Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
Directed by Guy Ritchie
Starring Robert Downey Jr, Jude Law, Noomi Rapace, Jared Harris, Stephen Fry, Paul Anderson, Kelly Riley, and Rachael McAdams.
Backstory
When I saw the first Sherlock Holmes film, I kind of liked it. In a way, it served as my first true exposure to the Sherlock Holmes universe, I liked the chemistry between Downey and Law, it had some great action sequences, but it didn’t really blow me away. That being said, though, I did like it enough that when the sequel came around, I decided to drop my money down and go see the further adventures of Holmes and Watson. What adventure would these two have this time around?
Plot
Following the events of the first film, Holmes has now dedicated his life to tracking down and foiling the plot of his new adversary, Professor James Moriarty. Holmes’ investigation soon leads him to a gypsy by the name of Simza, whose brother has somehow become wrapped up in Moriarty’s plot. When Holmes learns that Moriarty has put a hit out on Watson, Holmes interrupts Watson’s honeymoon to save his friend. And from there, Holmes, Watson, and Simza are playing cat and mouse with Moriarty all across Europe. What is Moriarty’s overall plot? And will Holmes be able to bring this man to justice?
What I Liked
Downey and Law still play great off each other. There’s some great action sequences, and some great gags.
What I Didn’t Like
This film is a lot goofier than the first one, with Holmes starting to act eccentric for eccentricity’s sake. Apparently, his powers of deduction now make him MacGyver, as he’s able to piece together all manner of weapons from what surrounds him. McAdams is back for an extended cameo as Irene Adler, and I was very disappointed in what they did with her in her brief time in the film. And Guy Ritchie’s directorial style goes into overdrive here, with random slow motion shots and excessive ramping and it all gets very annoying.
Final Assessment
I did have a good time with this, even if it did get a little silly in some places. As the old cliche goes, “If you liked the first one….”.