In 2009 director Guy Ritchie brought us an updated version of SHERLOCK HOLMES, and it was pretty cool but not that great, imho. Now Ritchie is back, along with Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law in Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, and it was pretty cool. Not really great, but methinks better than the first.

This new movie features the greatest and best known of Holmes’ adversaries, Professor Moriarty, played very well by the always excellent Jared Harris. Moriarty is a genius with a murderous psychotic side just simmering underneath the surface, and Harris plays it perfectly.

Also along for the ride here is the main reason I wanted to see this movie, Noomi Rapace. Mz Rapace is the first actress to portray uber-hacker and all around bad ass Lisbeth Salander on film, in the original Swedish films of the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo trilogy. To me she’ll always be the true Lisbeth (Um, but I’m allowed to change that view after watching the American version of TGWTDT next week). Here she plays a gypsy and while her role is no where as deep and important as Lisbeth Salander, she doe s great job with what she’s given. I look forward to more work from Noomi Rapace!

So like I said SH:AGOS was pretty cool. It had a lot of action, all very stylized by Mr Ritchie, and RDJr and Law were excellent. There was plenty I’d change about the movie, but I can’t, so I’ll just say watch it for yourself.