La Femme en vert

Four women have been murdered around London. The police suspect a Jack The Ripper-type killer but Sherlock Holmes has other ideas. Sir George Fenwick becomes the prime suspect when a highly incriminating piece of evidence is found in his possession. However, when Sir George is murdered the plot thickens.

The eleventh (of, ultimately, 14) films in the Basil Rathbone-starring Sherlock Holmes series that ran from 1939 to 1946. Adapted from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Empty House", "The Woman in Green" is an interesting and entertaining Sherlock Holmes drama. Like many of the Basil Rathbone films it is more a thriller than a mystery-drama so unfortunately the clever deductions take a back seat to action and tension.

Also on the negative side is the portrayal of Dr Watson, played by Nigel Bruce. Not Nigel Bruce's fault - he's doing as directed - but the fault of the screenwriter and director. Maybe I'm spoiled by the Martin Freeman version in the recent Sherlock series but Watson being played as an ignorant buffoon just doesn't work for me.

Overall, entertaining enough.

I'm a big fan of the Basil Rathbone/Sherlock Holmes series. This review is of the restored black and white 35 mm version issued in 2003. Having watched all of the Holmes films on TV or videotape, with bad prints and lousy sound, this restored version is the one to see. The restoration is perfect and shows the visual beauty of the film which is without question.

Basil Rathbone immortalized Sherlock Holmes in 14 films. The Woman in Green was the 11th in the series. There is a hint of tiredness in Rathbone's portrayal in this one. The story is interesting and involves severed fingers, the sinister Professor Moriarty and the mysterious Woman in Green. Henry Daniell is a good Professor Moriarty and Hillary Brooke as The Woman in Green is mysterious and seductive. As always, Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce as bumbling Dr.Watson are fun to watch.

At 68 minutes the film is short. As with all Holmes films, we wish for more. By all means see it.

"The Woman in Green" is one of the numerous Sherlock Holmes movies with Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce appearing as Holmes and Watson. While routine in some respects, this one features a series of bizarre crimes and some worthy adversaries for the great detective.

Holmes must solve a series of murders that each involve the same set of weird details, but that seem unrelated in other respects. The plot this time is somewhat different from most Holmes stories, in that the audience knows the identity of the villains early in the film, but it takes a while before we know why or exactly how they committed the murders. After Holmes figures it all out, he must still try to catch the criminals, and there is an interesting final sequence in which Holmes himself is in great danger.

Rathbone and Bruce always make a good team even with the most routine stories, and this one is bizarre enough to hold attention in its own right. It also features a good pair of adversaries for Holmes. Professor Moriarty is in this one, portrayed by Henry Daniell. The notorious Moriarty is very difficult to do justice to on film, but Daniell works very well, with his icy personality and suave demeanor. Hillary Brooke is also pretty good as his attractive and dangerous accomplice.

Though not one of the greatest Holmes films, "The Woman in Green" has most of the features that Holmes fans look for, and it should not disappoint them.

It's an excellent film of the splendid Sherlock Holmes Basil Rathbone series including two first-range nasties : one man , Henry Daniell as Doctor Moriarty and one woman, Hillary Brooke as an illusionist with malignant aims.

In the flick appears the usual of the Arthur Conan Doyle's novels : Mycroft (Sherlock's brother), Dr.Moriarty, Mistress Hudson , and of course Doctor Watson.

The film has a creepy atmosphere , it's in black and white with lights and shades that originate an eerie setting.

Set design is of first rate , the movie is very atmospheric ,the dark and gloomy slums of London are very well designed.

Basil Rathbone's interpretation is magnificent, he's the best Sherlock Holmes in the cinema , likeness to Peter Cushing and Jeremy Brett in television.

Basil Rathbone as Holmes plays in a clever, broody and impetuous manner.

Nigel Bruce plays as Watson with humor, goofy and joy , he's the perfect counterpoint to Holmes.

Rating : Better than average , 7/10 . Well worth watching .

So why would a serial killer sever a finger from each of his victims. It's a real puzzler that Holmes must solve before the bodies pile higher. Solid entry in the Holmes series that holds interest throughout. Note how well mounted Holmes' room is at 21 B Baker St. It's full of the kind of interesting clutter expected of an eccentric like the great detective. In fact, the whole 70 minutes is an aesthetic pleasure to look at, helped along by producer-director Roy William Neill's imaginative camera angles. Note too the suggestive dialogue in the opening lounge scene, unusual for a popular programmer of the time. And what a great pair of cold-hearted schemers Hillary Brooke and Henry Daniell make in their duel of wits with Holmes. Still and all, I thought the screenplay went too far in poking fun at Nigel Bruce's Dr. Watson. The series always played him for comic relief, but here he's made to look especially foolish in the hypnotism sequence. He is, after all, a doctor of medicine, an accomplished professional. Too bad Neill died not long after this production. For I suspect it was his guiding hand that maintained the general superiority of these little features to many others of the time.