Given his return to power it wasn't that surprising when it was announced that Robert Downey Jr. would be playing Arthur Conan Doyle's immortal detective. You could perhaps say it was elementary (sorry).
It was a slight surpise however to find Guy Ritchie at the directors chair, what with the director having being in a bit slump for some time but he does a good job - thinking about it now he mirrors RDJ in Ironman: being an unlikely choice due to a lack of success only to deliver the goods.
Even more surprising was Jude Law being in the position of sidekick, failures such as "Sleuth" and "Repo Men" have diminished Laws star power but he too is on form here.
The chemistry between the two leads is absolutely electric, they look like they are having real fun and just enjoy being around each other which translates perfectly, it's good fun to watch them having fun. Their relationship is convincing and entertaining, providing the comedy that works. RDJ's Holmes is an all seeing intellectual, being two steps ahead of everyone, understanding everything except social conventions and women with Law being his capable straight man, being just a step behind Holmes.
The action is good, with a grubby boxing match in the mud being the most obvious Ritchie element and a middle act fight of Holmes+Watson vs Meat+Veg being childishly fun while the finale atop a incomplete London Tower Bridge is suitably epic. Furthermore Ritchies fast cuts and pacing compliment this Holmes' concentration and movement.
The London created by Ritchie is all grubby and slightly steampunk. Thinking about it is likely quite an accurate portrayal of the time
Mark Strong is more than adequate as the sinister Lord Blackwood however the character is not as dimensional as other villains recent years have delivered (were looking at you Joker). Nor is he the Holmes villain we are all eager to see, with the foreshadowing to Moriarty setting the stage for their eventual showdown.
Weaker parts in an otherwise strong escapade include Rachel McAdams' Irene Adler, who although a challenge to Holmes that is shown to be capable of handling herself actually has very little to do and degenerates into a damsel type weakness to be used against our hero later in the story.
The examples of movie physics are also a bit irritating: the electric stick sending thugs flying and the anchor in the docks hurtling around stand out, especially when this series is usually rather reality based but this is a buddy romp reimagining so this can be overlooked.
Also the pseudo-magicscience of Blackwoods powers is hardly the work of a detective, being almost as obvious as the studio interference - which results in the comedy that doesn't work, such as the dog farting.
Also just to nit-pick, was running hot water around in this period?
To summarise, solid good fun, Holmes and Watson are a dynamic duo, Ritchie busts his slump and will better this outing in the future due to not being weighed down by world building responsibilities although it is weighed down by a formulaic structure and unnecessary characters.
4
It was a slight surpise however to find Guy Ritchie at the directors chair, what with the director having being in a bit slump for some time but he does a good job - thinking about it now he mirrors RDJ in Ironman: being an unlikely choice due to a lack of success only to deliver the goods.
Even more surprising was Jude Law being in the position of sidekick, failures such as "Sleuth" and "Repo Men" have diminished Laws star power but he too is on form here.
The chemistry between the two leads is absolutely electric, they look like they are having real fun and just enjoy being around each other which translates perfectly, it's good fun to watch them having fun. Their relationship is convincing and entertaining, providing the comedy that works. RDJ's Holmes is an all seeing intellectual, being two steps ahead of everyone, understanding everything except social conventions and women with Law being his capable straight man, being just a step behind Holmes.
The action is good, with a grubby boxing match in the mud being the most obvious Ritchie element and a middle act fight of Holmes+Watson vs Meat+Veg being childishly fun while the finale atop a incomplete London Tower Bridge is suitably epic. Furthermore Ritchies fast cuts and pacing compliment this Holmes' concentration and movement.
The London created by Ritchie is all grubby and slightly steampunk. Thinking about it is likely quite an accurate portrayal of the time
Mark Strong is more than adequate as the sinister Lord Blackwood however the character is not as dimensional as other villains recent years have delivered (were looking at you Joker). Nor is he the Holmes villain we are all eager to see, with the foreshadowing to Moriarty setting the stage for their eventual showdown.
Weaker parts in an otherwise strong escapade include Rachel McAdams' Irene Adler, who although a challenge to Holmes that is shown to be capable of handling herself actually has very little to do and degenerates into a damsel type weakness to be used against our hero later in the story.
The examples of movie physics are also a bit irritating: the electric stick sending thugs flying and the anchor in the docks hurtling around stand out, especially when this series is usually rather reality based but this is a buddy romp reimagining so this can be overlooked.
Also the pseudo-magicscience of Blackwoods powers is hardly the work of a detective, being almost as obvious as the studio interference - which results in the comedy that doesn't work, such as the dog farting.
Also just to nit-pick, was running hot water around in this period?
To summarise, solid good fun, Holmes and Watson are a dynamic duo, Ritchie busts his slump and will better this outing in the future due to not being weighed down by world building responsibilities although it is weighed down by a formulaic structure and unnecessary characters.
4
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