Sherlock Holmes (2009)
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AUDIENCE SCORE
Critic Consensus: Guy Ritchie's directorial style might not be quite the best fit for an update on the legendary detective, but Sherlock Holmes benefits from the elementary appeal of a strong performance by Robert Downey, Jr.
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Cast
as Sherlock Holmes
as Dr. John Watson
as Irene Adler
as Lord Blackwood
as Inspector Lestrade
as Dredger
as Mrs. Hudson
as Mary Morstan
as Constable Clark
as Lord Coward
as Sir Thomas Rotheram
as Ambassador Standish
as Captain Tanner
as Reordan
as McMurdo
as Maid
as Guard Cpatain
as Carriage Driver
as Captain Phillips
as Carriage Driver
as Coach Driver
as Guard
as Captain Philips
as Groundskeeper
as Palm Reader
as Anonymous Man
as Big Man
as Young Guard
as Waiter
as Police Officer
as Prison Guard
as Man With Roses
as Removable Man
as Young Woman Sacrifice
as Governor
as Grave Policeman
as Grave Policeman
as Grave Policeman
as Preacher
as Porter/Smith
as Golden Dawn Envoy
as Thug
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Critic Reviews for Sherlock Holmes
All Critics (231) | Top Critics (46) | Fresh (163) | Rotten (68) | DVD (11)
Despite a few laggard moments of slow going, Ritchie has pulled off an entertaining coup in giving us a Holmes for the 21st century by digging back to the 19th century original and adding a few bells and whistles.
What was the thinking behind all this?
It's all knotted together, then unraveled with brio, by Holmes and Watson. There are fisticuffs galore, fiery combustion aplenty, and, yes, my dear reader, clever deduction.
The very idea of handing him over to professional lad Guy Ritchie, to be played as a punch-throwing quipster by Robert Downey Jr., is so profoundly stupid one can only step back in dismay.
Downey never winks -- heâ(TM)s too much of a pro for that -- but like the man heâ(TM)s playing, heâ(TM)s much, much smarter than the movie heâ(TM)s in.
By now we've seen so many good, bad, and indifferent Sherlocks that it's almost a relief to get something different, however wrongheaded. And there's no such thing as too much Downey.
Audience Reviews for Sherlock Holmes
What makes this film so refreshing and entertaining is Guy Ritchie's trademark stylish direction as he updates the legendary detective to a modern pop generation, and it has great dialogue, delicious performances and a wonderful production design.
Super Reviewer
Watched this movie with my cousins and I think it was good? Was not entirely sober at the time.
Super Reviewer
Holmes and Watson prevent the dastardly murder of an innocent girl during a satanic ritual, but when the would be murderer seems to come back from the grave the dynamic duo seem to have met their match....RockNRolla was a strong indication that the Ritchie formula was starting to wear a little thin, but the reinvention of Sherlock Holmes as a hard-drinking, bare knuckle brawling geezer was ringing some serious alarm bells with me (especially since the trailer made it look like Van Helsing 2). Thankfully, Robert Downey Jr. pulls out all the stops to make the character an infectious, eccentric cross between Doctor Who and Indiana Jones, and somehow it works brilliantly. He is perfectly complimented by Jude Law who shares great chemistry with his co-star making them a real Butch And Sundance of Victorian London. Their on screen partnership also has more than a little in common with the Cary Grant/Rosalind Russell pairing in His Girl Friday meaning Rachel McAdams is also on hand to provide the eye candy and stop them from looking too gay. It is a bit guilty of Pirate-izing the material, but the hokey hoodoo never gets too out of hand and the result is a hugely enjoyable comic strip romp that's everything The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen should have been, but wasn't.
Super Reviewer
Sherlock Holmes Quotes
| Dr. John Watson: | Wear a jacket. |
| Sherlock Holmes: | You wear a jacket. |
| Sherlock Holmes: | Is it poison Nanny? |
| Sherlock Holmes: | You've never complained about my methods before. |
| Dr. Watson: | I'm not complaining. |
| Sherlock Holmes: | You're not? What are you right now? |
| Dr. Watson: | How am I complaining? I never complain. When do I complain about practicing your violin at three in the morning? Or your mess, your general lack of hygiene or the fact that you steal my clothes? When do I complain about you setting fire to my rooms? |
| Sherlock Holmes: | Our rooms. |
| Dr. Watson: | The rooms! When do I complain about you performing experiments on my dog? |
| Inspector Lestrade: | In another life, Mr. Holmes, you would have made an excellent criminal. |
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