Watson was better than Holmes
Last Saturday I had a real treat, I went to the cinema to watch a British Movie that didn’t suck. OK, so I went to see Sherlock Holmes. Being made by Warner Brothers makes it not British, but essentially most of the key elements are. Anyway, moving on.
I really liked the first Holmes film; finding a bit of wit in an action movie is a very refreshing feeling. Also, the banter between Sherlock and Watson is pretty impressive. They cut back and forth so easily.
Well the sequel, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows is bigger and generally better. Guy Ritchie has taken a ‘If it’s not broke don’t fix it’ approach to the second film, just giving us more of what made the first Holmes' film good. We have bigger action sequences and just as much whit. But, probably the best thing about Shadows is the relationship between Watson and Holmes. In which I prefer Jude Law’s Watson to Mr Downey Jnr’s Holmes.
Don’t get me wrong, like more or less everyone on planet Earth I am a huge fan of my Downey Jnr and he is probably my favourite ‘superstar’. He brings and edge to big name performances that have been unseen. Proving that Cocaine’s not always bad (kidding!).
In the first Sherlock film, RDJ definitely steals the show. I’m not arguing that. He fires witty line after witty line and gives a truly memorable performance of one of England’s most famous literary figures. Considering all the stigma around a well known character, is not an easy feet.
This time round I found myself enjoying Jude Law’s Watson More than RDJ’s Holmes. That’s not saying that RDJ was worse this time round, far from it. He was probably actually better. Growing into a role that will probably define his career. But, for me Jude Law was better.
In Shadows Watson emerges as much more than just Holmes’ sidekick. He is a real character with emotion and back story. We want him to succeed just as much as we do Holmes. Well in my case, more so.
The main reason I preferred Watson to Holmes was because to me he was more real. Yes, Holmes is funny and entirely entertaining. But, he’s a superhero. He has very little weakness and a great deal of strength. This is great to watch, but hard for me to get truly invested in.
Watson on the other hand is as real as you can get. Yes, he’s good at what he does, but he also has weaknesses and daemons. Things that I want him to overcome. Things that I can invest in. Making him a more rounded better character.
I know that reason has a lot to do with the way the character is written, more so than the performance. But, I think Jude law was pretty impressive pulling this character off.
Playing the straight man in a double act is criminally underrated. While the over the top character gets all the accolades, it’s the guy whose playing it ‘straight’ that is doing a lot of the hard work. Without, this balance the partnership would fail. On top of this, playing it serious is not an easy thing to do. It’s quite easy to shout and scream, but to play a full rounded, sensible character? Not an easy feat. That’s why I stick to whacky characters.
So yes RDJ is great as Holmes. But without Watson, Holmes wouldn’t be half as good. And without Law neither would Shadows.
Until next time, enjoy the show.
Daniel Morris.
