IRON MAN, without the radioactive chest gizmo

Rating: 8/10 (26 December 2009)

The Robert Downey, Jr., version of Sherlock Holmes gives the Baker Street private investigator most of the fight stamina of comic book hero Iron Man, one of Downey's recent predecessor roles, without going through all the rigmarole of planting a nuclear-powered widget into Sherlock's chest. Holmes' frequent fight scenes serve primarily as a clever ploy by the multiple story and screenwriters to divert attention from a conspiracy theory plot which has more undercover bad guys involved than THE PELICAN BRIEF and V. combined. Ranging from jailers and hangmen to half the parliament and the American ambassador, the intersecting trilateral commissions no doubt have lizard people stashed somewhere in the background. The fact that the ritual murders staged as a red herring for the authorities needlessly involve top-level cabinet members as crime scene participants is the sort of thing movie-goers apparently are expected to overlook due to all the fisticuffs and explosions. However, the sets\art direction are in league with SEVEN, enhanced by seamless visual effects. As an update of the Sherlockian legend for the ADD set, this HOLMES merits 8 out of 10.