One of the most famous fictional detectives is Sherlock Holmes, created by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Sherlock gained a lot of popularity over the years and the character not only appeared in the novels created by Conan Doyle, but also in movies, and series. Today Holmes is one of the most famous fictional characters. The series Sherlock is an example, where Benedict Cumberbatch plays the role of the detective. In 2020, there was a twist, and instead of Netflix releasing a Sherlock Holmes movie, they premiered Enola Holmes, his sister, and recently, Netlfix released on November 4th, 2022, Enola Holmes 2.
Enola Holmes 2 continues the story of the young Enola Holmes (Millie Bobby Brown) who starts a detective agency after the event of the first movie but struggles to get clients since she lives in the shadow of her older brother Sherlock Holmes (Henry Cavill). One day, Bess Chapman (Serrana Su-Ling Bliss), a young girl goes to her agency to report her missing sister Sarah Chapman (Hannah Dodd). Though everyone believes Sarah ran away, her sister thinks she is in trouble, it is Enola Holme’s time to solve the case and proof she is a good detective like her brother.
The cast of Enola Holmes 2 is formed by Strangers Things’ star Millie Bobby Brown (Enola Holmes), Henry Cavill (Sherlock Holmes), David Thewlis (Grail), Louis Patridge (Lord Viscount Tewkesbury), Himesh Patel (Dr. John Watson), including Harry Potter’s star Helena Bonham Carter (Eudoria Holmes), Hannah Dodd (Sarah Chapman/Cicely), Serrana Su-Ling Bliss (Bessie Chapman), Adeel Akhtar (Lestrade), Susan Wokoma (Edith), and so forth.
In September 2020, co-producer and star Millie Bobby Brown alongside director Harry Bradbeer announced their intentions of making a sequel for Enola Holmes. In April 2021, the sequel was confirmed to be in development, with Brown and Cavill reprising their roles as Enola and Sherlock Holmes respectively. Sam Claflin (who previously played the role of Mycroft Holmes) could not return to the second film due to scheduling conflicts. A month later, the project was confirmed by Netflix, the filming began in the Autumn of 2021 and ended in January 2022.
Enola Holmes 2 had positive reviews from Rotten Tomatoes, scoring 91% out of 100% (the first film scored 91%), Rotten Tomatoes recognized the film as “certified fresh”. Meanwhile, on IMDb, FilmAffinity, and Metacritic, the film had an average score of 6.9 out of 10, 6 out of 10, and 62% out of 100% respectively.
In the first film, Enola Holmes is introduced as the main character who is the sister of the most popular detective at that time, Sherlock Holmes. She is the youngest sibling of the Holmes household. The character portrayed by Millie Bobby Brown is described as observant, extremely intelligent, and insightful. The plot focuses on Enola turning sixteen and at the same time her mother’s disappearance (Eudoria Holmes) where she seeks help from her older brothers Mycroft and Sherlock Holmes. Enola Holmes starts tracking her mom by the leads she left such as cryptic messages in the newspaper’s personal advertisements. The film had controversies with The Conan Doyle Estate in which they filed a lawsuit against Netflix over the film, claiming it violated copyright by depicting Sherlock Holmes having emotions , but in December 2020, the lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice by stipulation of all parties.
Both Enola Holmes and Enola Holmes 2 are available exclusively on Netflix. The films are not available in theaters since it is a Netflix original films. Also, there is no option of renting or buying on other streaming platforms. Public opinion has given approval to the film.
Andrea Rich
