Christopher Plummer dons the famous deerstalker in this well produced and stylish looking outing for "Sherlock Holmes". Here, together with stalwart colleague "Dr. Watson" (James Mason) they find themselves drawn into the mysterious investigation of a series of gruesome Whitechapel murders. What is being locally described as the "Jack the Ripper" crimes is baffling "Lestrade" (Frank Finlay) to the point that his job is on the line after an intervention by the Commissioner himself (Sir Anthony Quayle). This adaptation follows the increasingly more established story of political and court intrigues around the identity of and the reasons for the "Ripper". A solid cast lend well to the overall sense of despair and, to some extent, depravity in which these prostitutes lived - with a good effort from both Susan Clark ("Mary") and Genevieve Bujold ("Annie"); the latter offering a particularly poignant scene towards the end. The denouement drags out rather, and perhaps shows up a little of the limitations of Plummer, but otherwise this is an entertaining enough retelling of a story that benefits from great attention to detail and an effective score. Rathbone and Bruce they are not, but Plummer and Mason make a good fist of this, and it's an easy watch.
