Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes (1939)

The devious Professor Moriarty (George Zucco) concocts two crimes. One, a ruse to keep his nemesis Sherlock Holmes (Basil Rathbone) occupied and the real crime of the century for which he hopes to humiliate Holmes and disgrace his reputation. The second of the Rathbone/Holmes films isn't based on any of the original Arthur Conan Doyle stories but rather loosely on a play by William Gillette. For most of its running time, it keeps to the feel and style of the Doyle characters and the film has a nice faux Victorian London atmosphere. But the "action" ending with Holmes and Moriarty engaged in a fist fight is pretty silly. Still, at least it wasn't placed in a contemporary setting like many of the Rathbone/Holmes films unfortunately were. The film features Ida Lupino as the damsel in distress who comes to Holmes for assistance. She's still pretty much an ingenue at this point in her career but the next year she would move to Warners and her breakthrough role in THEY DRIVE BY NIGHT would solidify her as a top tier actress. Directed by Alfred L. Werker. With Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson, of course plus Alan Marshal (looking like a young Olivier), Henry Stephenson and Mary Gordon.