I walked into the theater for the sequel as a fan of Guy Ritchie's first take on these characters back in 2009. Which is to say, I enjoy some slightly more high-minded silly fun.As expected, similar character beats & Ritchie tropes abound. This is not a bad thing. Though the bullet time gets old with a limited need of its use. It's a minor gripe in a film that mostly fulfills its goals.
We find most of the main players early on: Holmes (Downey, Jr.) donning a newer & elaborate disguise, Watson (Law) on the eve of his wedding to Mary (Kelly Reilly, returning to a beefier role) and Irene Adler (McAdams) in yet another nefarious assignment. Joining the cast are Moriarty (Jared Harris) with strings firmly in-hand from the get go, his hired gun Col. Moran (an understated Paul Anderson), the mysterious walking McGuffin/Roma named Simza (Noomi Rapace) & in a bit of casting that on face value feels brilliant but in execution of a rapport with Sherlock falls short of what could have been, Stephen Fry as Sherlock's diplomatically influential brother Mycroft.
The majority of the film is spent on a Western European breadcrumb trail. But therein lies the big flaw of Holmes 2. The rinse/lather/repeat of the action set pieces grows exponentially tiring two hours into it... that is until the ending locale. Which, if you're familiar with Holmesian lore, gives some excitement as to what is about to happen. I dare not say more.
Pros:
- Mozart & Schubert.
- The falling tower sequence.
- Paul Anderson's henchman with a brain.
- The wedding present.
- The dual nature of Mycroft's idiosyncrasies & interactions with Sherlock.
Cons:
- B.u.l.l.e.t. T.i.m.e.
- An over-dependence on flashbacks to explain Holmes' Rube Goldberg-ish machinations.
- The farewell at sea.
- Formulaic action set pieces.
Rating:
***
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