Absolutely beautiful. I wish I could talk more about how beautiful this film was, but I have to be really careful and not spoil anything for anyone who hasn’t seen the movie(s). Sufficeth to say, if you’ve been waiting for somebody to encourage you to go see it, this is that moment (or it would be if you respected my opinions at all). 
The film picks up about 6 months or so after the first one ended and it does so perfectly. It immediately finds it’s groove again and just runs with it. It’s so beautiful to see Holmes face off against his greatest opponent yet!
The acting is top notch! So great to see Stephen Fry as Holmes’ brother, Mycroft (unparalleled brilliance).
Hans Zimmer delivers another amazing score. While listening, I at first made the mistake of trying to compare his work for this one with his work on Pirates 4 (on the premise that they were composed in a similar time frame), but Laura helped me quickly realize that I really needed to compare the music for this film with Dead Man’s Chest because they’re both first sequels and both contain a pot-load more new, original, fun, and exciting themes.
Pretty much everything else I want to say about this amazing film is going to be in the following censored area to preserve the film’s beauty for everyone else. Sorry!
Spoiler Alert! (place and hold your mouse over the bar to see)
- It was so absolutely fascinating to watch Holmes’ further descent towards madness – especially when I was reminded of the article I posted with my first review that talked about Holmes’ Cocaine Habit. The seeds are there in the first film (“You do know what you’re drinking is meant for eye surgery”, “There’s enough of that poison in his system already”, and “My mind rebels at stagnation), but his manic tendencies are that much more highlighted in this film. Note how his slow-mo action sequences are more … shall we say, nutty and amusing and how his inventions and commentary are that much more “out there” then previously. The adrenaline injections and whatever he was drinking this time around are all just icing on the already delicious cake as Robert Downey, Jr. knocks another performance out of the park! I’m so happy he turned his life around and got off drugs.
- Yay for respecting the books! Or at least as far as I’m concerned. But then again, I’ve only read a portion of “The Complete Adventures” and am here referring to the “Great Illustrated Classics” version. They were really cool in that they gave you a page of text on the left and a picture/subtitle on the right. When I think of Sherlock Holmes, my memories are directly tied to Moriarty and Holmes’ plunge down the waterfall. As soon as we cut to the exterior shot showing us the villa or whatever where Moriarty’s grand scheme would bear fruit and there was the waterfall, I could barely contain myself with hope that the film would pay homage to the books – and it did!
- Questions in view of the first film:
- Was the wireless transmitter from the first film at all used here in the fruition of Moriarty’s grander machinations?
- Yay cameo’s! Clarkie, Inspector Lestrade, Mrs. Mary Watson, and more!
- “My brother has an estate near Chichester…” – Mycroft’s first mention in the original.
And yay for R. Stirling Duguid! They are both in the credits and we know them personally!