Coluna Claquete - January, 20th 2012

Movie of the Week: "Sherlock Holmes - A Game of Shadows"

Whenever a book or a famous literature character gets a movie version, it is expected the cry and gnashing of teeth from fans who disliked the film, as it was not faithful to the original idea. Of course, it happened with "Sherlock Holmes - A Game of Shadows", because the character is much larger than the original work.

Just to illustrate my theory is, let's think about the cliche "Elementary, my dear Watson." While any child can associate that phrase with Sherlock Holmes, it does not appear on any of the sixty stories written by the scottish writer and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Ironically, the character is more famous than his creator, and it is common to say that "Doyle is the author of Sherlock Holmes," although he has an extensive work beyond the adventures of the detective.

Holmes is a private investigator, who lived between the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, that first appeared in the novel A Study in Scarlet, edited and originally published in the journal Beeton's Christmas Annual in November 1887. Initially being serialized in chapters in magazines, the books arrived soon to bookstores and have been translated into numerous languages, around the world.

 Tired of the character, Conan Doyle came to kill him, in the story "The Final Problem," in a fight with his arch-enemy Moriarty, where the two fall into a waterfall in Switzerland.The public outcry, however, was so great that the author was forced to resurect him in the story "The Adventure of the Empty House," with a convincing explanation of the disappearance.

Lately, the stories have versions in the movies and television (the IMDB site cites more than 250), being one of the best known the actor Basil Rathbone,who lived the detective in numerous films in the fourties. Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee also gave brightness to the character.

When the first movie with Robert Downey Jr came out in 2009, many peoples were surprised by the energetic character shown on screen, in comparison with the image of the dour and quiet detective, solving cases with his pipe in his mouth.

In fact, the character created by Doyle in "A Study in Scarlet" is described as a practitioner of martial arts like boxing, fencing, and is an accomplished violinist, and a thorough knowledge of chemistry.

The big difference from the literary work for recent versions of the movies is the friend and partner John Watson, played by Jude Law. Watson, in fact, is an alter ego of Doyle, is the chronicler and eyewitness of most of the adventures of the detective. Endowed with a naivete and utter inability to monitor the dynamic reasoning of Holmes, Watson's voice is perfect for keeping the reader eager to know the ending.

In the current version, Watson is a character as dynamic as Holmes, who comes to trust him as "a bishop in a chess game." He represents, also, the more human side of heroes, since it is always involved with the attempt to marry Mary (Kelly Reilly).

Is in this point of their lives that begins the story of "A Game of Shadows." As Holmes investigates a series of bombings that shook Europe, always attributed to anarchist groups, Watson's concern is his upcoming wedding.

Holmes himself had managed to prevent one of these attacks, after chasing Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams), his female version of the criminal world. But Irene simply disappears, and, later, Holmes will know that the responsible for this is exactly the main suspect of being the criminal mastermind behind the attacks, Professor Moriarty (Jared Harris).

Throughout the film the viewer follows Holmes and Watson on a journey through Europe, fighting against professional killers, engaging with Gypsies, invading secret plants, to finally arrive at a secluded retreat in the Swiss mountains, where there will be the climax of the film.

The plot is relatively complex, considering the genre, with many characters, although it is easy to see who are "the good guys."   The fun, however, is to be led by the action of the film, always constant.

The special effects are present, with extensive use of slow motion, and "premeditated" actions of Holmes, which finds its match in the skin of Moriarty.

A special attraction are the numerous "poetic licenses" used in the film, when appear products or names that did not exist in 1891, the year the story takes place. Some examples are the semi-automatic Mauser pistol, which was only manufactured in 1896, the gramophone of 12", which would only be made in 1903, and even lipstick on a metal tube, which only appear in 1915.

In addition, the name of Oslo, which appears on a map of Europe would only be assigned to the capital of Norway in 1925, being known then as Christiania. The car driven by Holmes in London, early in the film, could only be used if there were a man with a red flag and a whistle walking in front to warn pedestrians!

Errors aside, "Sherlock Holmes - A Game of Shadows" fulfills its mission as a entertainment film, and if some young have awaken the desire to read some of the original works, it will leave the old Doyle even happier.