The mystery of getting old is solved in the latest Sherlock movie, Mr. Holmes.
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| "Call me Magneto one more time you little bitch, and I'll crush your ten year old skull like a soda can." |
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes is undoubtedly the greatest fictional detective
character ever created in both literature and film. Adapted well over 200 times in film and
television, the many adventures of Baker Street’s most ingenious sleuth of London,
England has been told both faithfully to the source and retold through an
ongoing series of clever deviations including but not limited to Young Sherlock Holmes, Guy Ritchie’s
action packed reboot with Robert Downey, Jr., Disney’s The Great Mouse Detective, and the recently released Sherlock television series with Benedict
Cumberbatch. In other words, the
character is so popular that what-if scenarios of Doyle’s legendary hero have
become as commonplace as they are accepted in pop culture.
The latest and most poignant addition to Mr.
Holmes’ adventures is Bill Condon’s aptly named Mr. Holmes with veteran British actor Ian McKellan in the coveted
and titular role. Here, Mr. Holmes treats viewers to an unseen
side of the world famous super sleuth, depicting the man as a deteriorating 93
year old elder coming to terms with his mortality as he muses over his past,
ruminating notably on the last case which would cause him to retire from the
profession indefinitely.
The ‘super sleuth as an old man’ movie clearly aimed
at elderly moviegoers is something of a mixed but still enjoyable bag,
belonging entirely to the masterful acting of Ian McKellan who is always a joy
to watch. It’s one of those movies where
you’re well aware of the schmaltzy sentimentality tugging at your heartstrings,
imbuing the logically thinking detective with an emotional quality, yet we find
ourselves caught up in the aged hero’s existential dilemma. Often compared to
Condon’s previous collaboration with McKellan, Gods and Monsters, it’s a period drama that moves at a modest pace
with lovely cinematography and attention to historical detail. Condon’s approach tends to drag in some
areas, retreading familiar ground as far as these kinds of movies are
concerned, but where it shines involve flashbacks to an exotic case in post Hiroshima
Japan featuring Ringu’s Hiroyuki
Sanada and his brief emotional connection to his final case involving a woman
who plans to murder her husband. In the
pantheon of Mr. Holmes’ experiences
depicted in the film, his past ones are the most affecting, particularly when
we see the super sleuth at the peak of his intellectual powers but still easily
touched by his emotions.
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| "I'm old." |
As previously mentioned, it’s a bit imbalanced due to
Condon’s handsome but at times torpid direction and the present day moments of
schmaltz involving his shaky relations with a young mother (Laura Linney) and
her son do tend towards the obvious tearjerking manipulation that would make
the likes of Mimi Leder blush. That said,
Mr. Holmes is worth seeing purely for
McKellan who is simply put one of the greatest actors still working today. He’s the kind of actor who will always be
great even if the film featuring him isn’t always up to par. It was an intriguing, unique look at popular
fiction’s greatest detective as a grandpa looking back on the life that
preceded his reputation.
While popularized in film and theater to this
day, Mr. Holmes clearly believes in
the reality of the great detective and McKellan’s aged portrait of the man
serves to demystify the character and present a man wrestling with his past
lifetime as he looks on towards the uncertain future.
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-Andrew Kotwicki