‘Enola Holmes’ – A New Take on the Sherlock Holmes Stories

One of the most notorious fictional detectives, Sherlock Holmes is back, but instead of him solving crime it’s his sister, Enola Holmes.  

Enola Holmes is based on a character of the same name written by Nancy Springer and played by Millie Bobby Brown. Brown is most notably known for playing Eleven in Netflix’s hit original show “Stranger Things.”

Enola is the youngest in her family, with firstborn Mycroft Holmes, played by Samuel George Claflin, and second born, Sherlock Holmes, played by Henry Cavill, as her brothers. She grew up with just her mom, Edoria, played by Helena Bornham Carter, who taught Enola how to be a strong-willed and independent woman, which is not the norm in the Victorian era that the film takes place in.

All seemed to go well with the mother and daughter duo, until the morning of Enola’s 16-year-old birthday, when she found her mother to be missing. 

With her brothers hearing the news of their disappearing mother they head off to meet Enola. As Mycroft is now her legal guardian with the absence of her mother, he intends to send her off to finishing school where she will learn to be a proper lady.

Being a proper lady is the last thing Enola ever wants to do. She uses all her skills that her mother taught her and escapes from her brothers to find her mother while also dealing with  Viscount Tewkesbury, played by Louis Partridge, who is on the run from an assassin. 

“Enola Holmes” is a different approach to the classic mysteries of Sherlock Holmes as it doesn’t have the normal grueling murder plot you would expect. Nonetheless, the film does a great job of showcasing Enola’s perseverance in going against the social norms expected of a lady.