Sidenote: Sherlock Holmes

First I will say simply, that this movie was good.  Not only was it good.....it was impressive and I don't really just hand out such a verbal commendation with any sort of nonchalance. It was a number of things that drew my attention and sustained it for...however long the movie was. One of these was the color: When one thinks of England and the cities within, beyond the historic of course, it is well imagined that the area would be rather dull and gray. Many things give this impression such as the overcast skies and worn age of the cities...even the concept of earl grey tea lends itself to the mental image of said place being dreary. This was reflected in the scenery and color schemes and it really made the whole thing look as though one were watching an old book.
Another thing was the music: I waited till the end to see who was responsible for it and was happy to find that it was Hans Zimmer. I recognize the name from a previous movie, The Holiday, that I also really enjoyed the soundtrack to (and had ironically, if not randomly, listened to only a few hours earlier). The best way I can describe it was that it was there and it was engaging, but it didn't feel the need to jump out and make itself known....like a quiet but highly efficient colonial wife. More than likely I will be aquiring the soundtrack now also based on composer reputation instead of just the initial interest in the pieces.
The most comforting thing about the movie overall was that it was smart: There's nothing worse than a movie that has to keep checking to make sure that the audience is following along by restating things that are obvious or having characters move slower than the audience so that there is a "Blue's Clues" effect ::::cough cough Percy Jackson::::. I liked having to figure things out based on only a few seen concepts but also being able to just watch sequences unfold that required no actual thought whatsoever. It varied the experience which, in turn, made the whole thing even more interesting.  I also liked how Holmes and Watson got along. There was a mutual respect for each's work style and differences, but then they had such an interesting way of supplementing each other....it was effective but also soo natural that there was plenty of time to be sarcatic and even jovial with each other during times where the tension and danger would have made others choke.  It paralleled quite easily with a friendship of my own, though for the life of me I can't decide which of us is which character.  Anyhow, its good and I wholeheartedly recommend it to any and everyone. Go see it......like right now. GO!