sherlock holmes ( basil rathbone ) and dr. watson ( nigel bruce ) have be hire by the british government to protect a swiss scientist dr. franz tobel ( william post jr. ) . he have a bomb that the british want to win the war . unfortunately the evil dr. moriarty ( lionel atwill ) be work with the nazi and will stop at nothing to get the doctor and his invention . move sherlock holmes to the 1940s sound like a stupid idea but it do work for one reason basil rathbone . arguably he be the best sherlock holmes ever put on the screen . he play the character so well ( and accurately ) that it doesn not matter what era he solve crime . a for nigel bruce a watson . everybody have problem with it . he play watson a a bumbling old fool . that be not the watson of the book . you seriously wonder why holmes put up with him . still and he do grow on you ( in a way ) . then there atwill have a whale of a time play moriarty the discussion and battle of wit between him and holmes be just great . i have never like dennis hoey a inspector lestrade he such an idiot . make watson look like a genius . and post jr. be pretty good a tobel ( even though his accent amusingly keep change . ) . this movie be do elaborately and run only a little over an hour . still and it do have it slow spot and i never understood the secret code section . still and worth catch if just for rathbone and atwill .