Film Review: Holmes and Watson

Sexuality/Nudity Mature
Violence Mature
Vulgarity Mature
Anti-Catholic Philosophy Mature

There isn't much to say about this movie because it is so insubstantial that it almost feels like a review for the movie would be more interesting than the movie itself.

Essentially we have an idea for a Saturday Night Live sketch that is stretched out over the course of a feature film.  Will Ferrel plays Sherlock Holmes and John C. Reilly as Dr. John Watson.  The two are alternately smart and stupid depending on what the scripts needs at the time.  Someone is threatening the life of Queen Victoria (Pam Ferris).  Coming to their aid is Dr. Grace Hart (Rebecca Hall) as they try to take down Moriarty (Ralph Fienes).  Honestly the plot is so inconsequential that its eventual resolution makes no sense at all.

One of the things about this movie that solidified for me was this: Will Ferrel is not an actor.  What I mean by that is that he does not in any way inhabit a character.  He is Will Ferrel with a funny accent and he mugs odd facial expression, but that is the limit of his acting ability.  Contrast that with Reilly who is just as silly and over-the-top.  But you can see in the perforamnce that Reilly is inhabiting the character of Watson, as thinly written as he is.  Reilly is playing Watson.  Ferrel is playing Ferrel pretending to be Holmes.  It may be a nit-pik, but I also think that is what keeps the movie from being anything special.  Comedies about Holmes and Watson can work wonderfully.  All you have to do is see Michael Caines hilarious turn in Without a Clue.  But Holmes and Watson never comes close.

And the movie's success hinges on how much you are willing to follow Ferrel and Reilly down their rabbit hole of humor.  It is an unfortunate mark of modern comedy that jokes don't land like jabs.  It used to be the humor was fast and furious and it would come at you from various styles and angles.  In movies like this, the jokes are one-note and they tend to play a scenario out much further than the humor would allow so that you can a continuing diminishing return on laughs.  One sequence in which Holmes and Watson think they have accidentally killed the queen is painful to watch and makes you wish that it would just end.

That isn't to say that there are not some genuine laughs in the film.  The opening quote made me burst out loud with laughter.  There is also a scene in the courtroom with Watson and a gun which I thought was hystrerical.  And later there is a musical sequence written by Alan Menken that is actually quiet enjoyable.  But that's about it.

Writer/Director Ethan Cohen doesn't bring anything too terribly fresh to what could be an incredibly enjoyable concept.  Instead it feels like he let his actos ad lib most of their jokes and then he sifted through what he thought worked best.

Sometimes humor can be enlightening and even be spiritually uplifting.  I don't think that this movie had those lofty goals in mind, but it never gets close to being truly entertaining.  Once it starts, you will be wishing that it stops sooner rather than later.

image by Yasir72.multan