BEFORE: I'm counting this as a spy film, as opposed to a police/detective film, because they really amped up Sherlock's character in the 2009 film, giving him more talents than just deductive reasoning, really making him more of an early secret agent-type. (Victorian secret agent? Sounds weird...) Anyway, there is another connection to the spy genre, since in some stories Sherlock's brother Mycroft becomes the first "M" when they establish the British secret service.
And perhaps I should have placed this next to "The Raven", because they cover a similar time period, but I didn't because of the actor linking, what was it again? Colin Farrell from "The Recruit" was also in "The Way Back" with Mark Strong, who was in "Sherlock Holmes" with Robert Downey Jr. (last seen in "Zodiac") - I think there was a shorter way, since an actor named Chris Owens from "The Recruit" was also in "The Incredible Hulk", in which Robert Downey Jr. had a cameo.
THE PLOT: Sherlock Holmes and his sidekick Dr. Watson join forces to outwit and bring down their fiercest adversary, Professor Moriarty.
FOLLOW-UP TO: "Sherlock Holmes" (Movie #824)
AFTER: And yes, it's the power of two again tonight, with Holmes & Watson. Or maybe it's the dichotomy of Holmes vs. Moriarty that should be the focus. But damn, that makes three characters. Well, you know what I mean, there's a two-person alliance and a two-person confrontation.
I forgot, in this incarnation Holmes is also a brawler, prone to fisticuffs when required - but they film it in such a way that boxing is presented as a sort of mental game. Holmes calculates all of his opponents' potential moves and is ready to counter them all, which results in a near superhuman reaction time. This results in a hyper-realized choreography of sorts, depicted in slow-motion, for us mortals to be able to understand the workings of Holmes' genius mind.
The slow-motion effect is used a few other times in the film, especially to backtrack and show us plans that were put in motion beforehand but not yet revealed, and to highlight the actions during a frantic chase scene, also filled with gunshots and explosions. Even slowed down, though, there was so much going on that the sequence was difficult to follow.
My other complaints include the villain's plan being not very well explained - a series of anarchist bombings that will somehow bring about a war. But I recall the evil plot in "Sherlock Holmes" wasn't well explained either, so this is in fact a step up in clarity. Also, I'd like to know what year this set in - 1891? It's odd that they have whatever tech they need, even if it wasn't invented yet in the real world.
Other than that, it was a very entertaining film. I usually like the puzzle/mystery aspect of Sherlock Holmes more than the shooting/punching parts, but to each his own. I can understand why Holmes needs someone like Dr. Watson around, since he tends to get pretty banged up. Also he seems to ingest a lot of foreign substances. Does anyone else find it ironic that Robert Downey Jr. has had his best successes playing Holmes (a drug addict) and Tony Stark (an alcoholic)?
This film is, in part, based on the original Arthur Conan Doyle short story "The Final Problem". (After I finished with Edgar Allan Poe stories in junior high, I moved on to Conan Doyle) This is the story in which the author killed off Holmes, feeling he'd done all he could with the character. Fans revolted, however, and ten years later the author felt compelled to bring him back - so Holmes might be the first fictional character (after Jesus, that is) to be brought back from the dead to appease fans, in a practice all too common in today's soap operas and comic books.
Also starring Jude Law (last seen in "Contagion"), Noomi Rapace, Jared Harris (last seen in "Natural Born Killers"), Rachel McAdams (last seen in "Sherlock Holmes"), Stephen Fry (last seen in "Alice in Wonderland").
RATING: 7 out of 10 tarot cards
No comments:
Post a Comment