A Game of Shadows tries that, but it just doesn’t work.
The 2009 Sherlock Holmes wasn’t exactly The Usual Suspects, but it at least followed its own logic and offered an interesting twist that fit with the film’s facts. It feels as if someone much simpler suddenly took over the writing duties. The detective work becomes retroactive, and the story forces improbable moments in order to justify pushing Holmes and his friends in the right direction. It is at this point that logic meekly bows its head and decides to just take the rest of the film off. It would be like getting away with robbing a bank but stopping to break into an ATM on the way out-it is almost exactly that dumb. It was as if Moriarty planned the perfect crime, then planned another much dumber crime on top of it. There is a murder that not only defies logic and is an impossibility due to the technology of the times, but it just doesn’t make sense. There is a point where the film seems to suddenly say “to hell with it,” and gives up on the detective angle altogether. The plot is a solid and well thought-out adventure–until about half way through. Holmes tries to make sure that Watson is safe since he is no longer part of Holmes’ investigation, but Moriarty refuses, which sends Holmes after his erstwhile companion and eventually on a chase through Europe to stop a brewing war.
But while Watson is gallivanting, Holmes is meeting with Sim (Noomi Rapace), a gypsy girl that is unwittingly a target of Moriarty.Īfter another action packed escapade where Holmes uses his unique brand of detective-fu to save the girl while whooping on an assassin, Watson gets married, and Holmes and Moriarty finally meet face to face. Under the auspices of giving him a stag party, Holmes takes Watson to a gentleman’s club, where they meet Sherlock’s brother Mycroft (Stephen Fry). Watson (Jude Law), is preparing to head down the aisle. But if you are just looking for an entertaining and stylish action flick, you could do much worse than Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.īut while Holmes grows increasingly more obsessed with the shadowy professor, his friend-his only friend-Dr. If you are looking for a crime thriller, or a film with several intelligent twists, this is not it. In terms of visual direction and pacing, it is about what you would expect from a Guy Ritchie film, especially after the 2009 original–it is fun to watch, but won’t tax your brain much. That doesn’t make it a bad movie, far from it, but it is basically just an action film with familiar characters.
#New york times review sherlock holmes game shadows movie
It is an action movie that just happens to feature a character named Sherlock Holmes, who occasionally is very smart. And yet, it is still an enjoyable move, almost despite itself.Ī Game of Shadows is not really a Sherlock Holmes film at. It is everything ridiculous in Hollywood, and shows a stunning disregard for a beloved character that apparently needed to be dumbed down and actioned up. Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows mostly does away with that in favor of having Holmes punch people in the face when not busy running from ‘splosions. But despite the numerous actors that have played him, despite the time period each adaptation puts him in, and despite the characteristics that were emphasized, he has always been a thinking man’s champion for truth, justice, and all that jazz.
He is the ultimate detective, and has become one of the most adapted characters in the history of film and stage. He examines the evidence, eliminates the impossible, leaving only the truth no matter how improbable. Sherlock Holmes has long been a name that is synonymous with detective work.
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