“Death is only the beginning.”
Swift shot: Modern movie magic brings a classic, enduring character back to life. With a sturdy understanding of Sherlock Holmes, Director Guy Ritchie and cast-members alike create an enjoyable moving picture for all audiences to enjoy. With just the right amount of action peppered in, Sherlock Holmes doesn’t disappoint on any level.
Guy Ritchie is not my favorite director, perish the thought. I know a lot of people like his style, not me. But he turned in a great piece of work with Sherlock Holmes. Credit the casting department for using Robert Downey Jr. as the cursed-genius resident of 221B Baker Street, London. Without him, or using a real Londoner, the overall international appeal would have been nil. Robert Downey is a freakin super-star right now, and his accolades are well deserved. He brings to the Holmes role a kind of gruff attitude akin to the most recent Holmes incarnation, Gregory House (unless you are a buffoon, you know House is an allusion to Holmes).
Whom better to portray the wise, yet caustic Holmes than Downey in our era, Brad “Button” Pitt? Matt Daaamon? Ashton “The Twit” Kutcher? Christian “Batman” Bale? Not hardly. And, what of his being an action hero, clearly, Holmes was an action hero of his day, having used bartitsu and bare-knuckled brawling to subdue the fiercest of enemies. So, why not Ironman? In fact, I absolutely loved the way they explained how the mind of Holmes directing his martial-arts could be a very lethal combination. Furthermore, Ritchie slows down the pace a bit so us poor saps can capture in a few seconds what must pass through Holmes’ mind in a nanosecond. Excellent and a novel way to transpose print to silver-screen.
According to the Internet Movie Database, there are no less than 223 portrayals of the Holmes facade in movies and television. My exposure to the character happened when I was really young; I watched Tom Baker (Dr. Who) don the deerstalker and solve the mystery of The Hound of the Baskervilles in a TV miniseries. After that, I would catch the occasional Sherlock Holmes movie, some classics with Rathbone, the real Sherlock Holmes (according to my father). But, dear old, departed dad, there were almost thirty-five other actors portraying Holmes before Rathbone. So, let’s assume there will be at least thirty-five more following Downey. This character is too interesting to fade away into obscurity; they even have a museum for him in London – a fictional character, mind you.
I was always intrigued by Sherlock Holmes, especially Dr. John Watson (Jude Law), whom I always wanted to know more about – then came along this highly controversial depiction of Holmes and Watson, Young Sherlock Holmes (Nicholas Rowe) which captivated me for its supernatural qualities and novel special effects. It was controversial primarily because it apparently had Holmes and Watson meeting too soon, and it was rated PG-13 for strong sexual themes and violence – probably another reason I enjoyed it so much. That, and the bad guy, Anthony Higgins, was amazing. Oddly enough, he even portrayed Holmes later on, with Rowe now doing voice-overs in the new Dr. Who – trippy!
This latest, and perhaps final, Holmes and Watson adventure focuses on Watson’s engagement and planned exodus from flat 221B. Their final capture was of the diabolical Lord Blackwood, played by the ever-sinister Mark Strong. Strong is the kind of guy who could set off Lucifer’s flight or fight response. Blackwood promises his captors that “Death is only the beginning” as he prepares to hang for his crimes against the crown and several murders. After that, the game is afoot!
Secret societies, magical cults, with powerful and prestigious pieces adorn this theatrical chess board – all set as the “Colonies” fight a civil war across the pond. While Holmes and Watson find themselves wrapped up in the game, Holmes’ attention is diverted by the American, Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams). Adler spins a masterful ruse, and while Holmes is no fool to her wiles, he is also no match for her wits. McAdams powerfully annoys, as intended, and serves as the perfect bee in the ointment – but, there is more to her character – she has more depth than I was expecting.
As with all great mysteries, I would be remiss to give anything away, so I will just conclude by saying this one may surprise you, several little red-herrings will be tossed at you – whether you take the bait is up to you. And once the devious master’s plot is revealed, the real story begins.
On a side note, I would love to know what the Holmes character means to you, who do you think is the REAL Sherlock Holmes? What was your favorite movie, series etc. and why do you think that? If you’ve seen the film, do you feel these modern story-tellers did justice to the Doyle characters – or should they be run out of town on a rail?
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