Sherlock Holmes

2009 Warner Bros. Pictures

Rated: PG-13

Length: 2 hr 8min

Action ~ Adventure ~ Mystery ~ Crime Thriller

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Mark Strong, Kelly Reilly, and Eddie Marsan.

Nothing Escapes Him!

Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) and his partner Dr. John Watson (Jude Law) are drawn into a dark case when they prevent the ritualistic murder of a woman by Lord Henry Blackwood (Mark Strong), a nobleman with deadly secrets who claims to possess supernatural powers. Blackwood is arrested and sentenced to death, but before his execution, he ominously warns Holmes that three more deaths will follow. Meanwhile, Watson’s life is changing as he plans to marry Mary Morstan (Kelly Reilly), a governess, which begins to strain his partnership with Holmes.

After Blackwood’s execution, strange events begin to unfold, including the discovery of Blackwood’s broken tomb containing the body of Luke Reordan. Holmes investigates Reordan’s secret laboratory and uncovers experiments blending science with mysticism. Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams), a cunning and independent thief known as the only woman to have outwitted Holmes before, re-enters his life seeking help to find Reordan and entangles Holmes in a complex conspiracy, all while hinting at deeper connections with Holmes’s enigmatic adversary, Professor Moriarty.

As Holmes digs deeper, he is introduced to the secretive Temple of the Four Orders, a powerful magical society with ties to Blackwood’s plan to overthrow the British government by releasing deadly cyanide gas into Parliament. Holmes, Watson, and Adler work together to thwart the plot, using Holmes’s brilliant deductive skills and combat prowess to navigate deadly traps and political intrigue. Watson struggles to balance his budding family life with continuing to support Holmes through the dangerous case.

The film concludes with a tense confrontation atop the unfinished Tower Bridge, where Holmes reveals that Blackwood’s supernatural feats were a mix of science and deception. Holmes saves Adler, who warns him of Moriarty’s greater threat, perfectly setting up a sequel. Kelly Reilly’s Mary brings a grounding emotional layer as Watson’s fiancée, representing his desire for normalcy, while Rachel McAdams’s Adler adds complexity as a fierce, independent ally entwined with Holmes’s life and work. This blend of mystery, action, and character dynamics defines this energetic, modern take on Sherlock Holmes.

Growing up, I was captivated by the Sherlock Holmes stories, losing myself in the clever mysteries and the sharp wit of the great detective. Seeing these tales brought to life on the big screen was a thrilling experience the first time I saw this movie and even more so every time I watch it. Robert Downey Jr. perfectly captures Holmes’s brilliance and quirky charm, while Jude Law’s Watson gives us a grounded, loyal counterpart that felt true to the originals. Watching their chemistry and the dynamic storytelling unfold reminded me why I fell in love with these characters in the first place, now infused with exciting action and cinematic flair.

For me, Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes bridges nostalgia and fresh excitement, letting me experience Holmes’s world in a whole new way. The film’s atmospheric settings, clever plot twists, and rich character moments turned my childhood readings into a vivid, immersive adventure. It’s a unique joy to revisit those timeless stories through such a modern lens, and it reinforced for me how enduring and captivating Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s creations remain, decades after I first opened those classic books.

Sherlock Holmes is a classic movie that brilliantly honors the timeless works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It captures the spirit of his iconic detective through a perfect blend of period authenticity and modern cinematic energy, bringing Holmes’s sharp intellect and thrilling adventures vividly to life on the big screen. And now for the sequel Sherlock Holmes: Game Of Shadows, tonight’s movie for Streaming Movie Night and tomorrow’s Movie Review! SO if you haven’t seen Sherlock Holmes I highly Recommend it, and if you have, Watch it again!

Make some popcorn,

Grab a beverage,

and Stream This Movie!

Currently on NETFLIX.

Sherlock Holmes: Game Of Shadows

New Movie Play Dirty Debuts on Prime Wednesday October 1, 2025

The new action thriller Play Dirty, directed by Shane Black and premiering October 1 on Amazon Prime, stars Mark Wahlberg as Parker, a ruthless professional thief who assembles an expert crew for the heist of a lifetime in New York City. Adapted from Donald E. Westlake’s Parker crime novels, the film’s plot throws Parker and his team—played by LaKeith Stanfield, Rosa Salazar, and Keegan-Michael Key, into conflict with a South American dictator, the New York mob, and the world’s richest man. With Black’s trademark punchy style and a cast packed with character actors, Play Dirty is set to deliver gritty, fast-paced crime entertainment, full of double-crosses and high-stakes thrills.

Ice Road: Vengeance

2025 Vertical

Rated: Unrated

Length: 1 hr 52min

Action ~ Adventure ~ Thriller

Directed by: Jonathan Hensleigh

Starring: Liam Neeson, Fan Bingbing, Bernard Curry, Marcus Thomas, Salim Fayad and Geoff Morrell.

A fight for justice on the most dangerous road in the world.

Mike McCann (Liam Neesoon), an experienced ice-road trucker haunted by the loss of his brother Gurty (Marcus Thomas), embarks on a journey to Nepal to fulfill Gurty’s last wish: to have his ashes scattered atop Mount Everest. Partnering with Dhani (Fan Bingbing), a skilled local guide, Mike boards a tour bus alongside a cast of international travelers, including an American professor and his daughter, only for their plans to spiral into chaos when ruthless mercenaries hijack the bus. The mercenaries are in pursuit of Vijay, the son of a local opposition leader who stands in the way of a corrupt industrialist’s plan to build a hydroelectric dam and displace the village.

Trapped in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse along the perilous mountain roads, Mike and Dhani must use their wits and courage to protect the innocent passengers and the village itself. As they race against time, evading mercenaries, crooked officials, and sabotaged escape routes, Mike is forced to confront not only the threats around him but also his own guilt and grief. The climactic journey pushes Mike beyond his breaking point, ultimately allowing him to find closure and honor his brother’s memory in the shadow of the Himalayas.

So the only thing I can say about this is they should have called it Ice Road: Exploited. It is like they took the first movie and exploited it to make another movie completely different from the first. There is no Ice Road in this movie, it is completely based in Nepal although it wasn’t filmed there. It was filmed primarily in Walhalla, Victoria, Australia, where the filmmakers built a detailed Nepalese village set to stand in for scenes set in Nepal. Additional key filming locations included Kathmandu and Bhaktapur, Nepal, where several street-level and authentic city scenes were shot to enhance the film’s realism. Studio and indoor scenes, including those needing special effects to replicate Himalayan settings, were filmed at NantStudios (Docklands Studios) in Melbourne, Australia. Which explains the Australian Bus Driver in Nepal, I guess.

The only common ground in this was Mike taking Gurty’s ashes to Mt. Everest. There were flashbacks to Mike and Gurty before Gurty’s time in Afghanistan where he suffered a head injury, that might have been good to see in the first movie Ice Road. Beyond that it was Liam Neeson being the Taken action star on a tourist bus in Nepal. Then he was playing McGyver pulling bus parts off the side of a mountain like it was an everyday occurrence. That aspect of the movie felt like a cheap B-movie, a poor imitation of some of Liam’s other action flicks. And I have a hard time seeing the Mike McCann Ice Road Trucker being a rock climber, just don’t see it. And then at the end, there is a hint of a romance between Liam and Fan. I definitely wasn’t feeling that at all, they should have steered clear of that little plot twist.

I think they should have gone in a different direction. Maybe Mike and Tantoo should have teamed up to be an Ace Ice Road trucking company and had some adventures that would have made Gurty proud. That would have been a better story and movie. This one is a dog, it never should have happened, easily forgotten on it’s own and has nothing to do with the first one’s “Ice Road”. If you haven’t seen Ice Road, watch that movie and skip this one Ice Road: Vengeance. If you have seen Ice Road watch it again if you liked it, but skip this one Ice Road: Vengeance.

Ice Road (The Ice Road)

Ice Road (The Ice Road)

2021 Netflix

Rated: PG-13

Length: 1 hr 43min

Action ~ Adventure ~ Thriller

Directed by: Jonathan Hensleigh

Starring: Liam Neeson, Laurence Fishburne, Benjamin Walker, Amber Midthunder, Marcus Thomas, Holt McCallany, Martin Sensmeier, Matt McCoy, and Matt Salinger.

This Mission Is On Thin Ice

Mike McCann (Liam Neeson) is a Big Rig Driver hauling semi-trailers for The Nordak Trucking Company in Pembina, North Dakota. As he pulls in and gets out of a truck he hears his brother inside a garage being harassed by a couple of other truck drivers. His brother Gurty (Marcus Thomas) is an ace mechanic but suffers from PTSD and Aphasia from serving in The Iraq War. The truckers are calling him names and tossing his coffee thermos to each other keeping it from Gurty who is frantically trying to get it from them. Mike goes into the garage and catches the thermos mid-toss and reprimands the drivers for harassing his mentally challenged brother. One of the drivers calls him retard and Mike tells him,” I told you not to ever call him that!”. Then the driver looks at Mike at says, “RETARD!”. Mike promptly punches the man cold and he falls on the ground. Mike and Gurty are instantly fired from their jobs.

At the Katka Diamond Mine in Northern Manitoba, the miners have been instructed by the management to turn off their methane sensors in the mine in exchange for $100 dollars a month extra in their paychecks, so as to speed up production. The problem with that is as they are drilling they won’t know if they hit a methane pocket, which is extremely dangerous and could cause a huge explosion. And that’s exactly what happens and collapses the mine around 26 miners trapping them deep underground. The only way to save them is to cap the wellhead so they can safely extract the miners, but they need the equipment ASAP and the only way to get it there in time to save the miners is by trucking it across the already closed and starting to thaw Ice Road. A very risky mission, so risky they are going to be sending three different semi stuck and trailers, each equipped with the well head and supplies they need to cap the well, so that at least one will make it if two fail.

Mike hears about the mission needing drivers and decides, given the hefty payout, that the risk is worth it. He and Gurty head to Winnipeg to apply for the mission. Jim Goldenrod (Laurence Fishburne) has decided to organize the mission and is recruiting drivers for the job. He bails out Tantoo (Amber Midthunder), who is in jail for protesting, a Native American activist and the best Ice Road Trucker that Jim knows. When Jim gets back to the office with Tantoo he looks at Mike and Gurty and considers them for the risky Ice Road Run. After he watches Gurty take out a rocker arm assembly on an engine in no time at all, he tells them they are hired for the mission. Jim is going to drive one of the rigs himself, Mike and Gurty will drive the second and Tantoo the third rig. Tantoo’s brother works in the mine so the mission is personal for her, he is one of the trapped miners. Accompanying Tantoo is Tom Varnay (Benjamin Walker), an Insurance Risk assessor for The Katka Diamond Mine.

As the three head off onto the long Ice road and the treacherous mission running against the clock and the thawing ice, we find out that Tom Varnay has other ideas about any of the three rigs making it to The Katka Mine. The race is on against the elements, the ice, and the risk assessor sent by the management of the mine that don’t want the mission to succeed. It is a familiar Liam Neeson Action movie, the underdog called to action to make things right, thwart the bad guys and succeed in his mission. He does not disappoint in this role, it is exactly what you expect of the Taken star. This time as a trucker making his way across the perilous Ice Roads of Northern Canada. He plays the part well, as does Laurence Fishburn. I really liked Amber Midthunder in this as the gritty Native American girl not afraid of the white man. Marcus Thomas as Gurty was loveable, you felt for the guy trying to help his brother achieve success on the run and battling his disabilities

So while it is a bit predictable, it is also a fun ride full of action and adventure. There are definitely some edge of your seat moments as the danger escalates. I have seen this a few times and watched it again before I watch the sequel Ice Road: Vengeancetonight on Amazon Prime. I watched Wind River again a few nights ago and as I was watching this last night I thought one of the miners looked familiar. He was in Wind River too. Martin Sensmeier played Tantoo’s brother Cody Mantooth, one of the miners trapped in the mine in this and Chip, Natalie’s brother in Wind River.

The Ice Road is s good movie if you haven’t seen it. Liam Neeson doing what he does best on The Ice Road. Stay tuned for the sequel review tomorrow…..Ice Road: Vengeance!

Ice Road: Vengeance

Wind River

Sinners

2025 Warner Brothers Pictures

Rated: R

Length: 2 hr 17min

Action ~ Drama ~ Music ~ Southern Gothic ~ Gothic Horror ~ Supernatural Horror ~ Thriller ~ Vampire Horror

Directed by: Ryan Coogler

Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Miles Caton, Jack O’Connell, Wunmi Mosaku, Jayme Lawson, Omar Miller, and Delroy Lindo.

You Keep Dancing With The Devil,

One Day He’s Gonna Follow You Home.

Clarksdale, Mississippi.

October 15, 1932.

Two brothers, Elijah “Smoke” and Elias “Stack” Moore (Both played by Michael B. Jordan) return back home after leaving to become soldiers in WWI and then spending time in Chicago working for Al Capone’s Crime Syndicate. They have returned home to Clarksdale, Mississippi in the Delta to open up a Juke Joint. They have stolen cash and a truck load of Irish Beer, Italian Wine and corn liquor. They have found an abandoned sawmill and meet with the owner to purchase it and the land it sits on. Their cousin Sammy has convinced his Pastor father to let him use the Resonator Guitar from the church for the evening and they also recruit the older Bluesman Delta Slim who plays piano and harmonica. They have also lined up a huge amount of Catfish and sides to serve in the Juke Joint that evening. The word spreads and The Juke Joint is soon filled up with eager patrons and lively blues music by Sammie and Delta Slim. Sammie’s musical gifts and transcendent blues music soon summon more than good times. There is evil coming, drawn by the rhythm of the blues and the scent of fresh blood.

So….where do I start? With History? With the History of The Southern United States? With Slavery? With the K.K.K. ? With Racism? With Jim Crow? With Music History? The History of The Blues? The History of Mojo? Mojo Bags? Haints? Vampires? Voodoo? Al Capone? Chicago Crime in the 1930’s? I honestly don’t know because this movie touches on all of that and I just don’t know how much you know about all of that. Let’s start with Robert Johnson…….

Robert Johnson was a legendary blues musician and songwriter from the Mississippi Delta, widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of blues music. Though his recorded career lasted only about seven months, he produced 29 songs that would become foundational to the Delta blues style and deeply influence later rock and blues musicians such as the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, and Eric Clapton. Johnson’s vivid guitar playing and haunting vocals earned him lasting fame, but part of Johnson’s mystique stems from a famous legend that he acquired his extraordinary musical talent by making a deal with the devil at a crossroads, where Highways 61 and 49 intersect in Mississippi. According to the myth, Johnson traded his soul to the devil in exchange for mastery of the guitar, which explains his sudden, astonishing improvement in skill after a period of obscurity. As the legend goes the devil offered Robert a guitar, and by grabbing the guitar around the neck and taking it from his hands, he would therefore be accepting the deal of trading his everlasting soul for mastery of the guitar.

In the very beginning of the movie they talk about how music has been intertwined with legend and folklore. Music and rhythm being used to conjure up spirits and commune with the afterlife. The Native American Indians, African culture and the slaves of the deep south in America all used music and rhythms to conjure up and communicate with the spirit world. The Blues in the delta was often referred to as the devil’s music. Right after we see the brief introduction of that history, we see young Sammie heading into his Father’s church. His clothes are torn, he is traumatized and bloody with one hand on the neck of what’s left of that resonator guitar. His Preacher father tells Sammie to just let go, choose goodness and let the devil’s music go. A direct reference to the Blues legend of Robert Johnson and the Devil at The Crossroads.

As I am writing this I realize that there is so much imagery and substance in this movie, I could probably write a book about it. I have never seen a movie where it touched on so many themes across so much history. Honestly, it is based in the south in 1932 complete with Delta Blues folklore, cotton fields, sharecroppers, corn liquor, juke joints, Saturday night fish fry’s, and Delta Blues music. The sharecroppers work all week, 6 days a week, 12 hours a day and then on Saturday they head to the local juke joint with their hard earned money and blow off steam for the week. They dance the blues away, drink and forget their troubles, and have as much fun as they can before the Sunday morning sun comes up. Then there is the Haint aspect, the evil spirits, vampires. Complete with garlic, wooden stakes and the rising of the morning sun. Hoodoo Voodoo, Mojo bags, Rootwork, using herbs and cantations to protect and ward off evil sprits.

See what I mean? We haven’t even discussed Jim Crow, Slavery and racism. I have to draw a comparison with From Dusk Till Dawn, it had to have been an influence on this movie. I must confess I am a huge fan of Blues music and Delta Blues. That era also fascinates me, the 1930’s, so I love this time period and the music. I am also a big Horror Movie fan, I love the old school monster movies and Vampire movies. So for me, this movie checks all the boxes. Honestly I don’t know what else to say, if you are looking for a blues history or period movie only, this might not be for you. If you are looking for a Vampire horror movie, all the blues references, settings and music might be too much for you. It combines both of those kind of like Cowboys and Aliens combined Western and Sci-fi.

I forgot the ending…as the credits start to roll and you think the movie is over, don’t look away. Buddy Guy is seen playing and there is a final scene where Buddy Guy (who is Sammie 60 years later) has a conversation with the Haints from the beginning of the movie. It ties it all together.

If you are looking for a Southern Gothic Supernatural Thriller full of Blues Music, Blues Folklore, Vampires, Action and Drama set in 1932 Clarksdale, Mississippi…….This is your movie!