Sherlock Holmes (2009) Grade: B
Jack says: B+
Sherlock Holmes is the ninth film by Guy Ritchie, and he doesn't exactly have the best repetoire in my opinion: Rocknrolla, Swept Away, Revolver (Roger Ebert gave it half a star). But with this film, I couldn't help but be entertained. It has a very good cast, which is probably the only reason the film works, and the film does have problems. Robert Downey, Jr., Jude Law and Rachel McAdams make for a riotous group actors to behold in these quirky albeit unbelievable sequences.
The film is quite boisterous, the fight scenes get a little excessive and may be too much for some viewers. The slow motion/high speed camera parts may be a little too modern for Sherlock Holmes as well, but the cast is so grand that it's just fun to watch them do 'their thing'.
Could it have been better in a different director's hands? Yes, there's no question about it. But this isn't a total failure. The casting of Downey, Jr. was pitch perfect and the cinematography, costumes and music make for a good time. It was definitely fun to watch in a theater, the cinematography was excellent and it was convincing as a period piece, but this film isn't for everyone.
Matthew says: B-
Sherlock Holmes is the old classic detective story. Or just detective. The kind of character that is bound to hav more remakes than you can count on your hands. And you could do so much with a character like Sherlock Holmes. But Guy Ritchie handles the source material like it's a lame pitch for the new summer blockbuster starring last summer's star (this case being Robert Downey Junior).
That brings up another key element in the movie, the cast. Jude Law, a typically one-dimensional actor, is at his best and seems to be having fun with his character. So does Downey, but in a different way. Law has fun in his character. Downey just is having fun making tons of money. It seems that from watching movies with him in it (and there have been a lot recently) he always plays the same fast talking "witty" narcissist. He does a lot of talking in this movie, so does Law. But that, actually, is one of the only enjoyable parts in this movie. If the movie was more dialogue and detective-doing, this could have been a very interesting remake.
But instead they fill this film with long, uninteresting fight sequences and a mystery that isn't the least bit mysterious. They have a mystery in the begging of the film that is supposed to capture our attention and keep us intrigued. But it doesn't. And when it comes up again, I was just like, this again? And in the end when Sherlock Holmes explains his theory and the solution to all of the mystery, they set everything up right, and make us think that he really has something here, but he really doesn't and neither do the screenwriters.
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