An aged, retired Sherlock Holmes deals with dementia, as he tries to remember his final case, and a mysterious woman, whose memory haunts him. He also befriends a fan, the young son of his h... Read allAn aged, retired Sherlock Holmes deals with dementia, as he tries to remember his final case, and a mysterious woman, whose memory haunts him. He also befriends a fan, the young son of his housekeeper, who wants him to work again.An aged, retired Sherlock Holmes deals with dementia, as he tries to remember his final case, and a mysterious woman, whose memory haunts him. He also befriends a fan, the young son of his housekeeper, who wants him to work again.
- Awards
- 19 nominations
- Madame Schirmer
- (as Frances De La Tour)
- Director
- Writers
- Mitch Cullin
- Jeffrey Hatcher
- Arthur Conan Doyle(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaSir Ian McKellen took a course in beekeeping with The London Honey Company prior to filming. He was not stung during filming.
- GoofsHolmes (perhaps forgivably for 1947) repeats the mistaken idea that "the queen runs the colony and the workers do the work" - in fact, a queen bee is no more than an enlarged egg-making machine at the service of a worker collective, which will slaughter her should she falter, while other worker bees create a replacement queen. Also when the colony grows too large, it is the workers who make the decision to swarm, by starving the queen which both lightens up her body and forces her to take flight.
- Quotes
Sherlock Holmes: I've decided to write the story down; as it was, not as John made it. Get it right, before I die.
Roger: You're not going to die.
Sherlock Holmes: I'm 93.
Roger: I had a great-uncle who lived to be 102.
Sherlock Holmes: Well done. That seals my fate. What are the odds that you would know two men who would live that long?
Roger: Well, I didn't actually know him.
[Holmes laughs]
- ConnectionsFeatured in Projector: Minions/Mr. Holmes (2015)
Due to the fact that the film's metronome is a 93-year-old man losing his memory, the pace is unfortunately slow for the first half of the film. Having multiple flashbacks that omit information until necessary keeps the viewer guessing but also at times frustrated. In the meantime, the real entertainer is Sir Ian McKellen, who is not nearly as old as his character is in real life and yet captures the nuances of someone that age to precision, all while forming his own character of the titular Holmes. It's one I hope can make its way into the Oscar conversation yet is so much simpler I won't count on it.
The second half of the film picks up in pace as the 3 story lines all begin to start solving themselves, but more importantly Mr. Holmes (I don't think his first name is ever uttered in this movie) starts to realize a moral that he never quite came to terms with in all of his sleuthing regarding the truth and humanity. I've seen a solid handful of the countless Sherlock Holmes incarnations (he is the most commonly portrayed character in cinema) and there is something that becomes almost tragic about each one as you realize he is someone whose intelligence and wit makes him unable to live normally amongst other 'ordinary' people. As some subtext, it is perhaps a nice touch that Mr. McKellen is a proud member of the LGBT community, as there is reason to believe (although rarely outwardly said) that Sherlock Holmes may be gay himself. These are details you don't need to watch the story but can help enhance the nuance.
In terms of filmmaking, director Bill Condon and co. don't particularly do anything to motivate the situation other that just let the characters take care of business. Again, this is not a movie notable for having a quick pace, but it is never dull altogether either. The next movie I'll be watching is Gods and Monsters, the previous Condon/McKellen collaboration.
As you can see from how much I've written, I'm fond of the movie, enjoyed the numerous elements, and was left with a lot to think about. It's a small scale film and should be viewed as such, but is nonetheless enjoyable and is a nice spin on the iconic character.
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Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Ngài Holmes
- Filming locations
- Hatfield House, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England, UK(exteriors: city park where Holmes talks with Ann, interiors: Diogenes Club)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $11,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $17,737,646
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $2,434,908
- Jul 19, 2015
- Gross worldwide
- $29,355,203
- Runtime1 hour 44 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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