film review: sherlock holmes: a game of shadows
Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law team up again in Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, with Downey Jr. appearing as the eccentric titular character and Law as his faithful sidekick Dr. Watson. This instalment is set in the late 19th century, as tensions between France and Germany are rising and it seems that one false move on either side could lead to a European wide war.
Holmes suspects all is not as it seems. He finds curious connections between many recent incidents and his nemesis, Professor James Moriarty. With Watson setting off on his honeymoon, it appears that Holmes will have to solve this one alone, until a rather eventful train ride inevitably draws Watson into the mystery for one last hurrah.
As the pair follow clues with the hope to frame Moriarty and save Europe from catastrophe, the minor plot threads become quite complicated. While the film has a fast pace, it is not quite enthralling enough to encourage the attention needed in order to follow every twist and turn. It is easy to get lost in the drawn-out fight scenes, though there are a few clever tricks hidden amongst the gunshots that make things more interesting.
The fight scenes are also let down by the slow motion effects used, which don’t quite seem to work. Rather than appearing as a clever juxtaposition to the energetic tempo of the rest of the film, they simply seem out of place and a bit like an excuse to use special effects just for the sake of it.
At two hours, the film is noticeably long and a tad drawn-out. Even some student movies produced by film schools in California aren’t as tedious as the middle section of Sherlock Holmes tended to be. As with many such movies though, the final 15 minutes are more captivating and the clever ending almost makes up for the slightly dull middle section. The film’s strengths throughout are its witty humour and the chemistry of Downey Jr. and Law, who portray a friendship of both exasperation and admiration. Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows is far from perfect, but it has enough redeeming features to make it worth recommending.
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