When a woman receives a series of valuable pearls from an unknown party after the disappearance of her father, Sherlock Holmes is hired to investigate.When a woman receives a series of valuable pearls from an unknown party after the disappearance of her father, Sherlock Holmes is hired to investigate.When a woman receives a series of valuable pearls from an unknown party after the disappearance of her father, Sherlock Holmes is hired to investigate.
- Lal Rao
- (as Ahmed Kahlil)
- McMurdo
- (as Sydney Conabere)
- Mr. Mordecai Smith
- (as David S. Boliver)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe scene where Holmes and Watson are following the dog sniffing a creosote scent, was filmed on Riverside Walk in Twickenham, UK. You can see the bridge that crosses the road over into York House gardens.
- Quotes
Athelney Jones: It's quite simple, really. The two brothers have a quarrel over the inheritance. Then, one kills the other so as to claim the whole of it for himself, leaving the body here! Quite simple!
Sherlock Holmes: And the dead man gets up to lock the door from the inside?
Athelney Jones: ...There's a flaw there... Somewhere...
- ConnectionsFeatured in Timeshift: A Study in Sherlock (2005)
As I recall, The Sign of Four is but one or two episodes in a series of series made of Sherlock Holmes stories by the BBC in the 1980's. I have seen many episodes from the various series and all have shown consistently high production values and strong acting performances. The actor Edward Hardwicke does a superb job as a Watson who's great admiration of Holmes's abilities and deeds is cut short of idolatry by an intimate understanding of the detective's weaknesses and flaws.
The Sign of Four is a solid crime thriller of the Victorian era and this performance does the story justice with colorful and memorable characters interacting in authentic and detailed environments. Conan-Doyle stores were what they were- action thrillers designed and paced for publication as a series of printed episodes. As such- there is more emphasis on excitement than literary quality and the plot is a bit compartmentalised and stretched in spots by suspense-building setbacks presumably meant to end an installment on a suspenseful note. Nevertheless, Doyle's skills as a storyteller (particularly in creating a mental image of the scenes where his stories take place) cannot be denied. Nevertheless, if one actively dislikes other manifestations of Sherlock Holmes one is not likely to like this one. Everyone should keep in mind that Thriller is a relative term, however- it's the Victorian era, after all.
- mark-1523
- Jun 15, 2005