‘Mistress of murder!’
The Spider Woman is a 1943 mystery thriller about Sherlock Holmes investigating a series of so-called “pyjama suicides”. The super sleuth soon knows the female villain behind the mysterious deaths is as cunning as his arch-enemy Moriarty and as venomous as a real spider.
Produced and directed by Roy William Neill from a screenplay written by Bertram Millhauser based on characters created by Arthur Conan Doyle,
The Universal Pictures productions stars Basil Rathbone, Nigel Bruce, Gale Sondergaard, Dennis Hoey, Vernon Downing and Mary Gordon.
Plot [contains spoilers]:
Consulting detective Sherlock Holmes fakes his own death in Scotland in order to investigate a number of bizarre apparent suicides that he is convinced are part of an elaborate plot by “a female Moriarty”. Returning to his assistant Doctor Watson in secret, Holmes notes that all the victims were wealthy gamblers, so disguised as “Rajni Singh”, a distinguished Indian officer, he stalks London’s gaming clubs.
It is not long before he encounters the archvillain, Adrea Spedding. Holmes discovers that she seeks out men short of money, persuades them to pawn their life insurance policies with her accomplices, then kills them. Holmes sets himself up as her next victim, discovering that she uses the deadly spider, Lycosa carnivora, whose venom causes such excruciating pain that the victims kill themselves. Holmes also finds the footprint of a child nearby.
Searching for evidence Holmes and Watson visit eminent arachnologist Matthew Ordway, who may have supplied the deadly creatures. Holmes soon realizes that the man he is speaking to is an impostor, but the man makes his escape. Searching the premises, Holmes finds the corpse of the real Ordway, as well as his journals, which allude to something or someone from Central Africa immune to the spider venom.
This baffles Holmes until he finds the model skeleton of a child. However, Doctor Watson points out that the relation of the skull and the circumference of the chest prove it is not a child, and Holmes deduces that the Central African thing described in the journal is a pygmy.
Holmes and Watson continue their investigations at a nearby fairground, where Holmes allows himself to fall into the clutches of Spedding and her gang. Bound and gagged, Holmes is tied behind a moving target in a shooting gallery, at which Inspector Lestrade and Watson take pot shots with a .22 rifle. However Holmes manages to escape, and Lestrade and the police arrest Spedding, her gang, and the pygmy. As an indication of respect for her intellect, Holmes tells Lestrade to spare Spedding the indignity of handcuffs, saying “she’ll go quietly.” Spedding appreciatively smiles and thanks Holmes as she is taken away.
Cast and characters:
Basil Rathbone … Sherlock Holmes
Nigel Bruce … Doctor Watson
Gale Sondergaard … Adrea Spedding
Dennis Hoey … Lestrade
Vernon Downing … Norman Locke
Alec Craig … Radlik
Arthur Hohl … Gilflower
Mary Gordon … Mrs Hudson
Teddy Infuhr … Larry
Angelo Rossitto … The Pygmy
Harry Cording … Fred Garvin
Robert Milasch … Carnival Barker
Belle Mitchell … Carnival Fortune Teller
Frank Benson … Kewpie Doll Vendor
Gene Roth … Taylor
Filming locations:
Universal Studios – 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California
Technical specs:
63 minutes
Black and white
Aspect ratio: 1.37: 1
Audio: Mono (Western Electric Recording)
Full film free to watch online:
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