Although I only saw this last week, it is as if the producers heard my review of the first film and responded to it.  Less Mycroft!  More Sherlock!  More historical intrigue with the mother figure being much more understandable and relatable.  A story that provides gritty realism and harrowing moments, yet is a bit more uplifting.  The sequel may be better than the original in this case.  It’s certainly as good.

Harry Bradbeer’s sequel puts young Enola Holmes (Millie Bobby Brown) on her own as a detective, opening her own agency.  Which attracts only people looking to connect with her famous older brother Sherlock (Henry Cavill).  But a young girl, Bessie (Serrana Su-Ling Bliss), hires Enola to find her missing sister Sarah, who was working at the prodigious match factory before suddenly disappearing.  Enola’s investigations find much goings-on at the match factory, issues which also connect with Sherlock’s current case.  Eventually they band together to find the missing girl, clear the air about the match factory’s secrets and face Sherlock’s most formidable foe, who is hiding in plain sight.

It made sense to properly introduce the characters before submerging them into this labyrinthine plot that involves almost more than the script and its actors can chew.  Enola’s evolution into a woman of means continues; she finds romance and fulfillment in this story.  Sherlock also makes two new acquaintances who will alter the course of his life forever, while learning that he is truly not the smartest person in London.  But together, perhaps they can save the city’s most vulnerable and acquit themselves with honor.  All in all, it is a smart, high-spirited, exciting adventure.

As in the first film, Enola often breaks the fourth wall to commiserate with the audience, and that effect really works.  If it weren’t for the really dark subject matter, I would genuinely consider terming this adventure delightful.  But the story is rooted in an era when injustice and servitude was rampant, and it is part of the movie’s lesson that we remember how bad things were, especially for women and girls, in the not-so-distant past.  And that lesson is well apportioned.  It helps make this sequel just as strong and solid as the first film.  I want more of these, which are, hopefully, on the horizon.  ☆ ☆ ☆.  30 July 2025.