HOLMES & WATSON Solve a Mystery on Bluray

Jeri Jacquin

Coming to Bluray/DVD and Digital from writer/director Ethan Cohen and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment brings together HOLMES & WATSON.

In the year 1881, Sherlock Holmes (Will Ferrell) and Dr. Watson (John C. Reilly) becomes friends from childhood to adulthood. Working on the criminal trial of nemesis Professor James Moriarty (Ralph Fiennes), Holmes believes that the man on trial is a doppelganger. Inspector Lestrade (Rob Brydon) isn't happy when the fake Moriarty is set free.

But Holmes and Watson can't stand around and babble about it because they need to go to Buckingham Palace where a party given by Queen Victoria (Pam Ferris) is happening. The two men lock eyes with Dr. Grace Hart (Rebecca Hall) and her companion Millie (Lauren Lapkus) but that is interrupted by a body falling out of the Queen's cake. Adding to that a threat on the Queen's life has the Big Ben ticking down.

Now Watson works with Dr. Hart on the autopsy while Holmes stays outside with Millie - all four are having unusual feelings towards each other. Snapping back quickly, Holmes realizes that he must go to his brother Mycroft (Hugh Laurie) to get a little help and is told that he should look at someone close to him.

Trusting his brother leads Holmes to make a major mistake that he needs to correct because the pieces have fallen into place and there is no way Holmes will finish the case without his best friend Dr. Watson.

Ferrell as Sherlock Holmes is totally ridiculous yet he lands his lines in such a way that I had to think about what he was saying. His thought process is fast paced and has math in a way which is not my strong suit! That being said, only Ferrell could bring such a twistedness to a beloved icon of mystery solving. It also shows that Ferrell sees humor in the sense that no one is safe!

Reilly as Dr. Watson is really a twisted character who has an unusual and emotional heaviness towards Holmes and the Queen. That being said, the minute he walks in to take a selfie with her majesty, mayhem ensues and I couldn't imagine any other two actors that could pull it off.

Hall as Dr. Hart has a GHOST moment with Reilly's Dr. Watson that was so comically disturbing that I can't imagine they did it in one take. I personally would have cracked up repeatedly. Her character is strong and deals with the men trying to handle the fact that she is a doctor.

Fiennes as Moriarty is just as bad as he wants to be. I love Fiennes so whether the character he plays is good, bad or indifferent - I'm all in. Lapkus as Millie will never, ever, ever make me forget why I don't like onions. She is a straight faced character that I basically waited every time she was on screen for her to crack. Well done young lady, well done.

Ferris as Queen Victoria brings a presence that I thought was so cool. She carried herself with the grace of a Queen but took the slapstick and made it her own.

Other cast includes Steve Coogan as Gustav Klinger, Hugh Laurie as Mycroft Holmes, Bella Ramsey as Flotsam, Scarlet Grace as Pickle, Noah Jupe as Doxy, Braun Strowman as Brawn and Kelly Macdonald as Rose Hudson. Look out for a familiar Billy Zane that made me laugh.

Sony Pictures Entertainment encompasses motion picture production for television, digital content and theater releases. The studios include Columbia Pictures, Screen Gems, TriStar Pictures, Sony Pictures Animation, Stage 6 Films and Sony Picture Classics. To see what is coming to theaters and to home entertainment please visit www.sonypictures.com.

The Bluray Exclusives include Line-O-Rama: Laugh Out Loud Outtakes with the Cast, Deleted & Extended Scenes, Will & John: Together Again, Seriously Absurd: A Look a the Cast, and Mrs. Hudson's Men: Exclusive Testimonials with Mrs. Hudson's Suitors.

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FINAL WORD: HOLMES & WATSON is a comedy that only Ferrell and Reilly could pull off. It is nice to see them together again as they seem to have a comedy chemistry. Starting off with TALLEDEGA NIGHTS: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby to STEP-BROTHERS, it is clear that these two men enjoy bringing laughs to fans.

There is a lot of adult humor, slapstick, twists, turns and silliness that make HOLMES & WATSON everything that these two actors do together. I can't imagine there wasn't a fun day on the set with these two. I will admit there were moments where I had to rewind things in my head as the story does twist a lot so be ready for that or just don't and laugh.

In the end - they are weapons of mass deduction!