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The Sign of Four

The Sign of Four

Crime · Mystery · Thriller · 1987

Mary Morstan has received a pearl in the post every year since her father's disappearance. This leads Holmes and Watson to the truth about a secret pact between four convicts during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

Movie details

The Sign of Four

1987 Crime · Mystery · Thriller 1h 43m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.4 / 10

Community rating

Mary Morstan has received a pearl in the post every year since her father's disappearance. This leads Holmes and Watson to the truth about a secret pact between four convicts during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Sign of Four?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

The Pearl of Death

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The Scarlet Claw

The Scarlet Claw

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Sherlock Holmes Faces Death

Sherlock Holmes Faces Death

Mystery · 1943

During WWII several murders occur at a convalescent home where Dr. Watson has volunteered his services. He summons Holmes for help and the master detective proceeds to solve the crime from a long list of suspects including the owners of the home, the staff and the patients recovering there.

Sherlock Holmes in Washington

Sherlock Holmes in Washington

Mystery · 1943

In World War II, a British secret agent carrying a vitally important document is kidnapped en route to Washington. The British government calls on Sherlock Holmes to recover it.

The Hound of the Baskervilles

The Hound of the Baskervilles

Mystery · 1939

When a nobleman is threatened by a family curse on his newly inherited estate, detective Sherlock Holmes is hired to investigate.

The Independent

The Independent

Thriller · 2022

It's the final weeks of the most consequential presidential election in history. America is poised to elect either its first female president or its first viable independent candidate. Reporting history as it's made, an idealistic young journalist teams up with her idol, legendary journalist Nick Booker, to uncover a conspiracy that places the fate of the election, and the country, in their hands.

The Seven-Ups

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The Pelican Brief

The Pelican Brief

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A law student's theory about the recent deaths of two Supreme Court justices embroils her in a far-reaching web of murder, corruption, and greed.

A Study in Terror

A Study in Terror

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When Watson reads from the newspaper there have been two similar murders near Whitechapel in a few days, Sherlock Holmes' sharp deductive is immediately stimulated to start its merciless method of elimination after observation of every apparently meaningless detail. He guesses right the victims must be street whores, and doesn't need long to work his way trough a pawn shop, an aristocratic family's stately home, a hospital and of course the potential suspects and (even unknowing) witnesses who are the cast of the gradually unraveled story of the murderer and his motive.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Peter Hammond

Written by

John Hawkesworth

Jeremy Brett

Jeremy Brett

Sherlock Holmes

Edward Hardwicke

Edward Hardwicke

Dr. John Watson

Jenny Seagrove

Jenny Seagrove

Mary Morstan

Ronald Lacey

Ronald Lacey

Thaddeus und Bartholomew Sholto

John Thaw

John Thaw

Jonathan Small

Emrys James

Emrys James

Inspector Athelney Jones

Alf Joint

Alf Joint

McMurdo

Court is in session

Put The Sign of Four on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Big-Idea Head

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.