TERROR BY NIGHT

(February 1946, U.S.)

This may be one of the shortest blog posts that I write because, quite frankly, how much can you possibly write about a film that's only sixty minutes long? In case you've never heard of this crime drama noir, it's one of the many Sherlock Holmes films made with Basil Rathbone as Holmes and Nigel Bruce as his sidekick Dr. Watson; one of four Holmes films that have fallen into the public domain over the years, which means you can often purchase these movies on a bargain-priced DVD.

This film revolves around the theft of the famous and valuable Star of Rhodesia diamond aboard a train which is transporting a coffin to Scotland. On board are various suspicious characters that will remind you of the sort of mystery setting frequently used by Agatha Christie, particularly MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS. Sherlock Holmes, on board to protect the diamond, is soon involved in murder when the son of Lady Margaret, the owner of the diamond, is found dead and the diamond stolen. In the traditional fashion, questions are asked and various suspicions are investigated. We learn that the notorious jewel thief Colonel Sebastian Moran may be on board the train. By the time additional bodies start to pile up and it all comes to a conclusion, we've learned of the mysterious compartment inside the coffin, the truth behind the diamond and it's fake counterpart, and of course, the identity of the true murder and his accomplices playing the part of police inspectors who attempt to remove the guilty man from the train before Holmes can have him arrested. Holmes, being Holmes and elementary and all that, solves the crime and brings the true criminal to justice, just as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle intended, and just as we watch it all happen in just sixty minutes.

While I haven't seen all of the Sherlock Holmes films that Rathbone and Bruce made together, this is one of the more thrilling ones I've seen if for no other reason than thrillers often take on a more intense and exciting approach when they're on board a fast moving train. Perhaps this is why I (and many others like me) look forward to those moments in James Bond films like FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE, LIVE AND LET DIE and THE SPY WHO LOVED ME when we get to see Bond in action on board a speeding train and usually gets the girl just where he wants her inside one of those folding beds (hey, it worked for Cary Grant, too, in Hitchcock's NORTH BY NORTHWEST). Holmes is a classic literary character that Nigel Rathbone seems to have a solid command on (a lot better than an American like Robert Downey Jr. ever could!), while Nigel Bruce often comes off as nothing more than an overweight comic relief (perhaps he's the reason I've never truly embraced Hitchcock's SUSPICION). If absolutely nothing else, I've found that these classic black and white Sherlock Holmes films, with their public domain grainy texture, are great for very late night movie watching when you're looking for something that will help you fall asleep. It worked last night!

I told you this would be short!

Favorite line or dialogue:

Sherlock Holmes: "Did you discover anything, Watson?"
Dr. Watson: "Yes. He's a very suspicious character. He tried to put me off the scent."
Holmes: "From the little I heard, he seemed reasonably successful."