It’s completely elementary
Sherlock Holmes and his assistant/friend Dr. John Watson stop a man from committing another murder in a series of sacrificial deaths. Lord Blackwood is a disgraced upperclass fellow that believes in the occult and dark magics. After getting caught by Holmes and Watson, he is sentenced to death, but vows to return to continue murdering and eventually bring an ‘end’ to the current world as they know it. Hanged and buried, Blackwood makes good with his vows and Holmes and Watson must find a way to stop Blackwood before he finishes the world off.
I’m not sure how everyone else feels about this, but when Downey was announced for the lead role as British detective I cringed on the inside thanks to Kevin Costner. I know, it sounds odd, but Costner’s butchery of the British English language in Robin Hood has forever left an embarrassing taste on American cinema when it’s trying to mimic the brits. It’s like having that ‘relative’ that constantly embarrasses family members during large outings (don’t even act like you don’t have that ‘one’ person in your life).
Thankfully, Robert Downey Jr. exceeds expectations and maintains his British English accent as Sherlock Holmes. Not only that, he brings a suave intelligence to the role that is both serious, but at the same time constantly playful. He adds a sense of OCD and unstoppable, endless curiosity to the detective’s persona. As most Sherlock Holmes have been portrayed as sophisticated, luxury filled know-it-alls, Robert Downey Jr.’s Sherlock Holmes is someone built on getting answers without delay. Thanks to this type of character that Downey has brought to the screen, the story propels itself further and faster than most people might expect. It’s like getting on a roller coaster ride that lasts 1 minute and enjoying it as if it lasted 30 minutes. The movie doesn’t allow for any sort of stoppage or dead point, it simply keeps going and accelerating until the ride reaches the end and you’re begging the ride operator to let you go again.
Let’s not stop at Downey, though. Jude Law, an actor that has stretched his art out from dramas, brings a beautifully complimentary Dr. John Watson. Almost acting as the doctor to an insane patient, Law’s Watson keeps Holmes in check in the movie and carries that sophisticated charm that existed in previous Sherlock Holmes characters. His deep character, an ex-military man, struggles between his own nature of solving mysteries with his best friend and moving on to a different life. His character adds a perfect personality resistance to Downey’s Holmes and is a great set-up man for most of the subtle comedy in the film. In other words, he’s a perfect Watson.
As for the storyline, while it is simply laid out for the viewer, Guy Ritchie and writers Michael Robert Johnson and Anthony Peckham, took the formula that made the original Sherlock Holmes and applied it to this big budget movie. Most Sherlock Holmes stories start out with a conclusion, but that conclusion leads to a bigger story that eventually leads into a dramatic conclusion of epic proportions. They used this style and formula to pay homage to Arthur Conan Doyle’s popular stories and it worked out well. You have an evil character that has been caught, he/she acts greater than they really are and our detectives must reveal some greater mystery that exposes the evil character.
It’s classic mystery storytelling and Ritchie and crew couldn’t have done it better.
As for the decision to watch this on Blu-ray or DVD, well Warner Home Video makes that up for you when they packaged the combo pack. Personally, the visuals and lively British backdrops (real or digital) look nothing less than superb on a 1080p format. The grungy early turn of the century feel to the London area is both beautiful and disgusting thanks to Blu-ray. The end scene is especially gorgeous, though I’m not going to give it away, as the buildings of London and the eery London sky look crisp and clean in the dirtiest of ways. In other words, having the Blu-ray of Sherlock Holmes is a realistic experience if you want to know what London looked like in this day and age. You may want to take a shower after watching the film (just kidding).
Now, a real unexpected treat on the Blu-ray side of things is the soundtrack that Hans Zimmer put together. The harpsichord never sounded so classic, so well placed as it did in this movie. It has been a couple of days since I watched it and I’m still humming Zimmer’s music. Haunting and appropriate are the best ways to describe the soundtrack. Having it remastered in 5.1 DTS-HD is an even bigger treat for the ears.
Finally, the special features that you’ll be receiving on this Blu-ray are as follows:
o “Sherlock Holmes: Reinvented” (TRT 16:17)
o Maximum Movie Mode (TRT Feature Length)
– Director Walk-Ons
– 8 Focus Points
– 60 mins of PIP
– Still Galleries
– Storyboard Comparisons
– Timeline
o SD Feature Film
o Digital Copy on Disc (WMV and iTunes files)
o BD-Live: Sherlock Holmes Soundtrack piece
Having the actual movie was enough entertainment for me, but complimenting it with a nice featurette on how Ritchie and crew reinvented the character, plus followed up by another feature long featurette is simply great. There’s more than enough to keep you entertained here once the movie is over. In fact, you may want to watch the movie again once you go through the features.
The BD-Live feature is something you want to use and remember. There is a special event (chat) happening on April 1st that you won’t want to miss. Pretty cool use of the BD-Live feature, if I do say so myself.