Sherlock Holmes (2009)
Brandon Sears
RATED:Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some startling images and a scene of suggestive material.
DIRECTOR: Guy Ritchie
RUNNING TIME: 128 mins
DATE SEEN: January 14, 2010
Working mainly on the indie cult scene, British film maker Guy Ritchie has decided to try his hand at a largely accessible studio film. Having seen the movie, I can't say for certain that someone else could have done an adequate job with the character of Sherlock Holmes but I can say without hyperbole, that Guy Ritchie did a superb job.
Dr. Watson (Jude Law) is about to make the leap into married life, settle down and perhaps start a family. The problem? Sherlock (Robert Downey Jr.) has degenerated into a total psychological wreck. He misses the cases, he misses the adventure and danger and continues to attempt to persuade Watson to rethink his stance on marriage. Luckily for Holmes, they get pulled into a case with catastrophic implications - end of the world implications as it were. Throwing a wrench in their job is Holmes long lost love, Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams) further complicating the judgment of Holmes.
I'm not entirely familiar with the history and style that surrounds the duo of Watson and Holmes but I can probably envision a less gritty and dark world, something a little cleaner and polished. However, as most know, I prefer the aforementioned style a great deal more. Also, I'm SO happy that this was not an origin story. That is not to say that I dislike origin stories but its a nice change of pace that when starting a franchise, that the director/screenwriter would choose to accept that the audience has an "idea" who these people are.
Downey Jr. was just outstanding as Holmes and Law performs excellently as his sidekick; often showing tendancies that he's less of a follower and more of a partner. The chemistry between the two is unmatched and I can't imagine anyone else playing them. Playing the foil to the Holmes/Watson tag team is Mark Strong as Lord Blackwood. It's hard to really complain about Strong as he seems fine in his role, proving to be an intellectual match for Holmes.
All in all, I liked it. I liked that Ritchie infused some violence and action into the story - Ritchie really knows how to shoot bareknuckle boxing scenes. I'm pretty excited for what I imagine will be a sequel, maybe two. Holmes most famous villian seems to be on the horizon and things can only go up from here.
Brandon Sears is an insurance salesman by day and a superhero by night (not really). He has been writing for Modern Distraction since 2004. He lives in Sydney Mines with his wife, Ashley and his dog Toby.