235. Sherlock Gnomes; movie review

SHERLOCK GNOMES
Cert PG
86 mins
BBFC advice: Contains very mild threat, violence, rude humour

I wonder whether Johnny Depp started his acting career with the intention of being typecast as a stereotypical Englishman.
The Kentuckian has built up a fortune thanks to Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and has also made his mark as Sweeney Todd and, now, Sherlock Holmes.
Well, Sherlock Gnomes to be precise. Depp lends the voice of a pint-sized animated version of the great detective.
He is not the only A-lister to be lured by the John Stevenson's cartoon with James McAvoy, Emily Blunt, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Maggie Smith and real-life Cockney, Michael Caine, among the cast.
Should I presume that executive producer Elton John, whose songs are the backbone of the film's soundtrack, decided money was no object in hiring the big names?
Regardless, the movie's outlay must have been worth it because, according to the latest figures, it has already achieved at $25million profit.
This is the sequel to Gnomeo and Juliet whose family and friends have moved from a countryside garden to one in London.
In the capital, Sherlock Gnomes and Watson (Ejiofor) investigate when the disappearance of dozens of gnomes look like the handiwork of their nemesis, Moriarty (Jamie Demetriou).
By the way, for reasons which are never explained Moriarity is represented by a clown-like ceramic balloon.
Anyway, Sherlock and Watson team up with Gnomeo and Juliet in darting through London landmarks in search of Moriarty and the missing gnomes, to the tune of Elton John.
Meanwhile, there are heavy messages about friendship and loyalty which apply to both the great detectives and the star-crossed ceramic lovers.
Sherlock Gnomes is clearly impressing family audiences because it is still being shown at cinemas two months after release.
But, despite its stellar cast, I can't imagine it sticking in my memory for more than a few weeks.

Reasons to watch: fast-paced animation with a spiky soundtrack
Reasons to avoid: Its gnome jokes wear very thin

Laughs: None
Jumps: None
Vomit: None
Nudity: None
Overall rating: 6.5/10

Director quote - John Stevenson: "I loved Sherlock Holmes when I was a kid so I wanted to see how respectful we could be to the character and how much fun we could have with Johnny's version of him."

The big question - Why is Sherlock Holmes so socially inept?

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