, their chemistry is excellent, though not as good as Rathbone and Bruce (fourteen films)or Cushing and Mills ("Masks of Death"). Frank Finlay may just be the best Lestrade. Most of the Holmes vs. Ripper film is quite good. Then comes the ending, with just about every discredited conspiracy theory ever offered thrown into one long-winded emotional speech by Holmes. Did the writers forget that in the stories brother Mycroft Holmes was the government?
Rating:
Summary: Holmes vs. Conspiracy?
Review: Taken separately, Plummer (too emotional) and Mason (too old) are miscast. But, their chemistry is excellent, though not as good as Rathbone and Bruce (fourteen films)or Cushing and Mills ("Masks of Death"). Frank Finlay may just be the best Lestrade. Most of the Holmes vs. Ripper film is quite good. Then comes the ending, with just about every discredited conspiracy theory ever offered thrown into one long-winded emotional speech by Holmes. Did the writers forget that in the stories brother Mycroft Holmes was the government?
Rating:
Summary: MBD - an ingenious approach
Review: The 1979 UK/Canada co-production of MURDER BY DECREE is directed by Bob Clark and features an all-star cast including Christopher Plummer, James Mason and Susan Clark.
The screenplay, by John Hopkins, was based on the most recent writings of the time, by "Ripper scholars", as to the real identity of Jack the Ripper, an unanswered question that has baffled many. What makes this film unique is the employment of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's characters, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, to solve the mystery. The chase leads to people and places, high and low, accompanied by an excellent musical score. Composers Paul Zaza and Carl Zittrer team with director Clark (as they did in 1983's A Christmas Story, based on the humor of Jean Shepherd) for an excellent entertainment. Perhaps provided by Zittrer, whose credits include a number of films in the horror genre from the early '70's, the film's eerie moments are intensified by the accompanying music. The film ends on a note of bittersweet resignation and the credits roll, supported by the music heard in the midi file at http://www......html The closing music recapitulates the brighter themes heard throughout the film. At times hauntingly beautiful, the piece grows from a violin solo played by the character of Sherlock Holmes at story's end. This music is diatonic and triad-based, always reflecting the sounds of the sea. Great Britain, its people and land, are never far from the sea, and nowhere is that more clearly represented than in the music associated with it. Whether written by native orchestral and band composers or by others seeking to evoke a sound and feeling made familiar by associations over time, the sea is always there.
|
