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#1 - Sherlock Holmes (2009)

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Mark Strong
Director: Guy Ritchie
Genre: Action, Adventure, Crime, Mystery

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 70% (as of January 2, 2010)

I am still, as I type this one day later, on the fence with this movie. Robert Downey Jr. continues to prove he is one of the best actors on the planet and carries this movie. Jude Law’s performance as Watson was pretty spot on. Rachel McAdams as Irene Adler was distracting at worst. I’m not sure her character added much to the film as Holmes’s outlaw love interest.

Mark Strong was good as Lord Blackwood, Holmes’s foil, but the depth of his character’s “take over the world” plot was a little much. How about we start with England first?

There’s been talk about Guy Ritchie’s direction clashing with the style of the movie a bit, but that didn’t both me. The set direction was amazing, easily the most captivating non-Robert Downey Jr. part of the movie.

The biggest problem was that the movie dragged in the middle. The action scenes, when they were there, were pretty well done, but some of the sleuth work, while important to the story, are a little yawn-inducing.

Ultimately, the film swims because of the performance of Downey Jr. and Law, who aptly display the fragile but loyal friendship experienced by Holmes and Watson. The movie even offers a franchise opportunity, hinting at further involvement from archenemy Professor Moriarty, whose face is never seen.

Holmes, while flawed, is every bit as talented a detective as he was when he was introduced by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1887.

The movie provides adequate opportunities for humor, but doesn’t overdo it. While the evil plot is a little overdone, the movie is generally enjoyable.

Final Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars.