Apparently The Accents Are Terrible Too
Is “Sherlock Holmes” going to be Zack Snyder’s version of the famous detective only done by a Brit (Guy Ritchie) who will likely be tied and feathered by the entire U.K. for American-izing Sherlock and Watson by infusing it slo-mo action and Laurel and Hardy-esque wacky buffoonery? By the sounds of it, yes.
Twitter has lit up with reports from the first “Sherlock Holmes” trailer shown just minutes ago at ShowWest in Vegas and a lot of the writers seem psyched, but the descriptions sound anything but appealing. In fact, some of it just sounds downright awful.
First Showing: “I can’t say for certain, but there were definitely some scenes that I would classify as ‘zany’ and potentially ”wacky’ for sure!” He also called it a summer romp, qualifying that as “Romp = fun, adventurous, like not straight up. I know, it is not what you expect, odd accents, lots of comedy, it’ll be a bit of a shock for people the first time.”
Latino Review: “The movie, judging from the two minutes shown, looks to be a cool mix of action and humor. Sometimes the dialogue was hard to understand because every actor seemed to have a different English accent. Once WB releases the footage online, you’ll have to judge for yourself!
A lot of action footage was shown, from Holmes jumping out a third story or so window into the river below (Thames) and shots of Holmes in a bare knuckle fist fight reminiscent of Tom Cruise’s fights in ‘Far and Away.’ Some of the punches were in slow motion kind of like ‘300.’ We didn’t see Jude Law as Watson until halfway in the footage, when Sherlock wanted to find someone that would compliment his skills. ‘Holmes, does your depravity know no bounds?’ ‘No.’ is also exchanged in the footage shown, along with Holmes saying, ‘Watson, what have you done?'” “
Collider: just saw the SHERLOCK HOLMES trailer. They world premiered it here at ShoWest. Looks good. Don’t know about Robert Downey Jr’s accent…
/Film: “It felt a little like the humor of Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean films. Fans of Ritchie might be interested to know that the director’s stylish cinematography was definitely intact. During a sequence showing the barenuckle pitfight, Holmes’ punches are executed in a slow motion style reminiscent of the video game Fight Night. And while the film isn’t set in modern day, the trailer had a very contemporary in-you-face edit. “
Cinemablend: “Overall the trailer focused a lot more on the comedy than I would have expected, and I still can’t figure out any plot motivation for all that focus on the shirtless boxing. The boxing scene also went heavy on the slo-mo, which in a post-Watchmen burnout world, might not be the best of plans. But if it turns out as funny and as quick on its feet as it seemed here, it’ll probably make up for it.”
Screencrave: “I wasn’t sold on the film. I don’t doubt the acting or the material, I just don’t trust Richie with this type of film, although I would be more than happy for him to prove me wrong!”
When we read the script last year we said at it’s best, the film could wind up being, “a harmless romp through the Holmes mythos, revitalized for audiences assimilated with the ‘Bourne’-style, action, smarts and authenticity vibe.” And at worst it could be, ” ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ set in Scotland yard – mindless, escapist entertainment that’s trite and hokey.”
Sounds like they picked the wrong version to make. Someone is certainly going to put the blame on Joel Silver wethinks. Then again, Guy Ritchie himself did say the film would be like “James Bond in 1891,” and “fun for families.” Maybe that divorce colored his mind irrevocably. Summer in December? “Sherlock Holmes” is set for a December 25 release. Sounds like you can check your brain at the door.