The Jack the Ripper Murders. Sherlock Holmes lifts the veil of secrecy, corruption and terror at the heart of the throne of England itself. Clue by clue... Murder by murder...
Sherlock Holmes is drawn into the case of Jack the Ripper, who is killing prostitutes in London's East End. Assisted by Dr. Watson, and using information provided by a renowned psychic, Robert Lees, Holmes finds that the murders may have their roots in a Royal indiscretion and that a cover-up is being managed by politicians at the highest level, all of whom happen to be Masons.
Murder by Decree (1979) is a crime, mystery and thriller film directed by Bob Clark, released on February 1, 1979 with a runtime of 2h 4m. It stars Christopher Plummer, James Mason, David Hemmings and Susan Clark. Viewers rate it 6.4 out of 10 across 182 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for Murder by Decree before you stream it.
Official trailers, teasers, clips and featurettes for Murder by Decree.
Trailer
Featurette
Featurette
Christopher Plummer
as Sherlock Holmes
James Mason
as Dr. Watson
David Hemmings
as Inspector Foxborough
Susan Clark
as Mary Kelly
Anthony Quayle
as Sir Charles Warren
John Gielgud
as Prime Minister
Frank Finlay
as Inspector Lestrade
Donald Sutherland
as Robert Lees
Geneviève Bujold
as Annie Crook
Chris Wiggins
as Dr. Hardy
Tedde Moore
as Mrs. Lees
Catherine Kessler
as Carrie
Directed by Bob Clark, written by Elwyn Jones, John Hopkins and John Lloyd, produced by Bob Clark, Robert A. Goldston and René Dupont.
Average viewer score of 6.4/10 from 182 ratings.
Elementary my dear Ripper! Murder by Decree is directed by Bob Clark and adapted to screenplay by John Hopkins from the novel The Ripper File written by Elwyn Jones and John Lloyd. It stars Christopher Plummer, James Mason, David Hemmings, Susan Clark, Frank Finlay, Anthony Quayle, Donald Sutherland, Geneviève Bujold & John Gielgud. Film pitches Sherlock Holmes (Plummer) and Dr. Watson (Mason) into the hunt for…
Reviewed on May 8, 2015
Christopher Plummer dons the famous deerstalker in this well produced and stylish looking outing for "Sherlock Holmes". Here, together with stalwart colleague "Dr. Watson" (James Mason) they find themselves drawn into the mysterious investigation of a series of gruesome Whitechapel murders. What is being locally described as the "Jack the Ripper" crimes is baffling "Lestrade" (Frank Finlay) to the point that his…
Reviewed on March 26, 2023
**_What if Sherlock Holmes & Dr. Watson took on the 1888 Jack the Ripper case?_** This isn’t as colorful as “A Study in Terror” or the Hammer versions; nor is it as sordid & gory as Klaus Kinski’s 1976 rendition or Anthony Perkins’ future “Edge of Sanity,” nor as entertaining as the future “From Hell.” You could call it a respectable version of The Ripper case that’s dialogue-driven and eschews exploitation with…
Reviewed on June 17, 2026
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Murder by Decree (1979) is available to stream on fuboTV and Howdy Amazon Channel. Streaming availability is checked against JustWatch data and can change by region.
The main cast of Murder by Decree (1979) includes Christopher Plummer, James Mason, David Hemmings, Susan Clark and Anthony Quayle. The film was directed by Bob Clark. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
Murder by Decree was released on February 1, 1979 and runs for 2h 4m.
Murder by Decree (1979) holds an average rating of 6.4 out of 10 from 182 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy crime, mystery and thriller films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official Murder by Decree trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
