Review - Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) is back in the second instalment of the Guy Ritchie directed detective romp. The story starts with Holmes still playing a cat and mouse game with Irene Adler (Rachael McAdams) who is still working for Professor Moriarty. The story progresses from there to a straight out battle of wits with Holmes and Moriarty sparring all throughout the film.

RDJ is once again in good form, his portrayal of Holmes and delivery of his lines are spot on but it is his relationship..um...partnership with Dr Watson (Jude Law) that really makes the dialogue crackle. The two riff off each other and whilst it might not be consistent with language in the 1890’s is still pretty bloody funny, in particular the sequence from when they arrive at Dr Watson’s wedding, hung over and worse for wear.

In addition to the repeat characters from the first film we are introduced to Mycroft Holmes (Stephen Fry), Sherlock’s brother or Shirley as he likes to call him. A great piece of casting and a character very well realised by Fry, the other new character was Madam Simza Heron (Noomi Rapace) the gypsy fortune teller, that gets involved when Holmes realises she is target for Moriarty...speaking of Moriarty he is played with wonderful menace by Jared Harris. He plays him cold, calculating and even handed, which makes his threat and menace all the more impressive.

Guy Ritchie’s use of the super slow motion, matrix style action sequences gets a little bit tiresome, in the film’s most action packed (and slightly ridiculous) sequence. I didn’t mind it in the hand to hand combat sequences but I think that is because the process of Holmes explaining what he is going to do to a would be attacker works very well with that style of filming.

Whilst not as good as the first film (there was less detective work and more explosions and bullets in this one), Guy Ritchie and co have kept the fun factor in the film and although it may not be the exact Sherlock Holmes as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote, it is still a great way to spend a couple of hours.