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Sherlock Holmes (2009)

Director: Guy Ritchie

Time Out rating

Average user rating

36 reviews

Synopsis

Guy Ritchie takes on the famed Victorian sleuth

Movie review

From Time Out London

Guy Ritchie the director and Guy Ritchie the screenwriter part ways for this latest spin on the Sherlock Holmes story, and if separation turns into divorce it would be no bad thing, at least on the evidence of this big-hearted, atmospheric entertainment. Shed of his tedious infatuation with off-the-peg London gangsters, Ritchie proves a competent teller of the fast-paced, not po-faced yarn. Here, Robert Downey Jr draws on his wild-eyed side to play the detective, while Jude Law assumes the more sober clothes of his sidekick, Dr Watson. Plunging into their careers mid-flow, we watch as they confront a conspiracy of national proportions.

They discover an aristocrat, Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong), in the middle of a ritualistic murder of a young woman. In this early scene, Ritchie’s Holmes reveals himself as a physical titan in a witty interlude in which we witness in slow motion the microscopic details of his plan to incapacitate an assailant by brute force. The villain hangs, but, for Holmes and Watson, this is just the start of a series of fights, rescues, escapes and revelations, all cloaked in creaky supernatural mumbo jumbo.

Ritchie’s ‘Sherlock Holmes’ is effective as a caricatured comedy adventure and shows some fidelity to Arthur Conan Doyle, especially in Downey Jr’s portrayal of the eccentric but cold-hearted Holmes. The banter between Holmes and Watson isn’t as witty as it should be, but the detective’s lone mutterings, especially his deductions, are fun. The film’s biggest success is its evocation of Victorian London, via much location work and CG rendering: here, Ritchie’s grittily romantic view of our city comes into its own, culminating in a delicious climax on the girders of a half-built Tower Bridge.

Author: Dave Calhoun

Time Out London Issue 2053/2054: 17–30 December, 2009

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User reviews of this film

Laila said...

Posted on Aug 13 2011 15:29 Nothing compared to Sherlock TV Series on BBC One UK. Poor poor adaptation of ACD's. What a love story? There wasn't any love story! Adler loves other man.
Did Guy Ritchie even read the original story?
BBC One version is THE BEST!

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Josh M said...

Posted on Jun 14 2011 11:59 Great film! ignore the other bad comments, its great!
The action and the special FX Made the film one of my favorites

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MissSherlock said...

Posted on May 24 2010 22:17 I LOVE LOVE LOVE this film!! Mainly because of Robert Downey Jr, a class act! But I did think the film kind of flopped as it went along, almost as though the writers gave up. You soend 2 hours watching all this action, and you get to the end..... and it was all a magical illusion! wft is up with that?!?!
But I did like the performances, the action and the new adaption!

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Tasha said...

Posted on May 24 2010 12:39 Great effects, poor story, too much mumbling from Sherlock, was disappointed.

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HolmesOfficinado said...

Posted on May 20 2010 20:00 Please see previous comments

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HolmesOfficinado said...

Posted on May 20 2010 19:58 What a load of shallow, narrow-minded comments! If you watch this film with the spirit in which it is portrayed, ie. that of an eccentric, stunningly intelligent yet empathetic Victorian detective, you see, just below the surface, a film made with a passion for detail. The depth of Downey's 'Holmes' and the attention to detail of (most of) the Victorian lifestyle is a pleasure to behold. As a great fan of the late Jeremy Brett, whom I thought was the greatest actor to portray such a complex character, I am delighted to see in Downey an eccentricity all his own - superb and thoroughly entertaining. I shall certainly recommend any die-hard Holmes fan to watch this film and perhaps just ignore one or two of the 'Hollywood touches' and I'm sure they will cherish it as a future 'classic'!

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geoff darwen said...

Posted on Feb 23 2010 14:17 Did not particularly like the film. Much of the diaglogue was hurried and slurred and couldn't always make out was was said. Sherlock looked too young for the role. Too much simulated violence and not enough detective work. Prefer ITV Poirot, the film must have been poor. The set looked like a cast off from Sweeney Todd, was the film made on the cheap?

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mokinator said...

Posted on Feb 05 2010 18:44 an alright film. pacy and humorous but not a very gripping plot.

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Mike said...

Posted on Feb 05 2010 18:16 Hey! C'mon everybody. This movie is a great departure from the usual stuffy views taken by film-makers on Sherlock Holmes and his patsy sidekick, Watson. What a revelation. If Downey doesn't feature in the Oscar nominations for his wonderfully comic efforts here the academy need a reality check!
Great special effects and a witty storyline well acted, especially from all the principles, with some innovative flashback thoughts of Holmes extricating himself from dodgy situations, which slowed the hectic pace at the right time, enough to get your breath back for a moment, before being hurled along again at breakneck speed to the next plot point.
Am looking forward to the sequel with anticipation. The trick now, for an inspired Guy Ritchie, is to make it different enough from this one to continue to captivate new audiences to Sherlock Holmes' adventures without actually needing to be a Holmes fan, as this one did.
Very clever, funny, well plotted and pacy enough to satisfy all fans of the genre.

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John H said...

Posted on Jan 25 2010 22:52 Great Digital Effects however film a big bore.

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Sue said...

Posted on Jan 24 2010 17:22 Loved it, tongue in cheek play on the boring original, not a RDJ fan but thought he was great in this, the plot is not to be taken seriously, not the usual gory tripe everyones hooked on at the moment, done in typical Ritchie style and glad to see he's back on form.

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Jen said...

Posted on Jan 23 2010 17:14 A boring film and not worth 3 stars. Could have easily walked out half way through not caring what happened, total rubbish, don't waste your money!

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chris h said...

Posted on Jan 23 2010 14:39 After the last film i saw (part of - walked out after an hour) being Avatar, this was great - it had a plot for a start and was believable!

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DV said...

Posted on Jan 22 2010 09:16 R.D.Jr is a mumbling Dick Van Dyke. I'm sure they won't mind his forced accent in the States, but I certainly did. Made for the US market, I reckon. Shoddy. And the plot! Sheesh. To make the population of London appear truly fearful (of black magic), surely you have to set them up as god-fearing to start with? Shame, as I've enjoyed some of Ritchie's previous flicks. They had wit, dialogue, plot etc...

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Violetta said...

Posted on Jan 18 2010 18:08 This is one Sherlock movie when the great detective doesn't get to do any real detecting; the Doc Watson seems to be the man with the ideas. The overall feeling of the film is a 19th Century first person shoot-them-up game melded with an obvious Hammer House of Horror script, right down to the trite text book closure frames - slightly distracting at best.

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