The famous detective duo of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson was introduced in the 1887 Arthur Conan Doyle detective novel A Study in Scarlet. The characters were later widely popularized through a series of films starring Basil Rathbone as Holmes, beginning with the 1939 Gothic mystery film The Hound of the Baskervilles, in which Rathbone’s Holmes is introduced as a dry-humored, obsessive follower of logic and reason, while Watson, played by Nigel Bruce, appears as Holmes’ lovable but often clueless assistant.
One of the first and best films to abandon this formula is the 1979 mystery thriller film Murder by Decree, in which Holmes, played by Christopher Plummer, and Watson, played by James Mason, are approached to investigate the real-life 1888 Whitechapel murders committed by the serial killer known as Jack the Ripper. While Plummer’s Holmes exudes more empathy and passion in Murder by Decree than in previous incarnations, Mason portrays Watson as a skillful investigator whose medical and scientific expertise is vital to Holmes, both in terms of catching Jack the Ripper and saving Holmes’ life.
‘Murder by Decree’ Links Jack the Ripper to the British Royal Family

Murder by Decree

Release Date

February 1, 1979

Runtime

124 minutes

Director

Bob Clark

Writers

John Hopkins

Producers

Len Herberman, René Dupont

James Mason

Dr. John H. Watson

David Hemmings

Inspector Foxborough

Murder by Decree is based on the 1976 non-fiction book Jack the Ripper: The Final Solution, which presents the theory that the Jack the Ripper murders were connected to an elaborate conspiracy involving the British royal family. Like the book, Murder by the Decree suggests that the Ripper murders were committed to hide a secret marriage between the then-second-in-line to the British throne, Prince Albert Victor, also known as the Duke of Clarence, and Annie Crook, a former prostitute who supposedly had a secret child with the Duke of Clarence and revealed this relationship to the Ripper’s prostitute victims. This heavily discredited theory inspired the 2001 Ripper film From Hell, which features Johnny Depp as real-life Ripper investigator Frederick Abberline.

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In Murder by Decree, Holmes and Watson are inspired to get involved in the Ripper case not by the prospect of adulation but rather by their curiosity regarding why Scotland Yard hadn’t previously sought their assistance. Holmes and Watson are guided in their investigation by Robert Lees, a real-life British psychic who claimed to have had visions of the Ripper murders in 1888, when Lees, played by Donald Sutherland, offered his assistance to the police in catching the Ripper, only to be turned away as a madman.
James Mason Is a Splendid Dr. Watson in ‘Murder by Decree’

Like Jude Law’s portrayal of Dr. Watson in the Guy Ritchie-directed Sherlock Holmes films, James Mason’s portrayal of Watson in Murder by Decree is grounded in his friendship with Sherlock Holmes, to whom he is a loyal, reliable friend. After initially seeming to resemble the buffoonish Nigel Bruce version of the character in the Basil Rathbone films, Mason’s eccentric Watson nonetheless displays his impressive medical and scientific skills in Murder by Decree, in which his presence proves to be absolutely vital to Holmes, both personally and professionally.

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Christopher Plummer brings charm and sophistication to his performance as Holmes in Murder by Decree, in which Holmes and Watson’s banter resembles that of an old married couple. However, Plummer is upstaged by Mason, who displays an impressive blend of humor, intelligence, and wit throughout Murder by Decree, which is enlivened by Mason’s colorful interpretation of Watson as a man who is completely at the mercy of his various peculiarities and is willing to sacrifice his indomitable self-respect to gain needed information, even if this requires the dignified Watson to hang out with prostitutes.
‘Murder by Decree’ Is From the Director of ‘Black Christmas’ and ‘Porky’s’

Murder by Decree was directed by Bob Clark, who previously directed the groundbreaking 1974 horror film Black Christmas, which is widely credited for being one of the progenitors of the slasher genre. While Murder by Decree, which grossed less than $2 million at the domestic box office, wasn’t a box-office hit, Clark followed Murder by Decree with the 1981 sex comedy film Porky’s, which grossed more than $100 million at the domestic box office and virtually invented the teen sex comedy genre. In between Murder by Decree and Porky’s, Clark directed the 1980 comedy-drama film Tribute, which received a Best Actor Academy Award nomination for Jack Lemmon’s performance.
Clark, who died in 2007 at the age of 67, further demonstrated his versatility with the nostalgic 1983 comedy film A Christmas Story, which has, of course, become a beloved holiday classic. While Murder by Decree hasn’t achieved nearly the same level of notoriety, many contemporary critics have described the film, which presently holds an 87% Rotten Tomatoes rating, as being one of the best Sherlock Holmes films of all time. The influence of Murder by Decree is currently visible in the television series Watson, in which Morris Chestnut’s John Watson, like James Mason’s version, expertly applies the deductive reasoning he learned from working with Holmes. Murder by Decree is streaming on Philo. The new television series Watson is streaming on Paramount+.