IMDb > Dressed to Kill (1946)
Dressed to Kill
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Dressed to Kill (1946) More at IMDbPro »

Photos (see all 47 | slideshow) Videos (see all 6)
Dressed to Kill (1946) -- Two people die after buying musical boxes. Sherlock Holmes traces the boxes to a criminal in prison who is there for stealing printing plates. Could this provide the solution to his crime?
Dressed to Kill (1946) -- A group of thugs chase Liz from one cabin to the next while riding the metro.
Dressed to Kill (1946) -- A set of cheap music boxes that people are willing to kill for puts Sherlock Holmes on the case.
Dressed to Kill (1946) -- Liz confesses to doctor Robert that she's a hooker.
Dressed to Kill (1946) -- Liz discovers the body of a dead person on the elevator.

Overview

User Rating:
6.9/10   2,073 votes
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Director:

Roy William Neill

Writers:

Arthur Conan Doyle (story) and
Frank Gruber (adaptation)
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Contact:

View company contact information for Dressed to Kill on IMDbPro.

Release Date:

7 June 1946 (USA) more

Tagline:

Queen . . . of a Crime Cult !

Plot:

A set of cheap music boxes that people are willing to kill for puts Sherlock Holmes on the case. full summary | add synopsis

User Comments:

Solid Entry in the Rathbone/Bruce Series more (44 total)


Cast

  (Complete credited cast)
Basil Rathbone ... Sherlock Holmes
Nigel Bruce ... Dr. John H. Watson
Patricia Morison ... Mrs. Hilda Courtney
Edmund Breon ... 'Stinky' Emery (as Edmond Breon)
Frederick Worlock ... Colonel Cavanaugh (as Frederic Worlock)
Carl Harbord ... Inspector Hopkins
Patricia Cameron ... Evelyn Clifford
Holmes Herbert ... Ebenezer Crabtree
Harry Cording ... Hamid
Leyland Hodgson ... Tour guide
Mary Gordon ... Mrs. Hudson
Ian Wolfe ... Commissioner of Scotland Yard
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Additional Details

Also Known As:

Prelude to Murder (USA) (working title) (USA) (DVD title)
Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Code (UK)
Sherlock Holmes in Dressed to Kill
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Runtime:

72 min (video version) | 76 min (copyright length)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1 more

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:U (video rating) (1992) | USA:Approved (PCA #11512, General Audience)


Fun Stuff

Trivia:

The last of fourteen films based on Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional consulting detective Sherlock Holmes starring Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Doctor Watson. more

Goofs:

Anachronisms: One of the scenes depicts a "General" omnibus carrying passengers on a normal route. The movie is set post-WWII London (1946). The London General Omnibus Company went out of service in 1933. more

Quotes:

Hamid: [angrily, after Cavanaugh has grabbed a book of poems from him inscribed by Mrs. Courtney] Some day you'll go too far!
Colonel Cavanaugh: Reaching for a star, you fool!
Hamid: Yet a fool may touch a star, Colonel Cavanaugh, if he reaches high enough!
Colonel Cavanaugh: And not possess it as you would!
more

Movie Connections:

Follows The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1939) more

Soundtrack:

The Swagman more


FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
14 out of 15 people found the following comment useful.
Solid Entry in the Rathbone/Bruce Series, 21 June 2005
Author: Snow Leopard from Ohio

This is a solid Sherlock Holmes mystery in the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce series, with an interesting story, a good villainess, and a good pace once it gets going. Although, as with many movies in the series, the plot is not found in any of the original Holmes books, a number of the story elements were drawn or adapted from various Doyle stories. A number of times Watson also makes reference to one of the 'canonical' cases.

The setup is good, and it produces some interesting possibilities. Holmes must not only figure out a peculiar puzzle involving music boxes, but must do so in a race with a criminal gang that is trying to accomplish the same thing. Patricia Morison makes an elegant adversary for Holmes, and Rathbone and Bruce work well together as always.

Although these later movies in the series do not hold closely to the Victorian atmosphere of the originals, most of them are pretty good in their own right, and while this one mostly follows the usual formula, it is an enjoyable entry in the series.

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Message Boards

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Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Music Box Song? FoolofaTookGM
So how does the poison gas work? 03softail
Why only four colorized? houchin-1
Were they aware this would be last? ctatlock
Holmesian Forums Chelki
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