IMDb RATING
7.1/10
4.9K
YOUR RATING
Play clip1:00
Watch Sherlock Holmes Double Feature: The House Of Fear, The Pearl Of Death
After a valuable pearl with a sinister reputation is stolen, Sherlock Holmes must investigate its link to a series of brutal murders.After a valuable pearl with a sinister reputation is stolen, Sherlock Holmes must investigate its link to a series of brutal murders.After a valuable pearl with a sinister reputation is stolen, Sherlock Holmes must investigate its link to a series of brutal murders.
Richard Aherne
- Bates
- (as Richard Nugent)
J.W. Austin
- Police Sergeant Bleeker
- (uncredited)
Wilson Benge
- Second Ship's Steward
- (uncredited)
Billy Bevan
- Constable
- (uncredited)
Lillian Bronson
- Harker's Housekeeper
- (uncredited)
Harry Cording
- George Gelder
- (uncredited)
Harold De Becker
- Boss
- (uncredited)
Leslie Denison
- Police Sergeant Murdock
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaFor some curious reason, Holmes' cluttered Baker Street apartment has a photograph of a beardless Abraham Lincoln.
- GoofsAt around 44 minutes, the newspaper says "srriking" instead of "striking".
- Quotes
Dr. John H. Watson: Amazing. And the Borgia Pearl's inside that?
Sherlock Holmes: If it isn't, I shall retire to Sussex and keep bees.
- Crazy creditsUS War Bonds promo tagged onto the end of the film reads: "You're not giving-just lending-when you buy war savings stamps and bonds-on sale here."
- Alternate versionsAlso available in a computer colorized version.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Jarvis Collection: Scotland Yard (1971)
Featured review
Another good Holmes entry from Universal
The Universal Holmes series was on a roll at this point, having just released what is probably the best film in the series, The Scarlet Claw, earlier the same year. This one is a bit of a step down, but on a par with earlier films like Sherlock Holmes Faces Death and The Spider Woman...and on a much higher level than the first three flag-waving WWII propaganda films.
This entry is based on the Arthur Conan Doyle story, The Six Napoleons. And while numerous changes were made, it actually follows the original story more closely than any of the other Universal pictures did. Most of the films were either very loose adaptations, amalgams of several different Holmes stories, or original scripts that were merely inspired by the Conan Doyle canon. This one, however, follows the general outline of the original story, while adding various subplots along the way. Overall, it works, even if it does seem to veer off-track at a few points.
These films were produced at breakneck speed (it was not uncommon for three Holmes films to be released in a single year) with fairly low budgets, but Roy William Neill knew how to achieve great results with his limited resources. As with its immediate predecessors, the camera-work in The Pearl of Death is strong and evocative, the direction is confident and effective, and the performances are, at least for the most part, fine to excellent. Rathbone's Holmes is once again in his proper element here, and Rathbone makes the most of the character.
The Pearl of Death is just a step below The Scarlet Claw, in my estimation...which still makes this outing quite enjoyable. Anyone who liked The Spider Woman, Sherlock Holmes Faces Death, or The House of Fear will definitely appreciate this one. Out of the dozen Holmes films that Universal churned out between 1942 and 1946, this is one of the eight that I would say deserve to be called "great."
This entry is based on the Arthur Conan Doyle story, The Six Napoleons. And while numerous changes were made, it actually follows the original story more closely than any of the other Universal pictures did. Most of the films were either very loose adaptations, amalgams of several different Holmes stories, or original scripts that were merely inspired by the Conan Doyle canon. This one, however, follows the general outline of the original story, while adding various subplots along the way. Overall, it works, even if it does seem to veer off-track at a few points.
These films were produced at breakneck speed (it was not uncommon for three Holmes films to be released in a single year) with fairly low budgets, but Roy William Neill knew how to achieve great results with his limited resources. As with its immediate predecessors, the camera-work in The Pearl of Death is strong and evocative, the direction is confident and effective, and the performances are, at least for the most part, fine to excellent. Rathbone's Holmes is once again in his proper element here, and Rathbone makes the most of the character.
The Pearl of Death is just a step below The Scarlet Claw, in my estimation...which still makes this outing quite enjoyable. Anyone who liked The Spider Woman, Sherlock Holmes Faces Death, or The House of Fear will definitely appreciate this one. Out of the dozen Holmes films that Universal churned out between 1942 and 1946, this is one of the eight that I would say deserve to be called "great."
helpful•101
- james_oblivion
- Feb 22, 2006
- How long is The Pearl of Death?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Sherlock Holmes in Pearl of Death
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 9 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content