Entering the world of Enola Holmes was like a breath of fresh air. It’s fun, it’s light, for the most part, and Millie Bobby Brown is excellent in it. Enola is another role of the Stranger Things star that you will fall in love with. And, I hear there will be sequels at Netflix too.
The latest Sherlock Holmes reimagination is based on the YA book series by Nancy Springer. This adaptation is based on the first volume in her award-winning series.
Enola Holmes is a teenage girl growing up in the Victorian ara with her widowed mother, Eudoria (Helena Bonham Carter). She’s the sister of Sherlock (Henry Cavill) and Mycroft (Sam Claflin), but they left home when she was a baby, right after her father died. So, it’s just her and her mother. Mrs. Holmes homeschools Enola in literature, science, and martial arts.
Her mother has created a magical existence in the country, away from the real world and its problems. Enola is taught that she can choose her own path, as her mother says, “the future is up to us.” That is, of course, not what the Victorian era was about. Women had their place.
On Enola’s 16th birthday, her mother goes missing, leaving her clues about what happened to her. Sherlock and Mycroft come home to find their mother, and Mycroft becomes Enola’s legal guardian.
As gifted as Sherlock and Mycroft are, they don’t find the clues left for Enola. The young Holmes shares many bonds with her mother, one of them being cryptograms, and this is how Mrs. Holmes leaves her clues.
The clues lead Enola on an adventure to find her mother. She gets sidetracked when she meets a cute runaway aristocrat, Tewkesbury (Louis Partridge). Meeting him turns out to be another mystery she gets wrapped into too.
Their adventures lead them to London, granted a very CGI version of London.
There’s some suspense when Enola is using her martial arts to fend of a mystery man, but it’s all in good fun. Her adventure also has hints of the suffragette movement, and there’s a Parliamentary reform bill hanging in the balance too. While the film dabbles with politics, it’s still witty, light, and breezy. It doesn’t delve in too deep, but Enola’s story is an inspiring one. She’s a young woman using her voice and choosing her own path.
I loved Millie in Stranger Things, but this is a new side of her we haven’t seen before. She talks a lot, especially to the audience. The story is Enola’s, and she’s bringing us along on the journey.
There’s a lot of layers to her. She’s fierce, smart, driven, but she also breaks. Her mom going missing is hard on her. She’s thrown into a world she doesn’t understand because that’s not the way her mom raised her. She has to navigate this new world while also staying true to herself. And it’s good that she does because it’s a treat to watch. You can sit back and enjoy the ride. It’ll warm your heart and give you lots of cute laughs.
Enola Holmes has established a wonderful world for the young Holmes and her adventures. There’s a possibility of five sequels, and I can’t wait to see every one of them. There’s even some room to explore her relationship with Sherlock more. Even though she didn’t grow up with him, she’s a lot like him. But don’t expect Sherlock to save the day or help Enola too much. She doesn’t need anyone to save her. She does the saving.
I highly recommend getting whisked away on this adventure.
Enola Holmes is not streaming on Netflix.
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