I had forgotten how much I loved Sherlock Holmes until this movie came out. I recall working my way through the Complete Sherlock Holmes sometime when I was a teenager. While "complete" sounds intimidating, it's actually not that long, and everything Arthur Conan Doyle wrote related to Holmes fits neatly into one fatty volume.
The problem with a modern day interpretation of Sherlock Holmes though, is that procedurals are now so common. Flip on the television and Gil Grissom (or even House) is solving something with his computer-like intellect. We even all pretty much grew up on Encyclopedia Brown and the idea of having some big reveal at the end of the story/movie is completely common.
So what could make Sherlock stand out? Well, hypothetically casting Robert Downey Jr. in the role should do it. Downey is a great Holmes because he adds so much charisma to the role. And after re-watching Closer the other day, I have to say that Jude Law is probably a way underrated actor. And there's nothing lovelier than Rachel McAdams right?
That's why it's so sad this movie was just average at best. Watching the leads interact is fun but there's just not enough going on. The mystery isn't that mysterious, the fight scenes are so-so, and I wasn't even excited for a potential. More style than substance and that's not what Sherlock should be about right?
A fun overview of Holmes' skills, via Wikipedia. I need to watch a Sherlock mini-series or something, there has to be a better filmed version of his exploits, probably shown by the BBC.
