Style vs Substance

Rating: 5/10 (18 December 2011)

Guy Ritchie has proved himself quite a stylish director. He has given us "Rock'n'Rolla" and the first of the Sherlock series before. Somehow, he has lost control of the material recently, and this is most obvious in the latest entry Holmes entry.
The film is a visual stunner, easily with "The Tree of Life" and "HP VII/ Part II", one of the best looking movies ever filmed. This film truly transports us back to the early days of the XX Century and makes us feel like we are really in the middle of the very polluted capitals of Europe, the exquisite photography immersing us in the world of shadows which was part of that society day and night. The film allows us to almost feel the torture of the upholstery, the lush velvet of the costumes, and the sumptuous decadence of the wealthy classes. Every aspect of the art direction should be recognized as the best of the best, and I wish the story would be allowed to reach those levels.
Doyle's Holmes and Watson are truly two of the most intelligent and fascinating characters in literature; as a pair, they might have no match, and Moriarty is the perfect villain, but the way these films treat the development of the story and the characters themselves is a shame, for Ritchie prefers to have slow motion takes to show bullets or flash editing to detract from the impact of a good action scene. He does redeem himself twice in the scenes with Moriarty and Holmes, but that is what makes the whole two hours truly frustrating because one yearns for more of what could have made the films great, and we get a lot of beautiful shots of violence and mayhem, but little of what truly matters.
This film takes us through the philosophical studies of what man's self destructive nature, and how evil geniuses profit from man's tragic disposition. As I mentioned before because of the film's truncated style, it is hard to truly appreciate the battle of the minds. It is a cat and mouse chase through some lovely scenery and it ends with the ultimate solution, the final solution, a chess move so diabolical, the audiences gasp, and in what could have an amazing cliffhanger, with a true open end, or not, depending on how carefully you have reviewed the clues along the way, Ritchie goes the easy away. Can we hear the audience papers results being read? Downey and Law do very well. Rapace is truly wasted, and it is hard to believe she gave the best performance of the year in 2010. In this film, we are in for easy laughs, little is explained as to why Holmes want to blend into the background or dress as a cheap slut. His mind is best asset but you couldn't tell from this film. You'll have a better time reading the short stories or checking out the old films. Now that would make sense.