Movie Feature: Sherlock Holmes (2009)
If you just want the lowdown on the movie, here it is:
I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE Sherlock Holmes. WATCH IT OR THOU SHALT BE BESIEGED BY MY PRINNY ARMY.
For the uninitiated, this movie sets the scene for Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson's last case together, which was to apprehend Lord Blackwood who had committed a series of ritualistic murders. Dr. Watson is moving out of his shared home with Holmes on 221 Baker Street to be married to his fiancee, Mary, and Holmes is none too happy about it. However, when Lord Blackwood is rumoured to have been seen rising from his grave, the duo bands together to find out the reason why, and hang him again for good this time.
Guy Ritchie's directorial work of the famed detective is mostly confusing, with a solid beginning, uneven middle, and satisfying ending. Characters are over-the-top, and the soundtrack, although suitably atmospheric, comes in at abrupt times. Why then, do I love this movie so much? Well, this movie is a case of superb acting over plot. Robert Downey, Jr. is simply fantastic as Sherlock Holmes, and his Holmes is a mix of Dr. Gregory House from the television series House M.D. eccentricity and wit, with the charm and charisma of Tony Stark of Ironman. Jude Law is also equally wonderful as his partner Dr. Watson, lending a CSI-like expertise to Holmes's deductive skills. Together, they make one of the most memorable partnerships EVER. The movie has also a comedic vibe yet the the jokes do not mock your intelligence.
I really can't stress how much I love seeing them both together. So much so that they have officially made it into my shipping list as my no.1 OTP! Ahem. Anyway, their banter and chemistry is what carries the movie, and if you are wondering how can a movie be this good by relying on only two people's acting, well, look at the X-Files television series. The plot is hardly groundbreaking, but people watch it for Mulder and Scully. Or The Silence of the Lambs (1991) with Clarice Starling and Hannibal Lecter. Convoluted as its plot may be, everything is resolved at the end, and stays unexpectedly true to its source material - the Industrial Revolution and the emerging field of science, the Victorian costumes. Rachel McAdams is eye-catchingly lovely as Holmes' love interest and femme fatale Irene Adler, but she was merely Guy Ritchie had made her role in the film: a distraction. Mark Strong as the villian Lord Blackwood is merely MEH, simply because I think he had only two expressions: deadpan and constipated although the supernatural role he plays is a perfect foil for Sherlock Holmes almost supernatural ability to solve crimes.
Verdict: Sherlock Holmes may not be Academy Awards material, considering it's flashiness, but it is more fun to watch more than once compared to the abnormally lengthy Avatar. Besides, who could refuse Robert Downey, Jr. and Jude Law?