Fluentiama Perfect cast and a good story

Reptileenbu Did you people see the same film I saw?

Kien Navarro Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Raymond Sierra The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

HotToastyRag As the tagline says, watch Without a Clue to "meet the world's greatest detective, and his bumbling partner." It's a film with the famed literary detective duo, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, but in this version, it's Dr. Watson who's the genius. Sherlock Holmes is an idiot! I absolutely love this movie, and I can't recommend it highly enough. Even if you've never seen a Sherlock Holmes movie or read a story, you'll still love it. The jokes are both clever and hilarious, which is a rare and welcomed combination. In the entire 107-minute running time, there might have been a collective ten minutes in which I wasn't laughing myself silly. Several times I had to press pause and guffaw, waiting to resume the film until I'd composed myself. Thank you Gary Murphy and Larry Strawther for writing such a side-splittingly funny movie.A perfectly hysterical script is a good start, but if bad actors with lousy timing deliver the lines, the movie will be terrible. Michael Caine and Ben Kingsley have a wonderful chemistry together, and they both add so much to their roles. While anyone else might play Sherlock Holmes as an ordinary doofus, Michael Caine puts himself in the moment so the blunders are really unintentional. He isn't playing dumb; he means well and happens to be stupid. I'm convinced anyone else cast as Dr. Watson would have played him with more of an angry, jealous, resentful edge. Ben Kingsley is enormously kind, so even when he's frustrated with Michael Caine, the audience can tell he's still a caring person and enjoys his rapport with his lesser half.When they're attacked by Paul Freeman's henchman, Michael Caine gets really upset and worried. Ben Kingsley reassures him that he isn't the real target because Paul is only trying to stop the smarter of the two. "He knows you're an idiot," he says, with only good intentions behind the remark. There's a beat before Michael Caine's response, and the audience thinks he'll certainly take offense, but instead he sighs, "Oh, thank God!" It's one of my favorite jokes in the film, since it shows the adorable combination of sweetness and comedy that runs through the script.If you've had a bad day, Without a Clue will cheer you up. If you've had a good day, Without a Clue will make it better. Do yourself a favor and buy a copy. Renting it once won't be enough.

Myriam Nys Doctor Watson is a sleuth of rare intelligence and perception. In order to safeguard his career and reputation he has invented a character called "Sherlock Holmes". Sadly the Holmes character, played by a drunken (ex-)actor, has captivated the nation's imagination, causing poor doctor Watson to play the second fiddle in his own adventures. Will this increasingly unstable duo rise to the challenge, now that Her Majesty's finances are threatened by a Dastardly Scheme ? Caine and Kingsley, assisted by a fine supporting cast, shine in a well-made, pleasantly classical comedy spoofing the Sherlock Holmes legend. There's nothing there that the viewer hasn't seen or heard before, under one shape or another, but still : this is first-class entertainment, well worth the price of the admission ticket. The production values are high and everything about the locations, sets, costumes,.. screams care and expense. At times the surroundings and costumes seem almost too opulent, but on the other hand : we're talking late Victorian era, when God was in His Heaven, Britannia ruled the waves and every square inch of a respectable home was covered in baubles and knick-knacks.

DeuceWild_77 The same year, Michael Caine gave life to the alcoholic & stubborn Inspector Abberline of Scotland Yard, assigned to investigate the Jack the Ripper murders in the high budget'd mini-series of the same name, he played the total opposite (well, except for the liquor part) in "Without a Clue", a lighthearted 'pastiche' on the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, spoofing his most famous characters on reversing their roles, placing Dr. Watson as the real sleuth with great deduction powers and Sherlock Holmes as a has-been stage actor with an alcohol problem, hired by Watson as his figurehead. As the incompetent Holmes, not only disturbs and embarrass the genius detective work of Watson, but he's seen by the Press and general public as the mastermind of investigation and Watson just a mere inefficient sidekick, the self- called "Doctor of Crime" tries to rid out of him to assume his real talents , but the process won't be easy...The screenplay by Larry Strawther & Gary Murphy, two Sherlock Holmes' devoted fans, is smartly written to work both as a slapstick farce and as a harmless parody to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself, who at a certain point, was tired of his own fictional creation and tried, unsuccessfully, killing him off.The dialogue is wonderfully witty and the staging of the comedy situations it's well-crafted and genuinely funny without forcing it to the viewer, due a vivid and inspired direction of Thom Eberhardt, self-aware of the comedy timing and inducing a perfect tone to the movie, and the absolutely brilliant cinematography by Alan Hume, which is visually top notch, recreating the Victorian Era. The editing is also very good with the movie, flowing at a relatively fast pace without filling-in with unnecessary scenes. The production design, art direction, set decoration and costume design, all together did a terrific job giving life to the Sherlock Holmes' world.In terms of performances, Sir Michael Caine and Sir Ben Kingsley are both excellent in their respective roles with Caine being a riot to follow. Kingsley got the less meaty part, but he subtly, captured the true essence of his straight character and gave the essential counterpoint, for Caine's flamboyant performance to work.The supporting players were all perfectly cast for their roles and well-directed in their performances, especially Jeffrey Jones as the dumbest Inspector of Scotland Yard, Lestrade (his facial expressions' are comedy gold) and Paul Freeman as Sherlock Holmes'... well... Dr. Watson's arch enemy, Prof. James Moriarty.In short, "Without a Clue" failed with movie critics and audiences, in both continents, when it was released in '88 which was a shame, because it's not only one of the best Sherlock Holmes' movies ever made, but also one of the very best spoofs out there and 30 years after it was made, is still criminally underrated for the general public, even if it was re- valuated along the years and started to be figured in some Top Lists made by Sherlock Holmes' aficionados.Erroneously, some critics pointed out that was way inferior to the previous, Sherlock Holmes' humour oriented 'pastiche', "The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes" ('70) directed by the acclaimed Billy Wilder, but it's like comparing apples to oranges, it's a totally different genre and tone with obviously, totally different results.Highly recommended !!

formationlc I have just finished watching this movie after viewing the entire Sherlock Holmes series with Jeremy Brett. Of course, it was not the first time I watched this parody but then again, after viewing and savoring the remarkable performance of Mr. Brett, it makes this movie even funnier than usual for it puts emphasis on the delirious dialogue and the amazing acting and comical talent of Mr. Caine, extremely well supported by a wonderful cast. How astonishingly funny the man can be, even without saying a single word. This is a superb production with lots of attention given to details and respectful mockery of Sir Doyle's characters. Even Lestrade's portrait by Jeffrey Jones is hilarious. Definitely worth watching.