Sherlock aficionados and hardcore canonistas, beware. This take on the classic Sir Arthur Conan Doyle creation is considerably different than what you have seen in the past. Director Guy Ritchie, who cut his teeth on Brit gangster films, has gotten his hands on the sleuth and has updated him, tweaked him, and reinvented him for a modern audience who may not be terribly in tune with the character in his classic form. The end result is a film that should satisfy the masses, annoy the nitpickers, and ultimately be embraced for being a flat-out entertaining film regardless of some individual grievances. At least I hope that is how it will go.
I am not familiar with Sherlock Holmes at all. I have never read any of the stories nor have I watched any of the films, although I think I may have seen clips here and there over the years and I am pretty sure that I even own one or two of the films on DVD. My closest ties to Holmes would probably be those episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation where Captain Picard would assume the mantle with Data as Watson on the holodeck. In other words, I am nowhere near an authority on the character. I am content with my impressions of him that have that have seeped into pop culture consciousness.
This new take on Holmes plays partly as a redressed '80s buddy film (a la Lethal Weapon) and partly as superhero adventure (think Batman and Robin, but not the Schumacher debacle), while still remaining true to the character's roots, albeit with a touch of modern bromance sensibilities.
The first half of the film sees the famous sleuth prevent the murder of a woman in a black magic ritual being performed by Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong). Following the arrest of Blackwood, Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) retreats to his home and a room that is strewn with all manner of gadgets by the restless detective. It seems this is the way he usually acts between cases, although this time it is compounded by Dr. John Watson's (Jude Law) impending exit from their shared home for married life.
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