I enjoyed the film, "The Woman in Green" (1945), because we as viewers get to know the victims' personalities leading up to their deaths, and we see the victim, George struggle with his amnesia. I watched it on Netflix, so the film quality was better than the Weber State video page. I also think the music and lighting for the story worked well with the fast paced plot and suspense, making it seem more dangerous, so I would give three out of four stars. They could have used better special effects during the black and white swirl screen scene where they were trying to hypnotize Watson, it didn't seem as mesmerizing as it could have been. I thought Hillary Brooke, the actress playing Lydia seemed cynical from the start and figured she was involved somehow with the villainous plot. I didn't understand how the filmmakers expected us to see she was wearing green when they knew the film would be released in black and white. I really liked Henry Daniell, the actor who played Moriarty, making him seem really creepy and dark like his character from the books is supposed to be. The casting of Daniell didn't hurt to have a villain that looked a little similar to Basil Rathbone, to make us question his motives. Having seen Basil Rathbone in several films now, I'm beginning to really enjoy him as Holmes. He is serious but whimsical. I wish they would portray Watson as younger like the did in the most recent Sherlock Holmes film, with Jude Law playing him. We don't particularly know the motive behind hypnotizing people other than Moriarty wanting to hypnotize Holmes to kill himself off. I figured Holmes was pretending to be hypnotized from the beginning, so they could have made his tasks more intense to make us question whether or not he was faking.
"The Sign of Four" is mystery about murder and treasure. This story definitely revealed more of Holmes's love for drugs and fighting clubs. Mary Morstan, under the referral of her employer Mrs. Cecil Forrester, consults Holmes on the disappearance of her father, Captain Morstan, ten years earlier. For the past six years, she has been sent "a very large and lustrous pearl" in a box. During the case, Watson falls in love with Mary, whom at first Holmes is wary of. Holmes finds a paper writing on the back, saying, "The Sign of Four- Jonathan Small, Mahomet Singh, Abdullah Khan, Dost Akbar." Major Sholto's son, Thaddeus confirms Mary's suspicions that her father is deceased. On Major's deathbed, he tells his son about Morstan's death from "a weak heart" after he had an argument with him about the treasure. Sholto "concealed the body" with the Agra treasure at Pondicherry Lodge. When Thaddeus and Bartholomew found their father's body, there was a torn sheet of paper, with the writing of "The Sign of Four" on his father's chest. The pearls were sent to Mary by Thaddeus, as compensation for the lost treasure, after his father's passing. Thaddeus Sholto tells them they must visit his brother, Bartholomew, who may know more about the treasure. When they arrive at Pondicherry Lodge, they discover Bartholomew's dead body with a thorn in his neck, locked in his room, and there is a torn paper, with the writing of "The Sign of Four." Holmes concludes one of the men has a wooden leg based on the prints and the two suspects must have come in through "the hole in the roof." Holmes has Watson borrow a dog named Toby to track down the two suspects. Toby leads them to two trail, going down the wrong path at first, and the other path leads them to a boatyard. Holmes and Watson track down the missing boat, the Aurora and find Jonathan Small onboard. Watson delivers the box containing the treasure, and when they open it, the box is empty. Watson is relieved the "treasure is lost" so that he can marry Mary. Jonathan Small tells Holmes the story of how he lost his leg to a crocodile, how the Sign of the Four were to share the treasure, and how Tonga killed Bartholomew with a poisoned blow dart. Holmes reveals his reward for the case is his remaining "cocaine bottle."
"The Woman in Green" (1945) is about a murder spree, "like Jack the Ripper." By the time Holmes is put on the case, there have been four women killed, with their right forefinger cut off. Holmes and Watson sit in a restaurant at the bar, watching Sir George Fenwick and Lydia enjoying their dinner. Lydia's maid lets George and Lydia into Lydia's house and brings them a drink while they sit on the couch. Holmes and Watson investigate the room of the latest victim, trying to connect the victims through a clue. A detective arrives to tell Holmes there has been another murder. George wakes up in a strange bed, checking his wallet and looks in the mirror. He hears a newspaper seller telling people about the murder on the street below. He picks his top hat off the dresser and leaves the room. Lydia is visited by the man, telling her his story of not remembering what happened after he left the night before. Professor Moriarty gives George back his papers, he dropped while he was holding a knife during the night. Holmes and Watson are visited by Maude, George's daughter, who is concerned over her father's behavior and brings them a human finger she found. Holmes and Watson witness Maude being followed by a man in a cab when she arrives. Maude takes them to see her father, but there is no answer at his door. They find George's body on the ground with a bullet wound. Holmes concludes the suspect wanted George's right hand print, and in the right hand, Holmes finds a matchbook from Pembroke House. Holmes believes George never killed any of the women and was being blackmailed, suspecting Professor Moriarty is involved in the crime, despite rumors of his death. Moriarty visits Holmes, hinting he has Watson, advising him to drop the case. Watson returns, unharmed after being visited by a knife salesman. Holmes and Watson try to find a suspect named Williams, but as they open their door to leave, Williams falls through, dead. Moriarty reveals he is in cahoots with the knife salesman and Lydia. Holmes and Watson arrive at Pembroke House. A man named Dr. Angelo, with a black and white swirl on a screen, trying to hypnotize Watson, while Holmes inspects the house, catching a glimpse of Lydia. Lydia tries to hypnotizes him, drugging him for Moriarty. The knife salesman pokes Holmes with a knife to test his state. Moriarty forces Holmes to write a suicide letter and to walk on the edge of the terrace. Watson and the police rush in and Holmes reveals he was pretending to be hypnotized, by substituting the drug. Moriarty falls off the terrace after attempting to escape his arrest.
In the book and the film, the main villain is a man. In the book and the film, they both had a women coming to Holmes, worried about their fathers. In the film, the title character is one of the villains, while the main female in the book is an innocent. In the book, Thaddeus takes Holmes, Mary, and Watson to see his brother, Bartholomew, but there is no answer at his door, and he has been murdered in his room. In the film, Maude takes them to see her father, but there is no answer at his door, and George has been murdered in his room. In the film, we get to know the victims' personalities leading up to their deaths, and in the book we are given few details as to what the victims were like before their deaths. In the film, we see the victim, George struggle with his amnesia, while in the book, we only meet the Murderer. Both the film and the novel deal with Holmes and Watson investigating murders in bedrooms of big houses. In the film, a matchbook is found in George's dead hand, while in the book a paper with writing on it is found on the bodies. Professor Moriarty is not in the book. The film's plot is faster paced than the novel. The film is more suspenseful and dangerous, while the book has more subtle plot with a lot more conversation which drags on. Doyle could have use a bit more action in his novel. There is no treasure in the film and we don't particularly know the motive behind hypnotizing people other than Moriarty wanting to hypnotize Holmes to kill himself off. The book gives us the jewels as motive for murder. In both the film and the book, Holmes uses drugs or is given drugs. There is no flashback in the film as opposed to Jonathan Small's story in the book.
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