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The Woman in Green(1945) 68 min. b&w"The Woman in Green" is the eleventh Sherlock Holmes film that Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce made together (ninth in the Universal series). Hypnosis and blackmail are involved in this tale, which opens with Inspector Gregson of the CID narrating. Four defenseless women have been found murdered, and in each case the right forefinger has been cleanly severed. Scotland Yard has no clues or leads, and is under great pressure to solve the case, so Gregson calls on Sherlock Holmes for help.
Gregson and Holmes discuss the case over a whiskey and soda at Pembroke House, where they also observe Sir George Fenwick sitting with an attractive young woman. The inspector comments, "Is that his daughter with him?" and Holmes replies, "Don't be so naive, Inspector." A little while later they observe Sir George and the young woman leaving together. Holmes comments, "Wonder where she's taking Sir George Fenwick?" To which the inspector replies, "Don't be so naive, Mr. Holmes." The following morning Sir George wakes up in a room over Edgeware Road, having no memory of how he got there, and we hear a newspaper boy calling out the news of a horrible murder in Edgeware Road. As Sir George reaches into his coat pocket, he discovers a severed finger in it. He returns to the woman's home to try to figure out what happened, and Moriarty confronts Sir George, claiming to have seen him commit the murder. Sir George's daughter comes to Holmes after observing her father bury the finger in the garden. Holmes, Watson and Gregson arrive at Sir George's house too late to save him. He's been shot.
After Sir George is murdered Holmes finds enough clues to figure out that blackmail was the motive for the finger murders, but he remains baffled as to how the people are convinced they committed a murder.
Compare the above passage with the actual dialogue from the film below:
Moriarty breaks free from his captors and jumps to the ledge of the next building. But because he is handcuffed, he is unable to grab hold of anything and he falls to his death. This film presents two adversaries for Holmes: the "Napoleon of crime" Moriarty and a seductive femme fatale. Oddly enough, audiences never questioned how Moriarty could be alive after apparently being killed in both "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" and "Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon." Many fans and critics believe George Zucco's Moriarty ("The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes") was the best, but Rathbone thought Daniell's interpretation of Moriarty was "delectably dangerous" and "masterly." Henry Daniell's performance was indeed superb, and the highlight of the film. The character of Moriarty didn't appear in any more Holmes films until 1976, in "The Seven Percent Solution." This was the last of the series to be written by Bertram Millhauser. It used an idea in "The Adventure of the Empty House" but otherwise was an original story, not based on a Conan Doyle story. Go to Page Two for more pictures from "The Woman in Green."
Images on this page and page two are from the film "The Woman in Green", copyright 1945 by Universal.
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Moriarty
claims that his men will kill Dr. Watson if he, Moriarty, fails to return
unharmed. As they talk, Moriarty nudges Holme's chair closer to the
window. After Moriarty leaves, and Watson returns, Holmes notices an open
window in the empty house across the street. He asks Watson to go check it
out. From the house across the street Watson can see the silhouette of
Holmes through the window. He also sees a man with a rifle approach the
window and aim. Before Watson can stop him, the man shoots. Fortunately,
he shoots a bust of Julius Caesar, and Holmes is right behind Watson. They
capture the sniper and discover that he is hypnotised. Suddenly Holmes
realizes the method used in the finger murders: the victims are hypnotized
and therefore easily led to believe they might have committed the murder.
Holmes and Watson pay a visit to the Mesmer Club, the meeting place for
the top hypnotists. Sherlock Holmes' brother Mycroft is a valued member of
the club.
At
the Mesmer Club Holmes spots "The Woman in Green," whom he saw
with Sir George, and learns her name is Lydia. Holmes accompanies Lydia to
Pembroke House, where Holmes confesses that he is losing sleep over the
difficult case of the Finger Murders. Claiming that she can help him with
his insomnia, Lydia coaxes Holmes to her apartment and there hypnotizes
Holmes. Moriarty then enters the room and orders Holmes to write a
suicide note and then walk out onto the ledge of the balcony. Before
Holmes reaches the end of the ledge, Watson arrives with the police, and
they arrest everyone involved with the finger murders. Watson jumps
to the ledge to save Holmes and discovers that he isn't hypnotized at all.
He was just playing along until the police could get there.
