Script all too elementary in action-packed 'Holmes' sequel

Fox News commentators, already in a hissy fit over how "The Muppets" maligns oil tycoons as greedy capitalists, will probably be delighted that "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows" asserts that the greatest single threat to global stability and peace is - are you ready? - a smart university professor.

His name: Moriarty.

Sherlock Holmes fans know that Professor Moriarty is to Holmes what Ernst Stavro Blofeld is to James Bond, or the Joker is to Batman, or Dr. Simon Barsinister is to Underdog - an ultimate opponent.

You'd think injecting Professor Moriarty - underplayed with nary a maniacal laugh or twirling mustache by Jared Harris - would bump up the game on Guy Ritchie's sequel to his own 2009 action hit "Sherlock Holmes,"

Curiously, it doesn't.

"Game of Shadows" is a mechanical action mystery where the actors say their lines with dispassionate precision while moving around digital sets, dodging bullets, explosions and dumbfounding dialogue.

The film's provocative ending proves much more satisfying than its laggardly beginning as Holmes and Moriarty engage in a muddled smackdown while Dr. Watson's ill-timed marriage hangs in the balance.

"Game of Shadows" begins with a series of bombings rocking 1891 Europe and Dr. Moriarty demonstrating his insidious nature by dispatching the lovely Miss Adler (Rachel McAdams) for having feelings for his sleuthing rival.

Moriarty has plans to initiate a global conflict through an assassination of an Austrian prince, and it behooves Holmes (reprised by a constantly bloodied and bruised Robert Downey Jr.) to discover this plan, foil it and save the world.

He reaches out to Dr. Watson (reprised by an effectively restrained Jude Law) for assistance, even though he is about to embark on the adventure of a honeymoon with his beloved Mary (Kelly Reilly).

After Holmes throws Mary from a speeding train (<I>she's OK!</I>), he commands Watson's full attention, especially since Moriarty has made it clear that he intends to kill the Watsons to get at Holmes.

Meanwhile, Holmes gains an unlikely ally in Madam Simza, a gypsy fortune teller played by Noomi Rapace, the original Lisbeth from the original Swedish version of "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and its two sequels.

No doubt, "Game of Shadows" will continue to annoy Sir Arthur Conan Doyle purists outraged by Ritchie's updated interpretation of the famous detective as a beefcake action figure capable of taking on groups of thugs like an Elizabethan Bruce Lee.

Ritchie's first "Sherlock Holmes" gave us a 19th century detective for the 21st century with its "Matrix"-like use of slowed action shots and staccato editing.

At its best, "Sherlock Holmes" illustrated how Downey's detective considered physical combat an intellectual exercise in speed, force, timing and physics.

We could actually witness how Holmes visualized the logistics of a physical attack in advance. Then, like a chess master, he would execute his defensive and offensive moves with impressive efficiency.

This pre-attack sequence was the most innovative element of "Sherlock Holmes." (The gimmick was instantly purloined by the sadly deficient "Green Hornet" earlier this year.)

So it comes as no surprise when "Game of Shadows" kicks this device up a few notches until Holmes' ability to predict what weapons a villain might produce becomes absurd and ridiculous.

Of course, we're talking about a movie in which Watson unexpectedly drops by Holmes' apartment to <I>not</I> find the detective, camouflaged by an outfit that looks just like the wall paper and furniture. (But how did Holmes know when Watson would be visiting?)

Some segments in "Game of Shadows" are gloriously daffy in their abandonment of realism. Downey's up-for-anything attitude can only carry the actor so far, and that doesn't extend to a strained attempt at humor by dressing as a macho woman.

Then there's the redundant screenplay by Michele and Kieran Mulroney, who pepper the script with lame "game" metaphors. Here are just a few:

"He played the game for the game's sake!" Holmes says.

"I'm not playing that game!" Watson says.

"It's a game!" Holmes says.

"We all have been playing this game," Madam Simza says.

"Do you think you're the only one who can play this game?" Moriarty says.

At some point, the "Game of Shadows" screenplay becomes a little too - shall we say it? - gamey.

“Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows”

★ ★ ½

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Jared Harris, Noomi Rapace, Rachel McAdams

Directed by: Guy Ritchie

Other: A Warner Bros. release. Rated PG-13 for drug use, violence. 128 minutes