When I first heard that Warner Bros. was going to make a Sherlock Holmes film, I had all of the horrible preconceptions of how this could go wrong. The deerstalker cap, the pipe, all of it. It could possibly be the most horrible cliche ever imagined! And then I read that Robert Downey Jr. was marked down for the role. My expectations began to rise. And then the trailer was released in May. The term "Holy Crap" comes to mind. And then today I finally saw the film and must say that it was not a disappointment.
Director Guy Ritchie has totally revamped and instilled new life into this character! He manages to inject his own brand of film making while still reamining faithful to the source material.For those of you who are extremists about Holmes, you might be a bit enraged. There is no deerstalker cap, Watson isn't an overweight bumbling doctor, and yes Holmes is a tad more violent than most would remember. But Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of the legendary detective, made Holmes a fighter. He wrote that Mr. Holmes is a master of Baritsu, a Japanese boxing style favored by Victorian prize fighters. Holmes still smokes a pipe, he plays the violin kind of badly, and he is slightly neurotic. But for someone like Shelock Holmes, this is to be expected.
The cast was excellent in each of their perfromances. Even Rachel McAdams. She may not have had much to work with, but she made do with what she had. Inspector Lestrade, portayed by Eddie Marsan, was ordinary. Hopefully, we can expect some character development on his part. Then there was Mark Strong. This guy made me feel as if he was possessed by Satan himself! Each time his character, Lord Blackwood, stepped in front of the camera, I was both mystified and appalled. And Jude Law is basically the "Ultimates" version of John Watson. He is much more wizened, mature, and more keen than the classic Watson we have all come to know. This is a plus. The word play between Holmes and Watson is essential to the hilarity and wit of this film.
And of course Robert Downey Jr. is the crown jewel of this film. Jis big comeback was in Iron Man. Now it would seem that his talent is now in his prime. I'm actually surprised that more people haven't been angered by the fact that an American was cast as one of Britain's most famous and original "superheroes." But not only is RDJ awesome as Holmes, I couldn't imagine anyone else in the role.
The special effects were actually pretty good. Guy Ritchie had his work cut out for him making the audience believe that he was actually filming in Industrial Age London. Subtle though it was, the effects got the job done. There were only two points where the effects were NOTICABLEY fake. One was where this ship that was under construction fell into the Thames river. The ship didn't appear fake but the moorings it drug behind it did. The other was the bridge in the climatic final battle, also under construction, looked bad from a distance. But up close it looked unequivally well done. I guess that is because they used a practical set and CG.
* Beware Spoilers *
The plot for this film was top notch in amy respects. Here's the rundown: Shelock Holmes and Watson need to hunt down and stop Lord Blackwood who has returned from the grave. Blackwood is a Satanist cult leader bent on world domination. Thankfully, that is never said. It is merely implied. Meanwhile, Watson is growing tired of his life with the consulting detective Holmes and wants to settle down and be wed to Mary, his girlfriend. Holmes, on the other hand, is willing to do anything to break it up. And to make matters even more interesting, Irene Adler, the only person to ever outsmart Holmes is back in town. But whose side is she really on?
I really enjoyed the plot twists, but in the end, many would compare the plot to Scooby-Doo. Albeit, a mature Scooby film. The violence especially is really well thought out. You'll find it quite enjoyable. Unless you hate repetition and redundancy. We get to see how Holmes thinks out each move in slow motion and then in real time, view the actual fight. And then there's the fact that Ritchie actually makes the audience believe that Blackwood has supernatural powers until Holmes reveals the fraud he really is.
I sincerely hope this movie does well. the reason being that the whole Irene Adler plot sets the film up for a sequel. At the end, it is established that Irene was manipulated in a scheme to steal a piece of a revolutionary device. A scheme orchestrated by a certain Professor Moriarty.
* End Spoilers *
Overall, this was a remarkable film with only a few quirks. I give the cast and crew of this remarkable film my blessing to continue this long lived franchise!!!!
Faithful Adaptaion: 7/10
Performance: 8/10
Effects: 8/10
Plot: 8/10
Total: 78/100