I think Downey gives a little slant to the role that is refreshing. Not so stodgy and proper. Also a little eccentric in an antisocial way. I think that fits better. Similar to the way Daniel Craig made James Bond into a dirtier and darker figure.

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I do still prefer Jeremey Brett!!

Robert Downey Jr.? Sherlock homes was a portrayed as a man of the gentry who was an inpeccably groomed man who would not be caught in public looking as shoddily dressed and groomed. However, he oftimes donned a disguise as the situation demanded it on a case-per case basis.

What are they trying to make THIS new Holmes into??? A refuge from the syphillis-ridden underworld; who is a drug addict from the opium dens of the Victorian era?

Yes....yes...yes! Dr. Watson complained to Holmes several times about his being involved with the tincture of coca being an unhealthy thing to do. Holmes used it to get him through a difficult case....when tea wold not suffice. (as I would deduce.)

#Please note: Back in those days cocaine was even used in Coca-Cola!!

No to Mr. Robert Downey Jr's version to the venerable Mr. Holmes.

I've avoided watching the movie so far, but trapped on a flight back from Amsterdam to the Us, against my better judgement I did watch the thing. I thought the first movie was passable, but the second one is stunningly........horrible. I did enjoy Stephen Fry, who is a great actor and also I did enjoy Jude Law, who I think makes an excellent Watson. But seriously. Nearly as bad as the current BBC TV Sherlock Holmes who does not smoke a pipe. Seriously, this is why we have laws to protect us. The next time Guy Ritchie comes to the US, we should bundle him off to Gitmo for his crimes against humanity.

Well said....HEAR!!! HEAR!!!

I'll even light a bowl of well-aged shag to old Basil Rathbone's portrayals of Shirlock!

Question..... Just where are they trying to go with Shirlock now?????

I have red some of the short stories, but not all of them as of yet (although the full works are in the mail currently). I understand fully that some are leery of changes and adaptation from what they are used to. Heck Sean Connery as Bond was the man, but Daniel Craig puts a twist to Bond that Connery couldn't; like I believe Downey and Law do to Holmes and Watson. I too watched them both on plane rides, but I loved them both, the second more than the first to be honest. These movies that others found so horrible have made me interested enough to order and read the novels and short stories completely. Movies have a tendency to inspire people to read and if these could do that to me when most don't then kudos to Downey, Law, and Guy Ritchie for inspiring myself and who knows how many others to read the works.

I'll approach this issue with an open mind; well-made point to ponder on. Hear! Hear!

Still....I would prefer Sir Jeremey Brett's potrayal of Sherlock!!