Will Ferrell and and John C. Reilly are back together on the big screen! Unfortunately, critics don’t seem to be a fan of these two’s latest outing.
This time the two are playing the roles of legendary detective Sherlock Holmes (Ferrell) and his partner Doctor Watson (Reilly), in Holmes and Watson. They have faced harsh criticism about their previous collaborations, and they don’t seem too keen on their most recent performance either. The film clocks in at a dismally low 5 percent on Rotten Tomatoes — which reflects opinions from both moviegoing audiences and critics.
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“If a comedy falls in the forest and nobody laughs, did it even exist?” wrote critic Joshua Rothkopf of Time Out.
It didn’t fair any better with David Fear, a critic with Rolling Stone. “It’s so painfully unfunny we’re not sure it can legally be called a comedy,” he said.
Another critic, although not a fan of the film, gave it a few backhanded compliments.
“This is an old-fashioned mess with flashes of potential: Rebecca Hall’s ‘lady doctor,’ as hubristic a medic as any of her male colleagues, is clever. And in a film that is mostly an embarrassment, its supporting cast is mostly an embarrassment of riches,” concluded Sarah Cartland of Caution Spoilers.
The film didn’t fair any better with audiences. According to CinemaBlend, moviegoers walked out of the movie before it was even finished, with several Twitter users taking to the social medium to air their grievances.
“Here’s a tip to save you a few bucks. #HolmesAndWatson don’t see it. It was so bad. Half the theater walked out during it. And I love Will Ferrell but this one was one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen,” one Twitter user wrote.
According to Alonso Duralde of The Wrap, the movie is so bad that not even Netflix wanted it. It tested so poorly that Sony reportedly tried to pass it off onto Netflix to save it from a box office disaster, but the streaming giant took a pass on it.
Regardless, Reilly and Ferrell have made successful movies in the past that audiences at least loved— Talladega Nights and Stepbrothers come to mind — so hopefully their next one is more well-received.
