Sherlock Holmes -- Holiday Must-Watch

I've always been a fan of that famous fictional detective Sherlock Holmes -- he has all the trappings of a real man, even if Arthur Conan Doyle first penned him over a hundred years ago. It's just unfortunate that media has so far portrayed the great detective to be somewhat haughty and "above it" all -- hardly a fun character. This season's "Sherlock Holmes" movie should break the stereotype.

After all, Holmes will be played by none other than Robert Downey, Jr. -- and everybody watches Robert Downey, Jr. If the official cinematic trailer is to be any indication, he plays a great Sherlock Holmes -- albeit at a stark (no pun intended) departure from the clean gentleman we've come to know the detective as.

The other half of the equation is Holmes's loyal (?) sidekick, Dr. Watson, played to the hilt by Jude Law. It can be argued that Law's performance by itself will make the movie worth watching -- in one swift swoop, Law destroys the misconception that Watson was simply Holmes's moronic apprentice, and is instead instrumental to the detective's success.

The new movie takes place well into Holmes's detective career, with Watson, fed up with detective work, decides to leave Holmes to get married. But when a closed case gets reopened -- a dead criminal somehow comes back to life and plots the complete and utter destruction of London -- Holmes and Watson are on the case again. What follows is a well-woven, action-packed, hilariously-played mystery story -- kind of like Pirates of the Caribbean in Victorian England.

I can't say enough about how they gave the Dr. Watson character some redeeming exposure in this film. Previous Watsons were portrayed as near-useless, and sometimes bumbling assistants to the great detective -- almost like a foil to Holmes's genius. In this movie, Watson is the smooth English foil to the brash, annoying, very American Holmes. Despite deviating from the Canon somewhat, it still makes for a very interesting chemistry.

Hardcore fans of the original Sherlock Holmes novels will undoubtedly question the authenticity of this movie's portrayal. But many experts are claiming that the movie is surprisingly and refreshingly true to the Canon, even though I'm pretty sure Doyle's Holmes didn't look one bit like Downey, Jr.

The movie's set to open in most places of the world on Christmas Day -- barely two weeks from now. If you're looking for a good mystery movie to drown out the usual holiday hoopla, this one's your best bet.