Enola Holmes

If it weren't for the irritatingly boring and unnecessarily drawn out exposition, this would almost be a full 3 stars. The final impression is more like a 2 and a half stars. Millie Bobby Brown is quite distinctive though, and outshines both Henry Cavill and Helena Bonham Carter in terms of acting. Overall, this is an interesting would-be extension of the global "Sherlock universe", in which the sister of the famous detective shows a fair amount of wit and general intellect. Moreover, Enola is seen here as a relatively empathetic and almost morally benign personality, something that is often problematic with Sherlock himself. I enjoyed the creative intent of inserting a purely female character into an already existing literary-filmic world of strong male characters to compete for the viewer's attention and, in a somewhat "Dickinsonian" way, show defiance. But if you are expecting a "Sherlockian" detective story, you will be disappointed. Enola Holmes is typical Netfix consumer material, with no special surprises apart from the story itself. (19/10/2020)

I feel really sorry for anybody who's bluntly yelling out that a film with a main female character is an emancipation agitation film. Enola Holmes is stylish, a filmed super adventure with an overview. Perhaps it’s just a little long, and if there is anything I was disappointed by, then it was the fact that the two cases were not interconnected in any way. That’s too bad. But Millie Bobby Brown is wonderful, and with her vigor, and, regardless of my complaints, Henry Cavill is a different Sherlock than those we have seen lately - he’s human and not freak, but he's still a character that is in a little bit of different place than the others, but he's still Sherlock. I'd be quite interested in what his solo film would be like, but I'd much rather support a sequel in which he appears alongside Enola. I dedicate the last sentence of my review to Daniel Pemberton's music, which... well, it's just fantastic. (25/09/2020)

Millie’s awesome in this one. I truly mean that. The only virtues of this spectacle are the spontaneity of her acting together with Henry Cavill’s pleasantly subdued, charming Sherlock  and the cinematography, which is unusually lavish for a Netflix production. As for the rest of it, however, stay away from this in-your-face politically correct fable which tries hard to be woke. I certainly don’t have any qualms about the feminist movement, but this is too much “out of joint”; I always find it rather daft and removed from contemporary reality whenever female characters set in the 19th century fight like men or want to fight like men. The net result is merely a political statement by today’s Hollywood studios, of the kind that has become fashionable these days. (24/09/2020)

I am delighted that the excitement promised by the trailer, the images, and Millie Bobby Brown herself is abundant. There is always something happening, someone is being pursued, or something is exploding, although it is not always clear what or why. The famous last name is rightfully in the title and often reminds one of Robert Downey's portrayal of the most famous detective. Unfortunately, the enthusiasm and almost Potter-like atmosphere begin and end. The motivation of anyone except Enola herself, whether it is completely minor characters or unfortunately even members of the Holmes family, can be summed up in one sentence. And that is either the loss of the screenwriter or more likely the adaptation itself. Despite clear disappointment, it may still be a series from which I take at least energy and good feelings, but the original potential was headed somewhere else. (06/08/2021)

Where exactly did Enola come from? I almost feel like it is some kind of a weapon of contemporary feminists and a statement that every Sherlock has his own Enola. It nicely reacts to one episode of Red Dwarf in which William Shakespeare was made into Wilma Shakespeare. And that joke is more than 20 years old. Moreover it is a pity that this movie isn’t at least funny. Millie is surely great and she enjoys her role a lot. That shouldn’t come as a surprise given that she financed it herself as probably the youngest Hollywood producer of today at the age of 16. But she should have left out the sarcastic comments addressed directly to the camera. After watching the movie I couldn’t figure out what it was all about. So at the end of the day my expectation wasn’t fulfilled and Netflix disappoints me once again. (27/09/2020)