SummaryWhen assorted people start having inexplicable delusions that lead to their deaths, a teenage Sherlock Holmes (Nicholas Rowe) decides to investigate.
Directed By:Barry Levinson
Written By:Arthur Conan Doyle, Chris Columbus
Young Sherlock Holmes
Metascore
Generally Favorable
65
User score
Generally Favorable
7.3
My Score
Drag or tap to give a rating
Hover and click to give a rating
Not available in your country?
ExpressVPN
Get 3 Extra months free
$6.67/mth
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
60% Positive
9 Reviews
9 Reviews
40% Mixed
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
90
Not only the best movie to feature an Egyptian blowgun in several years, but also one of the few really stylish and entertaining American movies of 1985.
75
The elaborate special effects also seem a little out of place in a Sherlock Holmes movie, although I'm willing to forgive them because they were fun.
70
While lacking the clarity and breathtaking speed which Spielberg brings to this type of material, it's agreeable enough entertainment.
63
The abundance of special effects, no matter how clever, overbalances the charming premise of Young Sherlock Holmes. [9 Dec 1985]
60
Young Sherlock Holmes is another Steven Spielberg film corresponding to those lamps made from driftwood and coffee tables from redwood burl and hatchcovers. It’s not art but they all serve their purpose and sell by the millions.
60
The young cast, which resembles a collection of Gerald Scarfe illustrations, acquits itself reasonably well, but is too ordinary to be heroic. And, once action is introduced into the mix, Barry Levinson's direction falters.
40
This is Middle-aged Sherlock Holmes in schoolboy drag, and the audience is expected to chuckle appreciatively as the old material is trotted out.
User score
Generally Favorable
74% Positive
20 Ratings
20 Ratings
26% Mixed
7 Ratings
7 Ratings
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
Nov 18, 2025
7
Young Sherlock Holmes (1985)
Director: Barry Levinson
Producers: Henry Winkler, Mark Johnson
Screenplay: Chris Columbus
The first and last Spielberg-Barry Levinson collaboration. Based on results, Levinson had no taste and no talent for this kind of imaginative material. The action sequences all look like first take footage, nothing added to make them come alive or seem authentic. If you can, imagine if the lax, by-the-numbers directing here had been applied to Raiders of the Lost Ark!
The premise and script of Young Holmes has all the bones, all the bells and whistles, a striking leading man, and acting support of another early Spielberg success; yet, they are made into completely pedestrian storytelling footage by Levinson.
Mar 10, 2023
7
As soon as you see Steven Spielberg on the credits, you know how this movie is gonna go, some ET, some Indiana Jones, a young adults introduction to Sherlock Holmes.
Production Company:
- Paramount Pictures
- Amblin Entertainment
- Industrial Light & Magic (ILM)
Release Date:Dec 4, 1985
Duration:1 h 49 m
Rating:PG-13
Tagline:The first exciting adventure of the world's greatest sleuth!
Awards
Academy Awards, USA
• 1 Nomination
Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA
• 1 Win & 3 Nominations
Young Artist Awards
• 1 Nomination
