Sherlock Holmes

Directed by Guy Ritchie
Average customer review:

Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes


The hangman did his job, Dr. Watson declared the condemned man dead...yet Lord Blackwood has emerged from the tomb to assert his deadly will over 1890 London. Is he in league with the forces of hell itself? Is the whole Empire in peril? It's a mystery macabre--and only Sherlock Holmes can master it.


Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law put memorable imprints on Holmes and Watson in this bold new reimagining that makes the legendary sleuth a daring man of action as well as a peerless man of intellect. Baffling clues, astonishing Holmesian deductions, nimble repartee, catch-your-breath scenes of one slam thing after another--director Guy Ritchie helms the excitement reintroducing the great detective to the world. Meet the new Sherlock Holmes!

Sherlock Holmes

  • Brand: WARNER HOME VIDEO
  • Released on: 2010-03-30
  • Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
  • Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
  • Formats: Color, Widescreen, Subtitled, NTSC
  • Original language: English, French, Spanish
  • Subtitled in: English
  • Number of discs: 1
  • Dimensions: .15 pounds
  • Running time: 128 minutes
Sherlock Holmes


Sherlock Holmes

Guy Ritchie (Snatch, RocknRolla) attempts to reinvent one of the world's most iconic literary figures as an action hero in this brawny, visually arresting period adventure. Robert Downey Jr. is an intriguing choice for the Great Detective, and if he occasionally murmurs his lines a pitch or two out of hearing range, his trademark bristling energy and off-kilter humor do much to sell Ritchie's notion of Holmes. Jude Law is equally well-equipped as a more active Dr. Watson--he's closer to Robert Duvall's vigorous portrayal in The Seven Per-Cent Solution than to Nigel Bruce--and together, they make for an engaging team. Too bad the plot they're thrust into is such a mess--a bustling and disorganized flurry of martial arts, black magic, and overwhelming set pieces centered around Mark Strong's Crowley-esque cult leader (no Professor Moriarty, he), who returns from the grave to exact revenge. Downey and Law's amped-up Holmes and Watson are built for the challenge of riding this roller coaster with the audience; however, Rachel McAdams as Holmes's love interest, Irene Adler (here a markedly different character than the one in Arthur Conan Doyle's "A Scandal in Bohemia"), and Kelly Reilly as Mary Morstan, the future Mrs. Watson, are cast to the wind in the wake of Ritchie's hurricane pace. One can imagine this not sitting well with ardent Sherlockians; all others may find this Sherlock Holmes marvelous if calorie-free popcorn entertainment, with the CGI rendering of Victorian-era London particularly appealing eye candy. --Paul Gaita





Customer Reviews

Not your grandmama's Sherlock Holmes5
From the opening when horses seem to be galloping from the back of the theater, through the gray skies and industrial grime of the exteriors and the dinginess of most of the interiors, relieved occasionally by gorgeous jewel toned luxury, this Sherlock Holmes is grittier and much more raw then its predecessors--a Holmes for the millenium.

Robert Downey's Holmes is a brilliant brat. He borrows Watson's clothes without permission, insults Watson's fiance at their first meeting, and drives Mrs. Hudson to her wits' ends, but he's also a guy who knows his way around a boxing ring and the one you want on your side when facing doom in the form of Lord Blackwood, an executed murderer who resurfaces at the head of a black magic cult bent on world domination.

Jude Law's Watson is an understated sidekick to the flamboyant Holmes, but their relationship is more of a partnership than in typical Holmes/Watson duos. It's fun to watch the verbal sparring and exasperation which underlying affection makes sparkling rather than mean. The supporting cast is excellent, as well. The movie plays fair with the viewer. When Holmes explains how the crimes were carried out, we realize we saw the same clues at the same time he did. No deus ex machina here--it's all elementary.

This Sherlock Holmes is neither Jeremy Brett nor Basil Rathbone. Viewers who expect to settle into a predictable detective yarn will be disappointed. This Holmes is edgy, action packed and slightly uncomfortable, but more believable because of it. It's smart and atmospheric, and well worth seeing.

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