I don’t get out much.  But Christmas afternoon was a golden opportunity to hit the movie theatres and the attraction of Robert Downey, Jr. and Jude Law rampaging across the screen again was too much to resist.

If you saw the first Sherlock Holmes movie these two did, then you won’t be surprised at the cinematography.  If you enjoyed it the first time, you’ll enjoy it again.  I loved the dark tones and slo-mo moments; they contributed to the overall atmosphere of the film.  My husband found it to be too distracting.  I thought the plot was well-written.  The story was fast and furious and there were moments when I was just carried along until I could say “Aha!”  My husband would have preferred a more controlled pace.

I find Downey ’s delivery irresistible and Law’s pacing was spot-on.  Their chemistry is almost always perfect.  I’m very glad they didn’t clutter up the movie with a love interest; it would have been distracting from the adventure.  Mycroft Holmes (Stephen Fry) was a delight; they could have given him just a smidge more time on the screen and I would’ve been happier.  He complemented Holmes and Watson so well.  Moriarty (Jared Harris) was such a good villain.  He wasn’t overblown or ridiculous.  He was a very focused man with a reasonable goal who methodically planned his success without histrionics or grand gestures.  I enjoyed the interplay between him and Holmes (Robert Downey, Jr.) and his cautious evaluation of Holmes’ dramatics.

And, OMG, where better to have a running gun battle than at a munitions factory!  Where, by the way, all sorts of weapons were readily available being either locked and loaded or with ammunition conveniently nearby.  Maybe a little too much slo-mo in this scene but still fun to watch.

And there was the ever-present humor including Watson (Jude Law) attempting to get married with no small help from his best man, Holmes.  And one final nugget the film gave us:  Watson’s new wife, Mary, (Kelly Reilly) who has some small, but lovely, scenes.  Mary turned out to be quite a surprise and will, undoubtedly, be a perfect companion to Watson the next time Holmes pulls him into another adventure.