The great Victorian detective returns in this action thriller directed by Guy Ritchie and starring Robert Downey Jr (in a Golden Globe-winning performance), Jude Law, Rachel McAdams and Mark Strong. Based on a new story by producer Lionel Wigram using Arthur Conan Doyle's famous characters, the film follows Sherlock Holmes (Downey Jr) and his loyal assistant Dr Watson (Law) as they deal with a mysterious new nemesis: Lord Blackwood (Strong), a cult leader and Satanist who harbours the most deadly of intentions. Abandoning the accepted portrayals of Holmes and Watson, as perfected by Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce in the films of the 1930s and '40s, Downey Jr's Holmes is a modern, bohemian man of action and intellect, while Law's Watson is no longer the bumbling fool of old, but a much sharper character with an eye for the ladies and a taste for gambling.