Despite the internal battle I was having with seeing another movie that featured Robert Downey Jr. I decided to brave the post Christmas crowds and join my wife in watching Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.

In this sequel to the open ended 2009 movie, Sherlock and his trusty sidekick Dr. Watson must take down their nemesis Professor James Moriarty. The evil professor is believed to be responsible for a series of bombings and mysterious killings from around the world. A lengthy trail leads the two detectives on journey that brings them mystery, romance, and a new gypsy friend. Where it goes from there is anyone's guess.

When I saw the first Sherlock Holmes movie a couple of years ago I was quite disappointed. The plot was slow, the action scenes were extremely forced and therefor too unbelievable, and the humor was in short supply. Needless to say I didn't really go into the sequel with high hopes. After seeing Downey in Due Date (my review for that stinker is available here) I had really hoped to never have to see anything he was in again. He successfully put me in a bad mood after that movie, and caused me to look over his resume and realize just how overrated he truly was.

Fortunately for my sanity I was pleasantly surprised with his role in this movie. He was witty, and played off of Jude Law's character very well. The humor that was missing in the first installment found its way into this script. The action scenes were a little more realistic, and I was entertained for 2 hours.

Now if only I could have understood all of the dialogue in this movie I would have been all set. The British accents that all of the characters in this movie have were a little difficult to understand. I have made no secret that I have a hard time understanding these accents in movies, but it seemed like the first 25% of this movie was more difficult than others to follow. Perhaps it was just my untrained ear, but it almost seemed like as the movie went along the accents became easier to understand. Almost as though they were slowly phasing them out.

Regardless of my listening shortcomings I did enjoy my time watching this movie. It was a definite step up from the first movie,and helped paved the way for the assured 3rd installment coming in the next couple of years.

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
Directed by: Guy Ritchie
Written by: Michele Mulroney, Kieran Mulroney, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, and Jared Harris
My Rating: 3.25 out of 5
Would Gene Pick it?: Yes