Sherlock Holmes
Posted: Tue Jan 12, 2010 12:33 pm
After a long time I saw a proper blockbuster Hollywood film which was thoroughly entertaining and didn't have the 'Leave your brains behind tag' attached to it.
avatar was also lovely but that was so CG oriented that Im not calling it regular blockbuster entertainment the way we've seen it through the 80's, 90's and the last decade.
The characterization of Sherlock Holmes as this social misfit was perfect. Because someone who is so much of a genius and to all intents, so much of an artist where his occupation is concerned, would hardly be able to function perfectly well socially. And specially thanks to his analytical gaze which slices through the facade which people normally play up, he couldn't be very popular with people in general.
His home is a total mess with a proper chaos in the disorder 'Everything is in it's proper place' is what he tells his NANNY even though we can see an apparent mess!
So you have this social misfit who has found this one ally whom he can call his own, a family member (almost played into the zone of a lover) and now he's going to lose him to a woman. What a lovely situation to place a murder mystery in.
So Holmes tries desperately to keep his one and only brother in arms with whatever he can muster and we empathize with him. There's even a Mausi Ji (Read: Sholay) kind of scene where he tries to backhandedly compliment Watson when he's actually telling his to-be wife what his vices are!
Also Holmes, unlike Ghajini fights with a mental methodical precision which makes his fights seem so much more believable. He has a clear martial artist's mind for which part to hit for maximum impact. A thought out physical retaliation instead of an adrenaline packed no brainer kind of action scape. (One of the things Id loved about the Bourne films)
The murder mystery is very interesting specifically because it employs the THEME of rationale versus the supernatural and takes both to their zenith plot wise.
The bickering between Watson and Holes is actually reminiscent of a husband and wife who've been married for ages. Completing each other's sentences, complaning about one another's bad habits when in a fight and bringing out the past into every arguement, I wonder if any couple who goes to see the film will not fully relate to their squabbles! :-)
Older buddy films liken Butch Cassidy and Sholay had certain critics talking about subtle gay bonding themes running through the film. Ritchie pushes away all subtlety and makes this angle even more endearing than ever!
I've seen it twice. You must, absolutely must watch it!
avatar was also lovely but that was so CG oriented that Im not calling it regular blockbuster entertainment the way we've seen it through the 80's, 90's and the last decade.
The characterization of Sherlock Holmes as this social misfit was perfect. Because someone who is so much of a genius and to all intents, so much of an artist where his occupation is concerned, would hardly be able to function perfectly well socially. And specially thanks to his analytical gaze which slices through the facade which people normally play up, he couldn't be very popular with people in general.
His home is a total mess with a proper chaos in the disorder 'Everything is in it's proper place' is what he tells his NANNY even though we can see an apparent mess!
So you have this social misfit who has found this one ally whom he can call his own, a family member (almost played into the zone of a lover) and now he's going to lose him to a woman. What a lovely situation to place a murder mystery in.
So Holmes tries desperately to keep his one and only brother in arms with whatever he can muster and we empathize with him. There's even a Mausi Ji (Read: Sholay) kind of scene where he tries to backhandedly compliment Watson when he's actually telling his to-be wife what his vices are!
Also Holmes, unlike Ghajini fights with a mental methodical precision which makes his fights seem so much more believable. He has a clear martial artist's mind for which part to hit for maximum impact. A thought out physical retaliation instead of an adrenaline packed no brainer kind of action scape. (One of the things Id loved about the Bourne films)
The murder mystery is very interesting specifically because it employs the THEME of rationale versus the supernatural and takes both to their zenith plot wise.
The bickering between Watson and Holes is actually reminiscent of a husband and wife who've been married for ages. Completing each other's sentences, complaning about one another's bad habits when in a fight and bringing out the past into every arguement, I wonder if any couple who goes to see the film will not fully relate to their squabbles! :-)
Older buddy films liken Butch Cassidy and Sholay had certain critics talking about subtle gay bonding themes running through the film. Ritchie pushes away all subtlety and makes this angle even more endearing than ever!
I've seen it twice. You must, absolutely must watch it!