Young Sherlock Holmes (1985)

This 1985 adventure directed by Barry Levinson (Rain Man) and written by Chris Columbus (Gremlins) may not have much to do with the Sherlock Holmes of Arthur Conan Doyle's invention. But it is a delightful and somewhat unexpected combination of exciting elements: Victorian-era, foggy-London mystique, Gothic horror, and Indiana Jones-like exotica. Nicholas Rowe plays Holmes as a schoolboy at a boarding academy for young men. Paired with the owlish, reticent young Watson (Alan Cox), Holmes embarks on the solution of a mystery that involves a hallucinatory and lethal drug, and a religious cult celebrating ancient Egyptian rites of mummification. Levinson makes handsome and crisp work of this Steven Spielberg production, without a trace of the treacle that often found its way into other Spielbergian projects at the time (The Goonies). Rowe is wonderfully convincing as a teen incarnation of the Great Detective, and while Cox mostly maintains Hollywood's traditionally unflattering idea of Watson, he does bring warmth and comedy to the role. The cast includes Freddie Jones as an eccentric inventor, Anthony Higgins as the villain, and Sophie Ward as Holmes's love interest. --Tom Keogh Amazon.com

Holmes fans will love this.

This movie is an account of a young Sherlock Holmes who meets a young Watson at a boarding school in Victorian England. There are clues, suspense, special effects and a touch of romance. Egyptian assassins, drugged-laced darts, stained glass knights coming to life to attack a hapless priest, and of course, the kidnapped girl being wrapped in mummy bandages and being encased in wax while alive keep the film moving.
I show this movie to high school sophomores right before a homecoming or a vacation or some other highly anticipated event with good success. September 30, 2008

It's not merely elementary, it's for older kids too.

This is a very clever twist on an old tale. Take a beloved character from classic literature and show the world what he might have been like growing up. It's not like this sort of thing hasn't been done before, but this time it is done very well.
The characters are brilliant and the story is fun and interesting. I wish they would have made a whole series of these movies, but this stands well enough alone and sets up the story of why Sherlock Holmes is who he is later in life.
If you like Sherlock Holmes then this is a movie for you, and even if you don't it's still a fun mystery for the whole family.
August 29, 2008

Young Sherlock Holmes

This movie is alot better than the Indiana Jones sequel (Indiana Jones & the Temple of Doom). *That is, whoever got the stupid idea of combining these 2 or putting it another way as a copy cat movie, The Indiana Jones sequels suck big-time. It seems as though CNN & FoxNews got together & put spins/lies galore behind the Indiana Jones sequels. ;(... Just like politics as usual. August 28, 2008

Good stuff

Very well filmed. Big Steve did a good job on this one. Has mystery and fun. A bit much for kids and not a historically correct (as the books go) but a fun way to look at how he might have grown up. July 14, 2008

Young Sherlock Holmes

I showed this movie to my 8th grade special education class after we read Sherlock Holmes mysteries. It had a good story line and kept the attention of my students, which is quite a task! There was enough suspense and adventure to keep us all on the edge of our seats. June 29, 2008

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