What Martial Arts Does Robert Downey Jr Use in Sherlock Holmes

"Sherlock Holmes," directed by Guy Ritchie, stars Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law and Rachel McAdams. The picture is being released on Christmas Day by Warner Bros.

In the film, as in the books, both Holmes and Watson know their way around a fight and their skills are frequently tested. Holmes is a skilled martial creative person; this propensity links him with both the star and director of "Sherlock Holmes," as Downey and Ritchie have expert martial arts for years, and worked together to create Holmes's distinct fighting style. "Doyle called it Baritsu in the novels, which is tied to a 19th-century hybrid of jujitsu that is really called Bartitsu, created by Edward William Barton-Wright," Downey explains. "Jujitsu is Guy'southward chosen martial art. Mine is Wing Chun Kung Fu. And then, we developed our own combination of martial arts styles for the film."

Holmes blows off steam

As efficient as he is at neutralizing an enemy in the class of his work, Holmes is likewise known to accident off steam in a boxing band at a working class pub called the Dial Basin. Here, in front a raucous oversupply, Holmes takes on a massive boxer named McMurdo, played past David Garrick, in a brutal bare-knuckle fight which showcases the detective's prowess and physical strength.

"The blank-knuckle boxing ring is the just place where Holmes doesn't call up," says Downey. "Only even there he does call up; he thinks about how to win the fight, but doesn't recall most all of these ongoing concerns of life. Interpersonal relations don't enter into it. It's just y'all and your opponent."

"The Punch Basin is where Holmes goes to strop his skill, to make mistakes, and examination out techniques against very powerful opponents," comments fight consultant Eric Oram, who for years has trained with Downey in Wing Chun Kung Fu and helped prepare the actor for the fight sequences. "He starts by using the least amount of force in the first half of the fight. It's only after his opponent crosses the line that he wants to teach him a lesson."

Watson has his ain style

More out of necessity than choice, Watson too knows his manner effectually a street fight, though he is more than of a brawler compared to the fluid combat style of Holmes. "Watson is used to the upwards-close-and-personal fight-for-your-life stuff," Downey attests. "He has a much more accessible merely no less constructive way than Holmes. As a matter of fact, in that location are often times when Holmes over thinks in club to come upward with the best deduction, where Watson will just strike with any tool that's handy."

"Watson is a war veteran and used to thinking on his feet," says stunt coordinator Franklin Henson. "He tin can throw a wild punch in reaction, and, similar a street fighter, he'll use whatever information technology takes–his head, knees or elbows–to bring an opponent down."

Law relished participating in the fight sequences. "When y'all're in the easily of someone like Guy, who shoots with such a unique eye, you know you're non shooting a standard fight scene," says the player. "He's always looking for a new fashion to reveal the story backside the fight, and he knows exactly what he wants. So information technology'south good fun."

Shooting the fights

Manager of photography Philippe Rousselot utilized lighting and camera to brand the textures palpable and the fights a truly physical feel. "Guy wants the film to experience to the viewer every bit if yous're there," Rousselot states. "A good instance is the Punch Bowl fight. It was crucial to bring in every detail, from a miniscule driblet of sweat to the effect of each blow on the opponent's body to the sea of movement and tussling in the crowd."

Ritchie also used these sequences to deconstruct Holmes's thinking over the form of a fight. He and Rousselot achieved this moment-by-moment technique using a high-speed digital camera called the Phantom, which creates an ultra-slow move result. "The Phantom takes one second of filming and strings it out over 40 or 50 seconds," says the director. "The camera takes in a great deal of data in a very curt period of fourth dimension, which is the perfect lens through which to illustrate how Holmes'south listen operates. He is able to condense an enormous amount of data into a fraction of a second."

For a cardinal activity sequence–on a multi-story set representing the one-half-constructed Belfry Bridge–Ritchie rehearsed extensively with the actors, along with Oram and Henson, as well as fight coordinator Richard R. Ryan. "We worked very closely with quite a large stunt team," notes co-producer Steve Clark-Hall. "They knew Robert'due south capabilities, which are considerable, and were able to play to his strengths. Pulling off this degree of high intensity action in these stunt sequences was quite a squad effort."

Ritchie sought a strategic alloy of rehearsal and spontaneity to ensure the anarchy of fighting was reflected in the sequences. "I fabricated the creative decision to make the film gritty, and then I didn't want things to be too choreographed," he says. "Nosotros discussed everything, but we also fabricated sure to exit room for improvisation. I didn't want it to look too perfect."

McAdams doing stunts

This sensibility appealed to Rachel McAdams, who had extensive stunt piece of work in the Tower Bridge sequence. "Guy liked to keep things messy and proceed the truth within this fantastical world," she notes. "There's always the temptation to go too refined when dealing with this flow, but Guy made certain it was also rough and tumble and modernized. Doing this movie with Guy taught me to be really quick on my feet and precise, yet ever open up and flexible."

Of course, sense of humor was an important ingredient in the activeness and found its way into all the action scenes. "There needed to be moments of levity and other moments of gravity," Ritchie offers. "So the funny bits got funnier and the darker bits got darker as we went forth."

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