level 11
It’s rather late so this will go on the website tomorrow but here’ѕ my review of A Scandal in Belgravia. It’s about as spoiler free as I could make it (no plot details at all. Hopefully you’ll like it!
So the best part of 15 months after the first series of Sherlock finished airing to widespread critical acclaim and huge ratings on BBC 1 the public finally got to see the resolution to that cliffhanger when the first episode of Sherlock series 2: A Scandal in Belgravia aired at a preview screening at the BFI. The excitement in the room was absolutely electric. Fans had travelled from all over the world to see the episode in the company of creatives Steven Moffat, Mark Gatisѕ (Mycroft), Sue Vertue, David Arnold and cast memberѕ Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock), Lara Pulver (Irene Adler), Louise Brealey (Molly Hooper), Una Stubbѕ (Mrs.Hudson) and Andrew Scott (Moriarty).
But I confess I had had this teeny tiny nagging worry for a while. What if after the very long wait, after all the hype, all the excitement, what if (whispers) it wasn’t very good? Perish the thought I know but what if?
Well I need not have worried. Sherlock - A Scandal in Belgravia is clever, witty, sexy, action packed, thrilling, intelligent, nuanced and just all round bloody brilliant telly. It’s something you’ll immediately want to watch again the second it finishes.
So Moriarty, Sherlock & John, a gun and a bomb? How ever could our intrepid heroes get out of that terrible pickle? Well, the resolution to the cliffhanger is dealt with swiftly and resolved in a fairly jaw dropping, audacious way which made the entire viewing audience burst into spontaneous applause. Witty, darkly funny, terribly clever and the credits hadn’t even rolled yet!
Cliffhanger over and done with the story proper begins with a clever modern re-working of A Scandal in Bohemia. And that of course means Irene Adler. Naughty Irene is in possession of some items the powers that be (represented by the mighty Mycroft) would like back and Sherlock is set the task of their retrieval. I’ll admit I’d been nervous about how Adler would be portrayed. I rather enjoyed Rachel Adams portrayal of Irene in the Sherlock Holmeѕ movie but was less enamoured of RDJ’s Holmeѕ mooning over her and did not much fancy the notion of Sherlock going all gooey eyed over Irene. So I was delighted at how much I absolutely adored the character.
In Lara Pulver’s incredibly capable hands Irene is sexy, fierce as hell, clever, calculating, amoral, flirty and brave. It’s a wonderfully nuanced performance. Pulver manages to make Irene both a master of manipulation and yet surprisingly vulnerable all at the same time. She commands every scene she is in and she holds her own against Cumberbatch and Freeman which is not an easy feat. Pulver is also gorgeous and has a wardrobe to die for (I may have audibly sighed with envy at a brief glimpse of Irene’s stunning wardrobe).
Irene’s first scene with Sherlock and John is an absolute delight. Seeing through Sherlock instantly and opting for a brave choice of attire the chemistry between Cumberbatch and Pulver fair crackles as they exchange barbed asides while a world weary John watches on in bafflement. The two actors play off each other beautifully and you can completely see why Sherlock is so utterly fascinated by this woman who is the only one to have bested him. It’s a fantastically complex, layered relationship between two very lonely, damaged people which iѕ beautifully summed up in the best scene in the episode between John and Irene which, with very few words, illustrates how utterly useless labels are when it comes to matters of the heart. In Pulver’s hands Irene Adler is captivating, despite being arguably a truly dreadful character really and she lights up the screen.
2011年12月08日 04点12分
