I really like the Sherlock Holmes character. Forget Poirot, Columbo, and the chimney sweep who goes about on skates when he should be tending to patients, Holmes is the ultimate detective. It may seem a little odd, considering how much I like the character, that I’m not a big fan of the movies. I enjoyed watching The Hound of the Baskervilles as a kid but I was fascinated more by the idea than the move itself. There are apparently 24 movie versions of Hound of the Baskervilles so perhaps the couple I remember watching weren’t the best examples. There have been over 200 Sherlock Holmes movies and easily my favourite is Young Sherlock Holmes.

That Spielberg produced action adventure was much more to my liking than the more common dialogue heavy examples. Young Sherlock Holmes is worth mentioning as while watching this version from Guy Ritchie I noticed a few similarities between the two. The team of three people consisting of Sherlock Holmes, his best friend Watson, and a love interest of Holmes. The supernatural black magic theme. The clever and timely reveal of a well-known adversary to Holmes. Most important similarity of all is a focus on fun.

Much of the media focus has understandably been on Robert Downey Jr who once again displays his acting talent as the title character, Sherlock Holmes. Less has been written about the actors in supporting roles and that’s a shame as without them, to state the obvious, the film would not have been possible. Jude Law, as the ever present Dr. Watson, brilliantly plays the sensible straight man in the Holmes and Watson double act. Rachel McAdams, as Holmes’ love interest Irene Adler, shows great ease when playing her character with a mix of sexy confidence and feminine fragility, reminiscent of classic film-noir dames. Mark Strong is fantastic in a somewhat understated but vitally important role as the mysterious Lord Blackwood. Eddie Marsan, in a less than exotic role, is great as the jobsworth Inspector Lestrade who is envious of the more gifted Holmes.

Criticism has been levelled at Director Guy Ritchie, and to a lesser degree the team of writers, for depicting an action hero version of Holmes which fans are not familiar with. I see absolutely no problem with this portrayal, which is more physical than we’re used to, as the books leave this side of Holmes open to interpretation. The stories feature gaps in which Holmes deals with criminals he encounters. It’s more than reasonable to assume Holmes dealt with these thugs in the only way possible, by force. I was most impressed with how this film showed Holmes taking a scientific approach to fighting. It’s easy to imagine Holmes as the type of combatant who would calculate the precise benefits of each strike before delivering it to his unprepared opponent.

I really enjoyed this modern incarnation of Sherlock Holmes. This an extremely well put together film with a combination of good direction, snappy editing, punchy dialogue, solid acting, and a memorable theme tune. If fans of Sherlock Holmes put aside the notion there is some kind of gospel when it comes to the beloved fictional character I’m confident they’ll enjoy this much more than the complainers. The acting alone does justice to one of the great characters in literature. Have a seat, pretend you’re smoking the iconic pipe, relax, and enjoy the show.

8/10

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