Sherlock Holmes

It wasn't as bad as I expected it to be (being a Sherlock Holmes fan). In fact, I rather enjoyed the show even though some characters were not true to the characters in the books and obviously, it was a big play of characters.

It was a big mix of characters from the stories and a mix of plots, although there was 1 main plot going on. As someone who has read all the Sherlock Holmes stories, I tried not to make too many comparisons due to the treatment for the film (I went with apprehension on how it will turn out), but I couldn't help but think in the "Sherlock Holmes" frame of mind, and thus predict the nature of the story and crime, which of course led to the many expected solutions to the puzzles that surfaced in the show. As one of my favourite quotes from the stories goes, "when you have excluded the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth", hence the logical deductions that occurred in the course of watching the show (the logical scientific explanations). Predictability is a killer for mysteries, but since most Sherlock Holmes fans would know the stories, it wasn't exactly a bad thing.

Of course, as most movies these days, there is always the romance element. As the original Holmes never had any love interest, they used the character who was the only woman he was ever impressed with to be his love interest in the movie. Holmes in the movie displayed his many talents as stipulated in the stories, being an excellent detective, observer, fencer, boxer, violinist (although this was not shown much except of Robert Downing Jr. plucking the violin), man of disguise, etc. However, it was a bit weird with Watson being smarter than he was portrayed in the book, and more good-looking than the original. Also, as attached to Watson as Holmes is in the book, I don't think it went as far as that portrayed in the show. Holmes was, I would say a little more "cold" in that aspect

I had expected more of Professor Moriarty, who was Holmes arch nemesis, but somehow it was not so, though the show kind of tried to make it seem like there might be a sequel (which I doubt will happen).

On the whole, if you forget that it's Sherlock Holmes, but treat it like a mystery/thriller you would watch, I think it wasn't too bad.