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Dressed to Kill

Play trailer Poster for Dressed to Kill Released May 24, 1946 1h 12m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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83% Tomatometer 6 Reviews 64% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Holmes and Watson hunt for three music boxes containing directions to the whereabouts of six valuable engraving plates stolen from the Bank of England. They find themselves in competition with professional thieves also out to find the clues, which were hidden by a spiteful jailbird before the music boxes went up for auction.
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Dressed to Kill

Critics Reviews

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Eddie Harrison film-authority.com ...directors like Roy William Neill brought timeless characters to life with great acting, no-nonsense direction and crisp scripting; the lack of visual jazz makes each of the Rathbone Holmes films a pleasure to watch.... Rated: 3/5 Jan 23, 2024 Full Review Donald J. Levit ReelTalk Movie Reviews One of the classic movies pairing suave gaunt Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and plump Nigel Bruce as his bumbling Boswell, Dr. Watson. Aug 4, 2007 Full Review Ken Hanke Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) Final entry in the Rathbone series has a lot of style. Rated: 4/5 Oct 31, 2006 Full Review Michael W. Phillips, Jr. Goatdog's Movies The Rathbone/Bruce series of Sherlock Holmes films didn't exactly limp to a close, but it didn't go out on a high note either. Rated: 3/5 May 2, 2006 Full Review Mark Bourne DVDJournal.com ...patched together from hand-me-down remnants. Director Roy William Neill and the writers seem to be just going through the motions while waiting for that final smack from the clapboard. Rathbone delivers a magnetic performance to the bitter end, though. Apr 6, 2006 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews This is another enjoyable well-paced and acted mystery thriller in the series with the usual pleasant banter between Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Rated: B Aug 23, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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nick s Great movie, with magnetic acting, competent camera work, and clever ideas woven into the plot. The core concept was a little absurd, but ignore that. This is my favourite basil rathbone flick. It couldn't be done much better. Pity about stinky. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/08/23 Full Review Audience Member Rating: 6/10. 68/100 Rated 3 out of 5 stars 04/26/23 Full Review Josh G A clever novel adaption with Basil Rathbone. The cast is good and it's a middle of the road Sherlock Holmes adaption, great use of sound. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/07/23 Full Review Audience Member Named "Dressed to kill" because one character very briefly dresses in disguise. The only memorable part is that Watson's friend and eventual murder victim's nickname was "Stinky" which is hilarious. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 02/09/23 Full Review Audience Member The very last of the great run of Sherlock Holmes films with THE Holmes, Basil Rathbone (well at least until Jeremy Brett came along in the 1980s). Bruce is amiable enough, but a bit too much of a bumbling clown to be my Watson. A pretty good story, with numerous winks to Doyle's original stories, though having Holmes fall into the trap at the end was a bit out of character... OK, I can see it being needed for the narrative arc of the whole film, but still, come on, it's Sherlock Holmes! Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/27/23 Full Review ashley h Sherlock Holmes - Dressed to Kill is an excellent film. It is about Sherlock Holmes who sets out to discover why a trio of murderous villains are desperate to obtain three unassuming and inexpensive little music boxes. Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce give amazing performances. The screenplay is well written. Roy William Neill did a great job directing this movie. I enjoyed watching this motion picture because of the mystery and suspense. Sherlock Holmes - Dressed to Kill is a must see. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Dressed to Kill

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Cast & Crew

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Roy William Neill

Director

Basil Rathbone

Sherlock Holmes

Nigel Bruce

Dr. John H. Watson

Patricia Morison

Mrs. Hilda Courtney

Edmund Breon

Julian "Stinky" Emery

Frederick Worlock

Colonel Cavanaugh

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Dressed to Kill

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Movie Info

Synopsis Holmes and Watson hunt for three music boxes containing directions to the whereabouts of six valuable engraving plates stolen from the Bank of England. They find themselves in competition with professional thieves also out to find the clues, which were hidden by a spiteful jailbird before the music boxes went up for auction.
Director
Roy William Neill
Producer
Roy William Neill
Screenwriter
Frank Gruber
Distributor
Universal Pictures
Production Co
Universal/Universal Int
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 24, 1946, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 1, 2012
Runtime
1h 12m
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