the delightful spirit of sherlock holmes

enjoying time with my father-in-law this week. he's staying with us for a week for a little vacation and grandpa time. i had been hoping to lose a little after-Christmas weight, but i'm afraid that little dream is post-poned until after dad's departure...he's been very generous in wanting to eat out a little more than our usual schedule!

but tonight was a special treat: a movie night. and not just our typical redbox run (with whom i'm currently waging a war over a scratched dvd, a frozen machine and a pair of rejected requests...another story for another time), no, dad took us to the movies to see the new sherlock holmes flick. and i feel like it's worth reviewing.

first, the personal context. i was completely torn between excitement over the idea of a sherlock holmes movie and appalled at the seemingly blasphemous trailer i had seen weeks ago. i wasn't even sure that i really wanted to see it. you see, one of my favorite books as a kid was the children's illustrated classic's version of "sherlock holmes and the hound of the baskervilles". i vividly remember consuming it for the first time on family vacation, and i was instantly hooked on sir arthur conan doyle's master of mystery. so i was intrigued but very hesitant to get too excited over the thought of a new interpretation of a childhood hero. especially after the trailer portrayed robert downey jr.'s version of sherlock as some sort of turn-of-the-twentieth century james bond. and as we entered the cinema, i almost suggested seeing something else.

i'm glad we didn't.

as we emerged from watching i told carissa that i was pleasantly surprised, which prompted an earned "told ya you'd like it". she had been right. i loved it! and it's still growing on me. i'll definitely be waiting for the dvd release to watch it again.

downey jr.'s sherlock was the perfect blend of arrogance, wit, humor, intrigue and brilliance i remember, and the team chemistry and friendly banter with jude law's dr. watson was even more endearing (if it's not too bold to say) than conan doyle's duo. a few of the fight scenes (which i had skeptically assumed would ruin the spirit of the character) actually served to enhance the character and lore of sherlock holmes. the scenes would pause just before holmes would physically attack an enemy, and then predict, in slow-mo, each move while listening to his logical contemplation and planning. brain over...er, uh...with brawn. a good touch to action. and it was full of witty dialogue and timely humor which made it enjoyable to follow even with some pretty gross and disturbing images (the director or story writer seemed to have a thing with death). there were a few times i had to make sure my wife's eyes were blocked to prevent any nightmares...and i took a strategic and extremely necessary restroom run (after succumbing to the theater's ploy to upgrade my medium sized soda to a large for just 25 cents more) to avoid watching a completely inappropriate and unnecessary sexually suggestive scene (which we knew was coming from previews and planned accordingly). i hate it when they throw that in there.

the story was still the same mystery format. just when you thought the case was nearing an end a new twist would seemingly blindside the famous detective, but deep down you never doubt his master plan in solving the mystery and saving the day. so other than a few disturbing and inappropriate images, the movie was overall an incredible flick. my hero is still intact, and i can't get over how much i actually enjoyed watching downey jr. portray him. the best part of it all...i believe they got the spirit of sherlock holmes right.

and we just had a fun-filled evening together. thanks dad!