Movie Review: Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes Is One Captivating Crime Scene

Case: Sherlock Holmes (Guy Ritchie:2009)

Evidence no.1: Robert Downey Jr.

Call him Tony Stark, call him Chaplin, call him Kirk Lazarus, call him a chameleon. Mr Downey now owns the legendary Sherlock Holmes, bringing an eccentric edge akin to Depp's Jack Sparrow, with more hustle and bustle, and without sacrificing the amazing deductive skills of the detective at all. The perfect reimagination married with the perfect actor.

Evidence no.2: The Conspirators

Or the supporting cast, rather. Jude Law plays Watson as the odd match to Downey's Holmes; straight, reasonable, but at the same time, fetishly attracted to the notion of adventure. Mark Strong is pure menace as the villainous Lord Blackwood while Rachel McAdams is charming is Irene Adler, although arguably both are reduced into cliched stereotypes by the final act. And last, Eddie Marsan steals the scene as dimwit Scotland Yard Inspector Lestrade, like he does in most of his films.

Evidence no 3: The Mastermind and his Plan

Kinetic, frenetic, but definitely one of a kind, Guy Ritchie is the right man for the job. After a string of mediocre and even bad efforts, Mr. Ritchie hits all the right notes by mixing his wonderful wit, his penchant for the pulsating and the uniquely un-linear with producer Lionel Wigram's reinvention of Holmes as a man of action. The story borders on the supernatural, but along with all of the other 'slight alterations', as long as the bond-brothers of Baker Street retain some of the good of old -as they undoubtedly do-, who gives a damn?

Hypothesis:

Grimy, gritty, gripping, but above all, an immensely entertaining funride throughout Victorian London, Guy Ritchie's take on the world's most reknowned detective is the most captivating crime scene this Christmas.

8/10

-R: Live Long & Prosper

Late Night Karaoke Song 007: Tell Her

by Percy Faith

Percy Faith - Tell Her

Tell her each day you adore her
Show her your love won't grow cold
Tell her each day how much you love her
Every girl likes to be told

Show her her problems concern you
Time when she should be consoled
Tell her it's you that she can turn to
Every girl likes to be told

You don't have to give her riches
That's not what she's longing for
Just give her your affection
And she'll give you so much more

So show her that you're thinking of her
And you're hers to have and to hold
Tell her each day how much you love her
Every girl likes to be told

R: Just adore Percy Faith's 'easy listening' work. Chose to put these over my other favorite Percy Faith piece (A rendition of 'Moon River'), because of the lyrics. Sweet.

-R

Movie Review: Avatar Isn't Perfect, But It Blows Your Mind Away

Avatar is a visual smorgasbord. It fully lives up to it's hype as a game-changer, a revolution, a technical achievement, and every hyperbole adjective directed to James Cameron's lovechild for the past year or so. Never before has an effects-loaded event film look this beautiful, this dreamy, and this realistic.

But to acknowledge it's accomplishments without pointing out it's glaring setbacks would be mere advertising.

For all of the wonder appearing non-stop on Pandora, the story is old school instead of new school, which isn't a bad thing, until one recognizes the stereotypes, the predictable plot, the ad-copy dialogue and above all, a middle part (or second act, according to traditional Shakespeare), in which the film painfully invokes yawns.

To sum it all up, I was a bit smorgas-bored at some points throughout the whole 2 1/2 hours or so...

Until the final battle that is,

in which Cameron reclaims his throne as King of the World (and reclaims half a star in this mini-review) by unleashing all hell loose.

Michael Bay, please bring a notebook and a pen, because this is the way to do it.

At the end of our journey, a few light years away from Earth, I can only be taken aback by this level of artistry, one that seems nearly impossible to match for years to come.

Cameron might have stumbled in creating the ultimate sci-fi fantasy, but he succeeds with aplomb in invigorating your imagination,

and blowing your mind...

Away.

8/10

-R: Live Long & Prosper