Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law

In 2009, Guy Ritchie finally cracked the formula that studios had been mulling over for years. How to take one of the most iconic characters in history, the super intelligent, abrasive detective Sherlock Holmes and make him into a viable franchise lead. Ritchie, known more for hyper kinetic Brit crime flicks than calculated mysteries, stuck with what he knew best. Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law came aboard as the genius sleuth and his loyal(and a little combative) sidekick, Watson, and the iconic creation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was transformed. Not into a detective of incomparable skill, but into a brawling, Victorian-era jedi with a goofy, reckless demeanor and a preternatural gift of foresight. It was perfect for the type of fast paced commercial action Ritchie was good at, and they rode it to box office success.

A sequel was obvious, and the promise of higher stakes with the arrival of Holmes' greatest nemesis, Moriarty(Jared Harris). Known as the "Napoleon of Crime", Moriarty is suspected of a number of bombings designed to begin a world war. Or at least that's what Holmes suspects, even if no one believes him. It's not until Moriarty involves Holmes' lover, Irene Adler(Rachel McAdams in a brief cameo) that the game of cat 'n mouse is truly afoot. Ignoring his friend's upcoming honeymoon, Holmes yanks Watson right into the thick of their most dangerous adventure yet, with Moriarty literally pulling out all the big guns and taking them on a chase that stretches from Paris to Switzerland.

At this point, nobody should be expecting an episode of Murder She Wrote. What makes Sherlock Holmes work isn't his keen deductive reasoning, but the witty banter between Downey and Law, who seem to be going off the top of their heads half the time. Even though their snappy patter has a bit less pop and sizzle than it did last film, it's the bouncy back and forth between the two(especially when Downey dons a ridiculous disguise) that keeps the momentum. They have some help in that with the inclusion of Stephen Fry as Holmes' older and equally brilliant brother, Mycroft. Fry is a welcome breath of fresh air, and the addition of Mycroft to the story adds a new and unexpected wrinkle in that it forces us to look at Sherlock in a different light. Just as in the novels, Mycroft is easily his brother's intellectual equal, and despite a relaxed attitude and lack of desire for public recognition , he nonetheless has a greater reputation than his detective brother. There's a slight hint of jealousy in Sherlock towards his brother, and given his usual undying confidence in himself, it's nice to see another layer to the character. Noomi Rapace, making her English language debut after starring in the Swedish version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, isn't given much of a chance to distinguish herself as a gypsy who finds her family a part of Moriarty's evil plot.

If only we could've plumbed similar depths in Holmes' mental duel with Moriarty. Jared Harris makes for a perfectly vile, wicked games master of a villain, but the story isn't built for the type of chess playing we should see out of a Holmes/Moriarty showdown. Unless it's literal chess playing, that is. Moriarty's scheme is more follow-the-numbers than anything else, and Holmes has to exert little brain energy to figure anything out. We should be seeing feints and deception around every turn, with both men laying traps for the other to fall into. The two are essentially two sides of the same coin, with their powers turned in wildly different directions. One of the great things about Doyle's presentation of their rivalry was that Holmes recognized how his life could have very easily resembled that of Moriarty's. It would've been nice to see a little of that reflected here. Certainly there are other homages to the books that fans will immediately recognize, including a climactic final battle that will be very familiar.

Action remains the heart of what Sherlock Holmes is all about, and it's an even bigger part of the picture this time. Ritchie has pulled out all the stops to make this the loudest, most exciting Sherlock Holmes movie yet, and he has definitely succeeded in that. Holmes flaunts his amazing combat prowess seemingly at every turn, and while we've seen it a dozen times before it never ceases to be thrilling when executed. The centerpiece is an intense, Martrix-esque, speed ramped and CGI fueled chase through the darkened woods as bullets and cannon fire rain down all around them. Bring your earplugs, but by all means don't turn away as it's a breathtaking sequence.

There aren't a lot of surprises to be found, and the formula may dull some of the impact, but Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows mostly maintains what worked so well the last time around. As long as the central pieces remain like Downey and Law remain intact, we can expect to be entertained by the good detective for a long time to come.