Underplayed Gems

Murder by Decree (1979)

Murder by Decree poster
Directed by
Bob Clark
Genre
horror film
Country
United Kingdom, Canada
Runtime
2h 04m
Rated
PG
Rating
6.3 of 10 from 177 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

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The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson investigate the Jack the Ripper murders in 1888 London. They uncover a conspiracy that involves powerful figures and a secret plot behind the killings.

mysteriousdarksuspensefulgrittyintriguingatmospherictense

What happens

Murder by Decree is a 1979 mystery thriller film directed by Bob Clark. It features the Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson characters created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who are embroiled in the investigation surrounding the real-life 1888 Whitechapel murders committed by Jack the Ripper. Christopher Plummer plays Holmes and James Mason plays Watson. Though it features a similar premise, it is somewhat different in tone and result to A Study in Terror. It is loosely based on The Ripper File by Elwyn Jones and John Lloyd. The film's premise of the plot behind the murders is influenced by the book Jack the Ripper: The Final Solution (1976), by Stephen Knight, who theorised that the killings were part of a Masonic plot. The original script contained the names of the historical suspects, Sir William Gull and John Netley. In the actual film, they are represented by fictional analogues: Thomas Spivey (Gull) and William Slade (Netley). This plot device was later used in other Jack the Ripper-themed fiction, including the graphic novel From Hell. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

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