Mr. Holmes (2015)

Starring Ian McKellen and Laura Linney. It will debut in commercial theatres in 19 June (UK and Ireland) and 17 July (US).

Trailer here:

I'm growing somewhat weary of all these alternate takes on Sherlock Holmes. Still, this looks okay. It's Ian McKellen, so it'll be worth checking out for his performance if nothing else.

Yeah, I get your point (though I haven't seen any recent Holmes movies). It's Ian McKellen's performance that's almost solely grandting the movie very good reviews, hence why I'm curious about it.

I also wonder if there are other Holmes movies that feature the kind of meta stuff this one does.

I also like the kid "Can you do the thing?" XD

I can't really recall any "Old Holmes" movies, but there are several books about Sherlock in his beekeeping retirement. At first I thought this was an adaptation of The Final Solution by Michael Chabon and there's a Neil Gaiman story called The Case of Death and Honey. Also, it isn't quite the same (since Holmes is a bit younger), but there's the whole Mary Russell series.

Old Sherlock should be interesting. And Ian is always good.

There have really only been three recently and one of those is a film franchise that seems pretty much wrapped up, so I don't think the market's over saturated just yet.

I mainly caught the part about "unsolved case involving a beautiful woman."

Because, y'know, every Sherlock Holmes adaptation has to revolve around Irene Adler in some way, lest the fandom start speculating that Batman and Robin might be gay.

Except Sherlock because that show is awesome.

edited 22nd May '15 11:14:57 AM by TobiasDrake

There was an old TV movie ("the Masks of death", 1984) starring Peter Cushing as Sherlock Holmes in 1913. I wonder if this movie is related to that one.

Considering this movie might end up being not dedicated to such romancing matters, it's a moot point, methinks. Besides, there's no Irene Adler to be seen in this movie.

Uhm... I should check that one. Peter Cushing was often the best thing in some of those British TV movies.

edited 22nd May '15 3:00:09 PM by Quag15

The one that featured Irene Adler as a dominatrix obsessed with Sherlock, whom he went on to rescue from beheading? Eh, I prefer Elementary; but to each their own.

edited 22nd May '15 6:44:24 PM by TheAirman

Note that the idea of old Sherlock Holmes coming back from retirement for one more case already happened in the original Arthur Conan Doyle short story His Last Bow, so that concept is a part of the literary Holmes canon. Though it doesn't look like this movie has much to do with the short story, which is understandable, since His Last Bow involves WWI and reads more like an espionage thriller than the sort of detective story people typically associate with Holmes.

edited 24th May '15 9:24:07 AM by Tuomas

Isn't the idea of Holmes becoming a beekeeper from that story, though?

Looks like someone made a page already. Whoever did it, thank you.

Yeah, I think it is... IIRC in some other Holmes short stories Watson also talks about Holmes retiring (the stories supposedly published by Watson years after the events they describe), but I can't recall whether beekeeping was mentioned before His Final Bow.

edited 24th May '15 9:36:47 AM by Tuomas

Oh, I just noticed this movie is directed by the same guy who did Gods and Monsters and Kinsey! Those were both very good period dramas, so I have high hopes for this one.

edited 24th May '15 9:38:51 AM by Tuomas

You know, looking at the fourth trope on that page, I don't remember Watson EVER mentioning the kind of hat he wore.

And what he has on in that poster is pretty much what he would have worn in the Granada series.

edited 24th May '15 8:12:58 PM by edvedd

Watson only mentions it as "his ear-flapped travelling cap" and "close-fitting cloth cap". The illustrations thus went with a deerstalker, as it matches the description. Sometimes they also showed him in a bowler or top hat.

edited 24th May '15 8:19:20 PM by Tuckerscreator