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Mr. Holmes

Too many bland, overlapping stories that don’t mesh, and a general dourness overall

Bill Condon’s (Gods and Monsters) revisionist film depicts the renowned detective Sherlock Holmes, now 93, retired these 30 years, facing possible dementia, teaching beekeeping to the fatherless son of his housekeeper (Laura Linney) and trying to remember the details of his last case. There are a few amusing insights re: the fictitious detective of Watson’s dime novels vs. this, the “real” one. Ian McKellen is alone worth the ticket price, and there are some unhurried rewards here. But the dramatic game is not afoot. Too many bland, overlapping stories that don’t mesh, and a general dourness overall. (104 min)