Sherlock Holmes

[Dragonfire]

I have been wanting to see Sherlock Holmes for months.  I had the chance to go last week and I really enjoyed the movie.

Holmes and Watson help the police stop Lord Blackwood from completing some kind of ritual that would kill a woman.  Blackwood has already killed five people.  Three months later, the date of his execution is approaching.  Watson is preparing to move out of the house he has been sharing with Holmes since he will soon be married.  Holmes isn’t happy about that.  He is also a bit depressed and bored without a case to deal with.  That changes when shortly after the execution, evidence seems to point to Blackwood coming back from the dead.  Holmes starts to investigate while also dealing with the reappearance of a woman from his past.  Watson tries to focus on his future, but he is still pulled into what is going on.

Before seeing this movie, I only sort of remember seeing some movies featuring Holmes years ago.  I don’t remember anything specific and I haven’t read any of the books or short stories, so I’m not that familiar with the character.  I like the character in this movie, though I can see how some people who are more familiar with the character may be upset by changes.  When the movie starts, Holmes and Watson have actually known each other for years and have been working together for a while as well.  I had sort of thought that the movie would have more of an origin story and while I still would like to know more about how the two of them met and started working together, I think the way things were handled in this movie works overall.

There is a decent amount of mystery to what is going on.  Holmes is very observant and notices little things.  With some of those things, I figured they would play into the resolution, though I didn’t know how.  Some things are mentioned that end up being more important later.  I don’t think people are going to pick up on all the clues and figure everything out themselves.  That doesn’t bother me and I think it keeps things from being more predictable.  Some things are shared at the end of the movie that set up a sequel.  I will see it if one is made. 

Action turns up several times throughout the movie and that seems to be the element that I’ve seen people complain about.  This version of Holmes, while still intelligent, will fight his way out of a situation if necessary.  He, and even Watson, are actually fairly good at fighting.  There are also some chases and explosions.  I know some special effects are used in the movie, but they blend in so well, they don’t stand out as being obvious like in many other movies.  I’m pretty sure that some kind of effects were used to create the look of London, which is absolutely amazing.  The city looks dirty, dreary, and grimey, which I think makes a realistic look.  The look of the setting does add a lot to the atmosphere of the movie. 

This version of Holmes is intelligent while also being able to handle himself in a fight.  He sometimes gets distracted by things and comes up with rather odd experiements when he doesn’t have a case to deal with.  He does aggravate his friends while still somehow managing to be a likable, interesting character.  I love Robert Downey Jr. in the part.  Watson is also intelligent and he is an equal in the investigations instead of just a flunky.  I think Jude Law does a good job with the part.  Irene is the woman from Holmes’s past who turns up.  She does seem interesting, though a lot about her is left unexplained.  Blackwood makes a good villain for the movie. 

Overall, I loved this movie and think it is one of the better movies I’ve seen in 2009.



I did get a review posted on Epinions if anyone would like to take a look.

Sherlock Holmes

[Achim]

Seen Sherlock Holmes last week myself (New Year's Eve, to be exaxct) and liked it just as much as you. I had no attachment to older films, let alone the books, and thought this was a fresh take on the material. Holmes fighting skill may seem awkward at first, but they are explained with him simply doing a logical approach to the fight (cause and effect analysis beforehand). The film kept my attention throughout.

After having to sit through Transformers 2 and 2012 last year it was nice to finish 2009 with something good.



Mark Kermode also pointed out that the movie was much better than he had expected and definitely an upturn for Guy Ritchie.

[Dragonfire]

I actually did sit through 2012 just a few weeks before seeing this one...this was so much better.

I haven't seen many of Ritchie's other movies..I think I just saw some of Snatch on tv..at least I think it was Snatch.  The one with Brad Pitt babbling with an accent that was so strong I couldn't understand a word of what he was saying.

[Achim]

I haven't seen many of Ritchie's other movies..I think I just saw some of Snatch on tv..at least I think it was Snatch.  The one with Brad Pitt babbling with an accent that was so strong I couldn't understand a word of what he was saying.

Yes, that's Snatch. Besides Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels one of the two Guy Ritchie films I have seen. The others are supposedly not wirth the effort anyway (while maybe not all bad, but certainly not on par with the beforementioned two).

[Emma]

Im going to see this soon, Im really excited about it. It sounds great.

[Mark Harrison]

His first two movies are high among my favorites.  Love them both.  Then he married Madonna and I don't know what happened.  Glad to hear he's returning to good form since I'm a Sherlock Holmes fan and have been dying to see this movie.

[Achim]

His first two movies are high among my favorites.  Love them both.  Then he married Madonna and I don't know what happened.  Glad to hear he's returning to good form since I'm a Sherlock Holmes fan and have been dying to see this movie.

So maybe it was a good thing he divorced madonna in the mean time

[Dragonfire]

I'd heard that the movie he made with her was horrible.

[Achim]

I'd heard that the movie he made with her was horrible.

Swept Away has an IMDb rating of 3.6 and a Rottentomatoes Meter of 5%. That says it all.

[Dragonfire]

I just got curious and looked it up on Epinions.  Overall 2 star rating.  Out of 15 reviews, most rated it 1 or 2 stars, though 2 did give it 4.

[Rich]

My son (16) watched this and thought it best film of 2009 he had seen, and definately one to see on the big screen.
Will have to go this weekend as I am reading and heairing such good things.

Why has Downey jr suddenly become such a great actor over the last couple of years?

[Jimmy]

He was already one a long time ago... at least in Less than Zero and Chaplin.

[Jon]

And Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and A Scanner Darkly...

[Emma]

Iron Man was also pretty good

..and Weird Science and Natural Born Killers 

[Critter]

I really hope to see this before it is out of the cinema. If not I will definatly catch it on DVD.