Sherlock: The Abominable Bride
Finally, Steven Moffat’s and Mark Gatiss’s much awaited non
canonical episode of their Sherlock series – The Abominable Bride aired in
India over the weekend. I was eagerly looking forward to seeing the Moffat and
Gatiss’s new age Sherlock transplanted back to Conan Doyle’s original backdrop
in 1895..and it didn’t disappoint.
Without giving away key plot elements to fans who haven’t
watched the episode yet – Sherlock, Watson and other secondary characters are
investigating the death of Emelia Ricoletti – the “Bride” and a series of
murders in Victorian London that may or may not be related to present day’s
possible come back of Prof Moriarty.
The Victorian backdrop, the period set pieces, cinematography,
camera angles, lighting, and the costumes are flawless and contribute to the
overall feel and suspense. The screenplay and dialogues are intelligently written
and haven’t been dumbed down to audience. Finely executed parallels between 2
operating universes, intermingling of metaphysical and established sciences
and subtle references to The Strand will truly engage a fan of the series.
Benedict Cumberbatch was as always brilliant – great dialogue delivery, body language, voice modulation and he wonderfully portrayed the marginal sociopathic personality of the character. Deerstalker and pipe certainly suit Cumberbatch who reminded me a tad bit of Jeremy Brett. Chemistry between key characters seems natural. On the other hand, I would’ve preferred Prof Moriarty to be a bit more diabolical and sans all the character ticks.
It’s incredible to see a character that was
created over 120 years ago being reprised so many times over decades, never losing
sheen…but then again Sherlock was ..in all possibility…a man ahead of his
time..
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3845232/
