The Sign of Four (1932 film)
| The Sign of Four: Sherlock Holmes' Greatest Case | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Directed by | Graham Cutts |
| Produced by | Basil Dean |
| Written by |
Novel: Arthur Conan Doyle Screenplay: W. P. Lipscomb |
| Starring |
Arthur Wontner Ian Hunter Isla Bevan |
| Music by | Ernest Irving |
| Cinematography |
Robert De Grasse Robert Martin |
| Edited by | Otto Ludwig |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | RKO Pictures |
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Release date
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May 1932 |
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Running time
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75 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
The Sign of Four is a 1932 British crime film directed by Graham Cutts and starring Arthur Wontner, Ian Hunter and Graham Soutten. The film is based on Arthur Conan Doyle's second Sherlock Holmes story The Sign of the Four and was made at Ealing Studios.
The film is also known as The Sign of Four: Sherlock Holmes' Greatest Case.
A young woman needs Sherlock Holmes for protection when she's tormented by an escaped killer. However, when the woman is abducted, Holmes and Watson must infiltrate the city's criminal underworld to track down the young woman.
Jonathan Small, a prisoner serving a lengthy sentence on the Andaman Islands cuts a deal with two army officers, Major Sholto and Captain Morstan, in command of the prison. He reveals the location of a stash of loot in exchange for their help in helping him to escape from jail. The proceeds are to be split equally between the three of them.
Sholto and Morstan go to investigate the treasure which is hidden in an old Indian fortress. When they unearth the valuable trinkets behind a brick wall it sparks a violent quarrel between the two men with each wanting to take all of the treasure. After a struggle Sholto kills his accomplice and returns to England without fulfilling his pledge to help Small escape.
A number of years later Sholto is now living in London in great wealth thanks to his theft of the treasure. However, he is disturbed to read of the escape from jail of Small. He becomes haunted by the sound of Small's wooden leg and is convinced he will shortly be killed in revenge for his past betrayal of the convict. He calls his sons Bartholomew and Theodore to him and tells them of his murky past that had gained him the wealth on which the family fortune is built. He reveals that Morstan had a daughter, Mary, and instructs his sons to send her a valuable necklace and split their inheritance with her. Shortly afterwards Sholto is murdered before he can reveal the location of the bulk of his treasure.
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