Game of Shadows: Full of Explosions, Laughs, and Heartstrings
No spoilers for the plot, just a general.over view with teasers of certain scenes. Read with caution if you want to be totally in the dark.
Curly here, and I just got back from the midnight showing of A Game of Shadows. I am still trying to get my emotions in check. I like the Ritchie films, I really do. They are self aware of what they are and have no pretense of being 100% canonical. They are their own machine and it is an enjoyable one.
I personally loved the first film, and so I was both very wary and very excited about the sequel. Let us be honest, sequels are rarely as good as the first, but I am delighted to report that Game of Shadows may even be better than the first. I was doubled over laughing my ass off and near tears. I am still laughing.
The pacing is marvelous. The acting is top notch.
Robert Downey Jr is impeccable and has some truly amazing moments; in particular while imbibing some embalming fluid and well… oh we really shouldn’t say. He is entrenched in this version of Holmes. The quirks are there from the first film and he has settled into the character so much more. His feelings over losing Watson to Mary are so touching, and in regards to Irene, there is a very touching moment on a boat. I don’t want to give anything more away because I was shocked at it. I hate that they made Irene have romantic feelings for Holmes in the first film, but my breath was stolen away by this scene. Well done and very well played.
Jude Law will break your heart. Though, not in the scene you expect. He is the John Watson of our minds and hearts, a canonical homage and a perfect one at that. All the awards. All of them.
Moriarty. Fuck yes. Very creepy, but in an understated way. He plays the evil genius very well, teetering on that edge between charisma and creeper lurking around the street corner. Not to mention he is ginger. Evil gingers ftw. Honestly, he was who I was most worried about, but he was perfect. He had this gravitas that was very unsettling, not only to Sherlock, but to the audience of course. Creepier in the flesh than behind the curtain, he is calm and collected. That is why he is scary, because he is calm. Jared Harris is great.
Sebastian Moran is one creepy fuck. He is also a badass motherfucker. Moran versus Watson with giant guns is an incredible scene, especially given the torture scene it is parallel with.
Noomi Rapace is quite fun as well. I like her, and I am very sure we will be seeing a lot more of her.
Sadly, not all of it was good. Stephen Fry as Mycroft was shockingly disappointed. Very funny, yes, but is Mycroft supposed to be a gag? No, not in my opinion. He was there for laughs, not for the calculating puppeteer of the British Government. I was quite disappointed, which saddened me, because I was so excited by his casting.
Now, I have rambled on a lot, but there are so many amazing moments that will send the internet into a flying stupor. Here are some tastes…
“Noshing on Mary’s muffin!”
“Lie down with me Watson.”
“Why would I want something that intelligent bobbing between my legs?”
Watson eats a hedgehog. (No, we are not lying. Tumblr you may now freak out.)
Holmes and Moriarty playing chess.
The torture scene with Watson vs Moran, fucking amazing.
Drunk Watson. Twice.
The wedding. Both hysterically funny and very touching.
The train scene, and everything heterosexual about it.
Let us just say two men dance at a ball. Just saying…
Reichenbach.
We need to talk about that. It is handled beautifully. It is just so simple and understated and just… guh. How they did it was just perfect.
I am sure I and the other Babes will be posting a lot more about GoS in the next few days. We will be doing an episode about it as well, so stayed tuned.
Go see it. Just go. You will laugh until you cry, and then actually cry.
Kristina Manente is the founder of The Baker Street Babes, as well as a podcaster, reporter, event coordinator, and PR guru for the Babes. Beyond Holmes, she’s a gamer, a traveler, a freelance writer, an audio engineer, and a Van Winkle style napper. She currently works professionally in podcasting and radio.
You can view her writing and audio work at kristinamanente.me and read her latest publications at www.clippings.me/kmanente. Feel free to stalk her on twitter at @CurlyFourEyes.