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Awix (3310 KP) rated Holmes and Watson (2018) in Movies

Jan 3, 2019 (Updated Jan 3, 2019)  
Holmes and Watson (2018)
Holmes and Watson (2018)
2018 | Adventure, Comedy, Mystery
Almost incomprehensibly bad comic spoof of Sherlock Holmes that - despite the presence of many talented and genuinely funny performers - still manages to be totally lacking in laughs, wit, or anything much in the way of entertainment value. Serious adaptations of the original stories - hell, the original stories themselves - all managed to be much funnier than this.

General tone of self-satisfied knowing stupidity; lazy jokes about Donald Trump, selfies, people texting dick pics, etc; much-too-late-to-the-party spoofing of the Guy Ritchie Holmes films from nearly ten years ago. I'll go and see just about anything but it took a sustained effort of will not to walk out of this film. 2018 may have departed but this film lingers on in its wake like the stench from rotting carrion. For pity's sake, avoid.
  
Enola Holmes (2020)
Enola Holmes (2020)
2020 | Adventure, Crime, Drama
There were several things that didn't make me leap at this one, but I was excited to have a "new release" to watch so...

The Holmes family name is a recognisable one, Sherlock and Mycroft are taking London by storm... but did you know about their younger sister, Enola? Raised by her mother, an eccentric and strong woman with a very alternative view on education, Enola is a strong will young woman in her image. When her mother goes missing Enola sets off to find her against the wishes of her brothers, taking herself to London and crossing paths with friends and foes along the way.

When I was looking for something between Sherlock Holmes and Nancy Drew I was hoping they'd throw the stone a little further. In my notes I scribbled that there are plenty of books about teen detectives that would have adapted well... and then I discovered that this was a book, and a series no less. I understand that the association with Sherlock Holmes is a strong one to market, but I feel like we're a little Sherlocked out these days. I miss vaguely original content... sorry, that sounds bitchier than it was meant to be.

Millie Bobby Brown did a good job of bringing Enola to life, there's a strong precocious nature to the role and she adapted to every twist convincingly. At times I noticed the odd slip that felt a little pantomime-y but by the time I'd pursed my lips and frowned it had already passed.

The Holmes brothers, brought to us by Henry Cavill and Sam Claflin, where to start... Claflin as Mycroft did a pretty good job, possibly too good, every time he was on screen I wanted him to leave. However, am I the only one that thought that these actors should have been playing each other's roles? As much as I love Cavill, he is not Sherlock. Sherlock is not suave and naturally charming, and he's certainly not built like a Chippendale, well, maybe a bit of furniture. It felt like a very unnatural fit, but I could just about visualise it with the roles reversed.

Supporting actors were great, I particularly enjoyed Susan Wokoma's, Edith. But, I was pleasantly surprised to see Fiona Shaw pop up in what appeared to be a reprisal of her role from Three Men and a Little Lady, but I digress.

To a layman like myself the period setting looked amazing and I thought the costumes were excellent. In fact, everything about the film looked stunning, but here is where I part with compliments.

Enola Holmes clocks in at just over the 2 hour mark, 2 hours and 3 minutes if we're being precise. If you say "family film" I think 1 hour 30, 45 maybe, if you say "thriller" I think 2 hours+... I know there are no hard and fast rules about it, but here's the thing, there wasn't enough content to fill that time. Yes, they managed to fill the runtime, but so much of it was unnecessary. Her mother's storyline seemed entirely there to get her to London, which could easily have been done in several ways, there's one scene in particular that seemed to go nowhere. I hate to say it, but Fiona Shaw and her finishing school were completely surplus to requirements too, nothing happened there that was very relevant at all. Some of the additions to what is quite a simple story made it a little complicated, though complicated isn't quite the right word because everything was easy to grasp (when it was relevant), perhaps "fussy" would be a better choice.

When the film ended I knew we were being set up for round 2, though this one came with less of a sickening groan than Artemis Fowl's did. I don't know how the books run as a series so I'd be interested to see how they compare, but I'm not a fan of continued storyline and that will definitely be on the cards for a sequel.

While I'm fully aware I've just moaned about a lot of points, the film is definitely watchable, but for me it was too cluttered and drawn out to hold my attention. With some snipping here and there it could have been vastly improved.

(My god, I didn't even mention the 4th wall breaking or the very end... but I guess no one really wants a full essay on the subject.)

Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/10/enola-holmes-movie-review.html
  
The Strange Case of Caroline Maxwell
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Recommended reading "The Strange Case of Caroline Maxwell "Paperback – 12 Sep 2014 by Amanda Harvey Purse. 


This book has all the ingredients that makes a great mystery novel. The question is what is there not to love history mixed with fiction, Sherlock Holmes, Jack the Ripper with a great references to Agatha Christie and a famous little Belgian detective. 


Amanda's book deserves so much more then the twos reviews it has on Amazon .


The book is truly well researched and comes across as a great labour of love , I loved spotting the historical cases that where mixed among the fiction. If you have the opportunity to read this book I recommend you do it's not to be missed.


Amanda I loved this book from start to finish thank you for the opportunity to read it I hope to see more of this wonderful character
  
Going Out with a Bang
Criminal psychology has always been a very interesting subject for me. Criminal Minds (an amazing tv show for those of you who haven't heard of it) first introduced me to the subject of profiling which is when you can predict certain characteristics of a person based on the crime committed. It reminds me of Sherlock Holmes and the deductions he makes through his observations. Honestly, when they explain how they got to that conclusion, it always seems so simple, but I would have never been able to guess.

Profiling is now used by lots of detectives to narrow down the suspect pool and to try and give them a lead. But it had to start somewhere, and this case was the one that started it all.

Continue reading my review at: https://www.readsandrecipes.co.uk/2017/01/going-out-with-bang.html
  
The Name of the Rose
The Name of the Rose
Umberto Eco | 2008 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.4 (5 Ratings)
Book Rating
Detail, intrigue (0 more)
This book has been on my list of books I want to read for years but I had felt a little daunted by it. When I finally picked it up I was in the right frame of mind for the challenge and it seemed a fitting read for my weekend away to a book town.

It would be fair to say that parts of the book which covered the more in depth discussions on the differences between the various types of heretics weren't the easiest of reads but given I'm no kind of expert on religion they did make sense and were important to the story.

What I really did love was the sections where William was using Sherlock Holmesesque deductions and the descriptions of the labyrinth style library. If you're a lover of books it's worth reading for those features alone.
  
A House Of Ghosts
A House Of Ghosts
W. C. Ryan | 2019 | Crime, Fiction & Poetry, Horror, Paranormal, Thriller
8
5.7 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
The binding is gorgeous (1 more)
Had everything
A House Full of Ghosts
Well I loved this. It had everything. A thriller and a murder mystery with romance and ghosts as well. The story flowed magnificently, the characters were endearing and shone from the pages and the history and setting were also deliberate and engrossing. This is a book you can imagine being timeless and far reaching, I can imagine my teenage son or my grandad in his nineties enjoying it. A fantastic story difficult to put down and to top it off presented beautifully in this gorgeous black and gold hardback. Imagine Downton Abbey meets Sherlock Holmes with a bit of Spooky Dickens chucked in for good mrasure. Bring on the movie, it would work so well and I have absolutely no doubt that we will be seeing these characters again and I for one can't wait.