Basil Rathbone SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE SECRET WEAPON (1943) Full Movie

****Rare Early Television Print**** See the movie exactly as people saw it when it premiered on TV in the early 1950s.

Holmes and Watson endeavour to resue the kidnapped inventor of a new bomb sight and to secure the weapon for use against the enemy during World War II.

Starring - Basil Rathbone, Nigel Bruce, William Post Jr, Holmes Herbert, Kaaren Verne, Dennis Hoey, Mary Gordon
Directed by Roy William Neill

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Sherlock Holmes
• Universal
• AAP TV
• Basil Rathbone
• Nigel Bruce
• Kaaren Verne
• Holmes Herbert
• Dennis Hoey
• William Post Jr
• Mary Gordon
• Roy William Neill

[eipip1ez]

This looks like it's been thorugh the projector more than once. The UCLA restoration of the file is a must see for Rathbone fans. The MPI DVD and Blu Ray prints of the UCLA (Gitt) restoration are crystal clear and restored to almost first run theater quality.

[TheVideoCellar]

@eipip1ez Yes this print was originally edited to one hour for television broadcast. It is pretty worn in places but it is a rare cut of the film as the description says.

[PeterPiper00]

What on earth is Holmes doing in the year 1940 with automobiles and telephones? He was supposed to have lived in the mid 1880s. It seems ridiculous to place this 60 years later and have Holmes be some kind of British secret agent .

[TheVideoCellar]

@PeterPiper00 When the early Holmes movies the Victorian era was still living memory. It was natural to update them to the current day because the setting wasn't a distant, exotic past. The ones with Eille Norwood, Arthur Wontner, Raymond Massey, Clive Brook & Reginald Owen were all set in the modern day with cars, speedboats,etc. ACD even wrote new Holmes stories in the 20s so they could be made into movies with Eille Norwood. Check out our Sherlock Holmes playlist for more old SH movies.

[Imarightwing1]

thanks for the posts,I love Sherlock Holmes :o)

[hezkyden]

What on earth has Basil Rathbone done with his hair?

[goducks20101]

@PeterPiper00 artistic license

[LordZontar]

Why the update? It was the thick of World War II and who better to outwit Nazi spies, saboteurs and their fellow-travelers than the world's greatest (and only) consulting detective? Followed of course by Holmes soliliquising on the durability of England. Basil Rathbone carries it off brilliantly, giving us a Sherlock Holmes who would not be surpassed until Jeremy Brett took up the role and became Holmes.

[11Kralle]

The swiss accent of Basil Rathbone sounds very convincing - hats off!

[BigDon62]

Bravo Holmes ! Gotta ♥ RiiR Act II Scene I @ the close of this case.

[RovingCounter]

The reason they updated the movies to the 1940s was because they could not afford to do period stories. It was cheaper to do contemporary stories. They were B movies after all.

[gmaureen]

As a kid I saw this on late night TV. Holmes hollowed out books 5:35 were so fascinating I had to have them for myself. Destroying a number of books in the process, I finally achieved my own version... and received a hefty punishment as well.

IMO, Basil and Nigel will always be the best Holmes and Watson.

[TheJKVW]

Another Great Sherlock Holmes Movie, Thanks.

[PeterPiper00]

@grimlund You are in luck then because Rathbone actually *was* a narrator. In the 1950s and 60s he narrated a series of audio books, including five Holmes tales. He was quite good at it. Google Basil Rathbone, audio recordings or audio books. You can find some of these on Amazon, see Sherlock Holmes Audio Collection