The real mystery

Since Monday I have been trying to write a post about Sherlock Holmes. I sat down to write the review but I went off on a tangent about everything I have watched on tv and the fact there aren’t enough action Christmas movies and how the few of those movies were mysteriously missing from the Christmas television line-up. I had written a whole page and still had not managed to get to the actual review as yet or even mentioned that I went to see the movie at all. But at that point I had lost my way and became distracted by hunger, phone calls, and my wondering mind.

Since then the review has been mulling around in my mind. It has taken me this long to figure out why I couldn’t really come up with anything. It is not that the movie was bad. And it is not that the movie was good either. Those extremes make it easy to write a review. When it is bad the aspects of its badness are easy to pick out and it is the same if it is a really good movie. The problem with Sherlock Holmes is that it didn’t leave much of an impression on me.

Sherlock Holmes is about the classic literary character created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the 1800s. It follows Holmes (Robert Downey Jr) and his investigative partner Dr. John Watson (Jude Law) as they investigate serial killer/sorcerer Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong) who has seemingly risen from the dead and is continuing his killing spree. To complicate things Holmes has to deal with the fact that Dr Watson will be moving from their 221b Baker Street home to be with his fiancé, Mary Morstan (Kelly Reilly), the inefficiency of the head of Scotland Yard, Inspector Lestrade (Eddie Marsan), and the reappearance of a temptress from his past, Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams).

The movie was directed by Guy Ritchie, who seems to be getting back to form since becoming the “director formally known as Mr. Madonna”. There are the usual Guy Ritchie trade marks all over the movie; gritty visuals, painful fight scenes, fast talking, humour, and sudden bursts of vivid colour. These are all things that usually make his movies fantastic. But it didn’t seem to be enough.

There is an excellent cast that seemed to enjoy themselves as these complex, witty and interesting characters. The banter between Holmes and Watson is quick, fun, and full of “bromance”. They are like an old married couple who fight for the hell of fighting and find great joy in it. The interaction between Holmes and Inspector Lestrade is also entertaining. Holmes rapidly flings harsh, hilarious insults at the inspector who seems so used to them that he does not even acknowledge them anymore. The only person in the film I actually have an issue with is Irene Adler. Rachel McAdams is a good actress but this is not a character that was suited to her at all. The way she looked, talked, even moved didn’t seem to fit the character. She didn’t do a bad job in the role, she acted as best she could with what she was given but the role was simply best suited for someone else.

The storyline is classic Sherlock Holmes. There is a winding path through places, people, and clues, and very little of it makes sense or fits together until the very end when Holmes just tells you everything in a recap. There was no surprise there. But with a movie this is all done with visuals so you are shown a leaf or a strange liquid and it is not described to you as in the books so there are no smells mentioned or textures so of course with out a trained eye like Holmes’ you have to depend on one sense to try to figure things out which is just not possible.

After all that, the good directorial style, good acting and dialogue, and good storyline, there still seemed to be something missing from the overall film. I guess the pacing of the film was a little off. It wasn’t too slow or fast it was a bit uneven. I found myself waiting for something to happen or be revealed but all that revealing was left for the end of the movie. And I don’t think Rachel McAdams really ruined the movie, she just through of it’s balance a little. But even pointing out those problems I feel like there must have been something else hindering the goodness in the final product. That is the real mystery.

Sherlock Holmes was a disappointment. It has left hardly any impression on me at all and I expected to be entertained and taken for a good investigative ride. The fact that it was meh is enough of a let down. I guess it is worth seeing one day but not in the theatre. The visuals aren’t awe inspiring even though they are good. The movie is about the details and you don’t need a 30 foot screen to be told about a leaf that was shown 30 minutes earlier.

Too bad. I expected to end the year having seen a great movie and putting up a great review. Hopefully tomorrow I will get to see a great movie and start the year with a bang.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

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