Over 200 television and long feature films throughout time have had as only purpose that of bringing something new for the audiences with the story of world’s most famous and loved detective, Sherlock Holmes. Yet none of them has managed to do what British director Guy Ritchie has done with the fictitious character, with the film of the same name that comes out precisely on Christmas day, critics say.
Starring Robert Downey Jr. as Holmes and the stylish Jude Law as the sophisticated sidekick Watson, the “Sherlock Holmes” that Ritchie helmed is nothing short of an amazing ride, which also manages to do the unthinkable: reboot the character. Holmes is not a fancy gentleman who is always soft-spoken and kind: he’s a brute with a personal hygiene problem who spares no second thought when it comes to throwing in a few punches to make his point clear. He’s also incredibly smart and tremendously likeable and funny, critics say.
It’s not just Downey Jr. that makes “Sherlock Holmes” such a “blast,” though. “Effectively remaking the original ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ as a Victorian London caper, Guy Ritchie combines his kinetic direction with the limitless charms of Downey Jr. and Jude Law to come up with terrific entertainment that’s equal parts brains and brawn, American recklessness and English manners. In short, it’s a blast… […] Miraculously the audience is right there with Holmes even during his most out-there epiphanies, and the equally out-there camerawork pays off well in making this period piece feel unstuffy, but also not gimmicky. And yet, when Ritchie holds the camera relatively still, letting all of the actors play off each other, there’s nothing better,” Katey Rich at
CinemaBlend writes.
“At last, Guy Ritchie has found the perfect vessel for his sugar-rush, hyper-kinetic style of filmmaking. The director of the hit-or-miss ‘Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels’ and ‘Snatch’ […] absolutely nails Sherlock Holmes, staying true to the classic Arthur Conan Doyle characters in spirit while imbuing them and the film with his ADD-eque energy and unique style. And really, what better fit for Ritchie than an opium-addicted, violin-strumming genius who’s incapable of sitting still for more than a moment at a time? Riding a lights-out performance by Robert Downey Jr. as Holmes and an outstanding supporting turn from Jude Law as Watson, Ritchie steps on the pedal from the opening shots and doesn’t take his foot off the gas until the credits wrap,”
Film and Felt also writes.
All in all, critics point that Guy Ritchie, a director known for making mostly niche productions, has finally found his vehicle to break into mainstream again. Because of this, “Sherlock Holmes” should be on everyone’s to-do list this Christmas holiday, they say.
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