Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011)

Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr) is hot on the trail of criminal mastermind Professor James Moriarty (Jared Harris), and intent on revealing and preventing the devastating plan he has for all of Europe. When his investigations grow too close, however, it is not only his own life that is put in peril but that of his former partner Dr John Watson (Jude Law).

A good sequel is a wonderful thing. There is no need to spend time introducing characters and establishing a tone since they have been introduced and well-established already. Instead - in the best kinds of sequels - there is scope to expand on the characters, experiment with where to push the tone, and find all manner of fresh and unexpected angles on the material. Generally speaking few sequels match the original film, since a temptation to hew closely to what is already established often leads to a lack of imagination, and a tendency to simply repeat now-familiar beats and tropes. Thankfully A Game of Shadows is up to its task, bringing back the chemistry and charisma of Guy Ritchie's first Sherlock Holmes film while both darkening its tone and expanding its scope.

Sherlock Holmes (2009)

Just as they are on the cusp of going their separate ways for good, consulting detective Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr) and war veteran Dr John Watson (Jude Law) are brought back together for one final case: the inexplicable resurrection of the occultist and murderer Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong).

Sherlock Holmes, which was released to great commercial success back in 2009, is one of those Hollywood projects that makes so much sense and seems such an obvious idea that the genius was noticing that nobody had attempted it before. Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories were the blockbusters of their day, so why not translate the characters into an actual Hollywood action blockbuster? There had been a near-countless number of Sherlock Holmes adaptations made for film before, but I am not sure there had ever been one with as strong an emphasis on action as it did on mystery-solving. It also had the sense to bring in actor just hitting the absolute peak of his popularity (Robert Downey Jr) and to hire a director (Guy Ritchie) who had demonstrated a lot of talent but never had the chance to make a big-budget Hollywood film.