"Murder by Decree" *** Out of Four

I love the original Arthur Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes stories, and am therefore both a sucker for film versions of the characters, and also a bit picky about them. When everyone else was singing the praises of the early trailers for the Robert Downey Jr film, I was upset at what a butchering of the character it appeared to be (because I was so prepared to hate it I actually ended up quite liking the film). I've never been able to embrace the classic Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce films, partly because of Bruce's portrayal of Watson as a blustery old fool (Watson is extremely intelligent and a year younger than Holmes).

Easily the most accurate realization of the Holmes characters is the BBC/PBS series starring Jeremy Brett. If there is a definitive Holmes, this is definitely it. But there a number of other versions I quite enjoy, including director Bob Clark's 1979 film Murder by Decree, which pits the consulting detective against Jack the Ripper. If you know any of the conspiracy theories regarding the ripper, the title has a good chance of tipping you off to the solution.

As with any Holmes film, the casting of the two leads sort of makes or brakes the film. Christopher Plummer has has all the right qualities for Holmes. While I was ambivalent about the film's tendency to turn him into something of a moralistic crusader toward the end, Plummer did hit the big speech out of the park. He looks the part, and acts the part extremely well, making him probably the biggest asset the film has. Mason, a superb actor, is saddled with a bit of the Nigel Bruce take on Watson, but it's still a strong performance, and the chemistry with Plummer is certainly there.And Watson's buffoonish tendencies certainly decrease as the film goes on.

Other members of the distinguished cast are mostly strong. of course John Gielgud adds greatly to the proceedings. The great Donald Sutherland is oddly out of place (which has happened too many times over his career). Genevieve Bujold does good work as one of the women central to the investigation, and Susan Clark is a pleasant surprise as another. If you know Clark at all, you probably know her, as I did, for the TV series Webster or the Disney film The Apple Dumpling Gang. Seeign her not only doing a British accent, but also giving a haunting, disturbing performance, is not an experience i expected to have.

Bob Clark's directing career was made up mostly of critically reviled sex-comedies, and a few horror films here and there, but he has a place in cinematic history for directing the classic A Christmas Story.  Murder by Decree is certainly one of the better films of his career, and he guides it very well, from his handling of the performances and characters with a aplomb, to establishing the creepy London fog atmosphere, to engaging us in the story. It's not the best film ever made about Sherlock Holmes, but it's certainly a good one, and well worth seeing for fans of Holmes or anyone who enjoys a good mystery.