Enola Holmes

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. (23.09.2020)

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)

A playful and a smart-mouthed mixture of a child's (or girl's, if you want) adventure/emancipation in the world of grown-ups and basic Holmes proprieties all in one package for the whole family. And everyone involved is obviously enjoying it. Enola's character sometimes flirts with too much “Mary Sue style", but never to the point of being annoying and definitely no more than Sherlock did himself in his time. So at least it stays in the family. It does not reach the quality of Young Sherlock Holmes, but it is cut from the same cloth. The most detrimental thing is the unnecessarily long running time, during which the three main storylines will never be connected. And so the first, second and third are resolved independently. However, not together, but at the expense of the other storylines. Overall, however, this treat is so tasty that there should be more of it in the future. I will at least taste it again. (23.09.2020)

Cute family entertainment where I initially predicted a max of 50% and lo and behold Netflix has another positively received film. Millie Bobby Brown is a great young actress who has already shown her talent in Stranger Things and she only confirms it here. There's not much action here, it's more of a drama with nice production design and a nice period London. Enjoyed it, but it's targeted more for a younger audience. Story***, Action**, Humor**, Violence>No, Entertainment****, Music***, Visual****, Atmosphere***, Suspense**. 6/10. (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)

Tedious, self-aware/feminist hogwash mixed with a nice kids’ detective storyline that's slightly reminiscent of Harry Potter. Enola Holmes is blessed with a pleasant cast, but unfortunately the directing makes it difficult to find your bearings in the plot, occasionally leading the viewer up blind alleys where they run up against a brick wall, wondering if they missed something. Otherwise, it's a tasty TV snack whose most interesting aspect is Cavil’s Sherlock. (23.09.2020)

Jeder, der hier dumm herumschreit, dass ein Werk mit einer weiblichen Hauptfigur ein Emanzipations- und Agitationsfilm ist, tut mir echt leid. Enola Holmes ist ein super Abenteuer mit Stil, vielleicht nur ein bisschen zu lang. Das Einzige, was ich nicht so gut fand, war die Tatsache, dass sich beide Fälle, die gleichzeitig gelöst wurden, nicht überschnitten haben. Schade. Millie Bobby Brown ist aber toll und sie hat mich trotz dieser Vorwürfe mit ihrem Elan begeistert. Henry Cavill ist ein anderer Sherlock als die Sherlocks aus letzter Zeit, die wir kennen. Er ist menschlich und nicht verrückt. Er ist aber immer noch eine Figur, die sich woanders bewegt als die anderen; es handelt sich also immer noch um Sherlock. Es würde mich schon interessieren, wie sein Solo-Film aussehen würde. Es wäre mir aber viel lieber, wenn es eine Fortsetzung geben würde, in der er zusammen mit Enola erscheint. Den letzten Satz meiner Rezension widme ich der Musik von Daniel Pemberton, die… Einfach fantastisch ist. (25.09.2020)

A formally interestingly conceived blend between a naive fairytale about a girl running away from the dominant male order of the Victorian era and a coming-of-age crime drama where the heroine is forced to exploit her innate talent in a Young Sherlock Holmes style. The playful self-aware approach is very entertaining and original at times, while the detective line effectively applies Doyle’s narrative intuition, leading the attention through the deciphering of hidden meanings. What it’s clearly lacking, however, is more balance and zest – the formal tricks soon become predictable and, despite everything, the established format lacks a moment of surprise. It’s also missing the charisma of Sherlock himself, I liked Cavill’s portrayal a lot and it’s a shame that he becomes such a passive character. Millie is of course lovely and carries everything on her shoulders with a cuteness that best characterises the concept as a whole. It’s not as smoothly written and doesn’t have the adult humour of 1980s Spielberg, but it’s nice and contagious in its own way. So, 70%. (23.09.2020)

Die langhaarige Eleven, die (un)sichere Bellatrix und der nicht ganz so lächelnde Geralt in einem Film über die Familie Holmes, der die Figur des berühmten Detektivs vernachlässigt und seine "einsame" Schwester Enola in den Mittelpunkt stellt, die die Kunst der Deduktion ebenso gut beherrscht wie ihr älterer Bruder. Neben der großartigen Besetzung hat mich auch die unkonventionelle Erzählweise angesprochen, bei der sich die Hauptfigur direkt an das Publikum wendet, was die Geschichte noch humorvoller macht. Andererseits muss ich aber auch sagen, dass ich wahrscheinlich mehr von dem Film erwartet habe - ich hatte das Gefühl, dass sein Potenzial nicht voll ausgeschöpft wurde. Manchmal war der Film vielleicht ein wenig zu offenkundig feministisch, aber es waren dennoch angenehme zwei Stunden. (25.09.2020)

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)

My review in a nutshell – perfect Millie, mediocre entertainment, lousy detective story. I didn’t really mind the blatant political correctness and feminism that received so much criticism here. That is the sort of thing we have come to expect of Netflix. Having said that, the film has other and much bigger flaws - the main one clearly being the script which makes it a complete hodgepodge that has absolutely nothing to do with a detective story. No surprising moments, no twists, no mystery, no unexpected revelations, no nothing - one huge disappointment. Out of the five story lines, barely one will make it to a satisfactory ending. As much as I was hoping to like the film, especially because of its cast, the result was a somewhat entertaining, but sloppily narrated detective story. Since this is about Holmes, it hurts twice as much. What I would like to highlight, however, is Millie Bobby Brown’s truly God-given gift for acting. I consider her to be, hands down, the greatest talent of the upcoming generation. (15.10.2020)