Sherlock Holmes

When you contemplate a modern filmic adaptation of Sherlock Holmes, the last person who’d come to mind, to foresee the project, would be Guy Ritchie and his cockney, one-liner-filled, brash-laden style of filmmaking. Yes, it worked with the likes of Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch, but Sherlock Holmes? A tale about one of literature’s greatest intellectual detectives?

Naturally, when Ritchie was indeed confirmed on the project you could see purists up-and-down the country shaking their heads; the undeniable smell of scepticism. Milk and orange – never a mix that worked. Or so it was previously believed...

From the very outset, beginning at a frantic pace, we find Holmes (played by Robert Downey Jr) and his trusty sidekick Watson (Jude Law) foiling a sacrificial murder by antagonist Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong). Blackwood, subsequently, is sentenced and hung, but, miraculously, returns from the dead to continue his evil, ritualistic plans, leaving our ‘dynamic duo’ to investigate. This rapid start sets things up nicely, and from here on we’re exposed to sequence-after-sequence of action-packed battles, surreal goings-on, and good old classic British banter.

And no more so than between Downey Jr and Jude Law. Downey’s portrayal of Holmes as a charming, brat-like, vulnerable hero, with the physical prowess to match, and Law’s rendition of Watson as a respectable, elegant ladies-man are in complete contrast to one another, but never has there been such chemistry between two leads (somewhere George Clooney and Chris O’Donnell are watching with disdain). The continual bickering between both, as they work together to solve the crimes at hand, is fantastic fun, and very much forms the beating heart of the film. That ‘odd-couple’ connotation has never been more apt, especially when Watson gets engaged and his “relationship” with Holmes is threatened - cue ‘homoerotic’ content. It’s a daring and original take on both characters, and one that’s a roaring success.

And to add to this is the unique juxtaposition of time and place, as we’re presented with a very gritty 1890s Victorian London, teeming with culture and architecture, yet there’s also a very ‘modern feel’ to it all, especially with the swagger, confidence, and attitude of the narrative. This, it must be noted, has to all go down to Guy Ritchie, whose mixture of historic old and modern new works a treat. He really does capture London beautifully, whilst at the same time putting a whole new spin on the Sherlock Holmes legacy, which no one could, or even would, have thought possible.

One of the highlights is the heart-stopping slow-motion sequences that depict Holmes combining brains and brawn to defeat opponents, which we get via an internally explained clip, before it actually occurs. That’s Guy Ritchie all over, stamping his authorial mark, and it’s as memorable as anything cinema has seen this last decade.

At a duration of over two hours, however, the film does drag, especially towards the end, with things getting hurried and mashed together. Actress Rachel McAdams, normally so elegant, stars as Irene Alder, a “love interest” for Holmes, but her performance is so bland it really adds nothing to the piece. And Mark Snow, even though great as the villainous Lord Blackwood, is somewhat underused, and towards the latter stages his commanding presence as an actor is sadly lost.

So yes, this isn’t classic Sherlock Holmes, but then neither was it supposed to be. It’s a fresh take, aimed at the modern world, but sticking to the heritage, and despite its flaws, Guy Ritchie should be commended for taking on the project and succeeding.



Released in cinemas on 26th December 2009 by Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures.

Written by Jaysen Ramasamy.