Decent sequel but a muddled story holds it back

Rating: 7/10 (17 January 2012)

What made Robert Downey Jr.'s Sherlock Holmes revival two years ago so unique was the style and finesse and the gadgets and action and story and everything just worked so well. It was one of the action movie greats for the year and I had a lot of anticipated for the sequel that would introduce us to Sherlock Holmes' one and only nemesis Dr. Moriarity. The first film was primed for a great sequel. Game of Shadows made a lot of mistakes, I think, but some of the things that made the first movie great saved this from being a complete disaster. Let's talk about the good stuff first. Holmes' manic and often disturbing way of solving the crime, putting together clues and going to exorbitant means to catch the bad guy is as fun as it ever was. The chemistry between Holmes and Watson, while not as good as the first, is still a ton of fun! Where the film falls short is the story is way more complex than necessary, in fact it is almost confusing at times though by the end it does come together reasonably well. And I also felt like finally the unveiling of Moriarity was a bit of a let down as I didn't think he was quite the epic nemesis I had hoped for.
Robert Downey Jr. is fantastic as Holmes. To be honest Downey Jr. is fantastic in almost any role. But he goes above and beyond playing the manic, head case who happens to also be completely brilliant. He also pulls of his action scenes flawlessly. Jude Law is terrific as Watson but as I said I think perhaps his character had a little more depth and was just a little bit better as a character in the first film. Him and Downey Jr. had such incredible chemistry in the first film and while it was still there it wasn't quite as good. I don't think this script gave Jude Law as much depth. Noomi Rapace, I'm just laying it out there, was awful in her role. I don't know if its her fault or the script but her character was pointless, vapid, and zero chemistry on screen. Jared Harris as Moriarity was disappointing for me. He didn't exude the evil master mind like I would have expected. I would have liked to have seen a powerful big name actor, someone known for villains, take the role. I thought the chemistry was virtually non-existent between him and Downey's Sherlock Holmes. The addition of Stephen Fry as Holmes' brother was a welcome newcomer. He had some funny moments in the film even if some of them seemed just slightly out of place.
Guy Ritchie has a reputation for a certain style of film and he did a great job on the first film. Why he decided that practically every action scene in this movie required slow motion is beyond me. He uses slow motion so much that it becomes a joke and is overwhelmingly annoying. It really is Downey Jr. that saves the film with his performance along with decent action. If you loved the first movie than you will enjoy the second but don't expect the same level of solid action that came out of the first. A valid effort with some stumbling. Hopefully they pull it together for a third! 7/10