Mr Holmes

[sebastienne]

For such a beautiful, gentle film -- one that I adored every second of, and that managed to deal with memory loss in a way that I didn't find overwhelmingly upsetting -- this sure has left a sour taste in my mouth I've been thinking about it pretty constantly for the last 24 hours!

Comments

[lilka]

(deputised as a person who's seen them both) I would say the film is less sad in the sense that it's less cruel in dealing with the concept of a Holmes with Alzheimer's; in the sketch Holmes really is only the wreckage of his former self, most of the time, whereas in the film his physical fragility and problems with memory loss are obstacles more than things that threaten his core self. The film leaves him significantly more dignity and ability, so on that axis it's much less tragic.

In terms of the Holmes/Watson relationship it's more that it's differently sad. The whole film is haunted by the ghost of Watson, who has been dead for years before the story starts but whose possessions and influence are all over Holmes' life in small ways. He died estranged from Holmes for reasons that essentially boil down to 'massive mutual failure to grasp each others' viewpoint or communicate their own', and in some ways I think that's a sadder ending for their partnership than even the M&W sketch; but because Watson's dead in the main storyline and his appearances in flashback are faceless and voiceless, it's a haunting kind of sadness rather than the sketch's punch-in-the-gut one.