“There are no crimes and no criminals in these days . . . . There is no crime to detect, or, at most, some bungling villainy with a motive so transparent that even a Scotland Yard official can see through it.”
-- Sherlock Holmes, A Study in Scarlet
“The greatest crimes of the modern era are being committed in the theaters . . . did you see ‘Fantastic Four,’ Watson? After walking out of that cineplex, I knew that I must devote my life to the art of movie detection.”
-- Sherlock Holmes IV, A Study in Celluloid
Ever watch the TV show "Cops"?
If you can tolerate it, you may find that real criminals seem to be drunk or brain-damaged, and their crimes usually convenience stores more than crown jewels. After generations who have struggled to carry on the family tradition started by the original Sherlock Holmes (who was entirely bored with it, even then), the great-grandson of the master detective has finally given up on criminals entirely, and has decided to start investigating movies instead.
Does the world need one more movie reviewer, you ask? A quick trip over to www.rottentomatoes.com will tell you that we seem to have more than enough of those already. But when the first Sherlock Holmes came on the scene, there were already plenty of police detectives and private ones, weren't there? And yet Sherlock Holmes eventually found a place as the world's first and foremost consulting detective.
Movies are common. Logic is rare. Perhaps the great-grandson of Sherlock Holmes can give us a little logic to dwell upon in our choices at the cineplex.
The Editors
Past Investigations