Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

You'd be crazy not to love the Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law duo...

The second installment of the Sherlock Holmes franchise promises continuity as well as a fresh storyline.  The film follows the lives of England's most famous detective Sherlock Holmes and his sidekick Dr. John Watson, as they try to hunt down and stop Professor Moriarty from succeeding in provoking a world war.

To start, a lot of the jokes from the first film were shamelessly repeated in the second one.  The plot itself had too many hidden facets and sharp corners for it to feel tight and secure.  There was too much going on, that it felt like plot twists were thrown in for convenience.  For both of these reasons I am lead  to believe that the screenplay was written too quickly and somewhat carelessly, in order to receive instant gratification rather than long lasting appreciation and respect.

 Now, lacking a strong solid plot, I'm going to move on to the directing and producing that took place.  This is where the talent shines through.  I give a thumbs up to Guy Ritchie for his hard work that made the film much better than what it would have been.  I'd like to point out the scene where they are running in the woods and bullets are being shot at them.  This scene was visually very impressive, with slow motion technique put in the right places and the well done camera work revealing a controlled and artistic direction.  This was one of many scenes that I tip my hat to Guy Ritchie for.  Without him, this film would have bombed.

I also will point out the actors - Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Rachael McAdams, and Noomi Rapace.  They did their jobs well without leaving me with any disappointment.  Noomi Rapace especially brought a refreshing character to the story, keeping female presence empowered amongst two strong male leads.

For all of this, I wouldn't say the film is worth a second glance.  It hasn't completely turned me off from seeing a third installment, but if they don't take more care with the writing, this franchise can only go downhill from here.  I give this film 6.5/10 for its acting and directing, without which the film would have been rated much lower.