Thursday, December 15, 2011
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows Review - 3 Stars
Robert Downey Jr. plays Sherlock as action hero genius. Jude Law plays his sidekick Watson, rolling his eyes over his friend’s exploits. The two encounter Professor Moriarty as played by the excellent Jared Harris. The plot’s ok—basically Sherlock hopes to prevent Moriarity from starting World War One. The style’s so slam bang that sometimes it exhausts the viewer. But the ending goes back to the series roots, with Holmes and Moriarity tusseling over the Reichenbach falls. Fans of course remember Sir Arthur Conan Doyle ended his detective’s life at these falls, but the public demanded his return. So you can look for another Sherlock movie just as Doyle had to write more Sherlock stories. Does it deliver what it promises? Action adventure in Victorian times. Is it entertaining? Fun but sometimes goes overboard. Is it worth the price of admission? Has a great ending.