Taglines: Mystery runs in the family.
Enola Holmes Movie Storyline. England, 1884 – a world on the brink of change. On the morning of her 16th birthday, Enola Holmes (Millie Bobby Brown) wakes to find that her mother (Helena Bonham Carter) has disappeared, leaving behind an odd assortment of gifts but no apparent clue as to where she’s gone or why. After a free-spirited childhood, Enola suddenly finds herself under the care of her brothers Sherlock (Henry Cavill) and Mycroft (Sam Claflin), both set on sending her away to a finishing school for “proper” young ladies.
Refusing to follow their wishes, Enola escapes to search for her mother in London. But when her journey finds her entangled in a mystery surrounding a young runaway Lord (Louis Partridge), Enola becomes a super-sleuth in her own right, outwitting her famous brother as she unravels a conspiracy that threatens to set back the course of history.
Enola Holmes is a 2020 mystery film based on the first book in the young adult fiction series of the same name by Nancy Springer. The story is about the teenage sister of the already-famous Sherlock Holmes, who travels to London to find her missing mother but ends up on a thrilling adventure, pairing up with a runaway lord as they attempt to solve a mystery that threatens the entire country. The film is directed by Harry Bradbeer, from a screenplay by Jack Thorne. Millie Bobby Brown stars as the title character, while also serving as a producer on the film. Henry Cavill, Sam Claflin, and Helena Bonham Carter also star.
Originally planned for a theatrical release by Warner Bros. Pictures, the distribution rights to the film were picked up by Netflix due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Enola Holmes was released on September 23, 2020. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised Brown’s performance. It became one of the most-watched original Netflix films with an estimated 76 million households watching the film over its first four weeks of release.
About the Story
Enola Holmes is the youngest sibling in the famous Holmes family. She is extremely intelligent, observant, and insightful, and defies the social norms for women of the time. Her mother, Eudoria, has taught her everything from chess to jujitsu and encouraged her to be a strong-willed and independent thinking young woman.
On the day of her sixteenth birthday, Enola awakens to find that her mother has disappeared, leaving behind only some birthday gifts. A week later, she rushes to the train station to meet her brothers, Mycroft and Sherlock, who fail to recognize her at first, not having seen her in many years. Sherlock finds her to be an intelligent girl, whereas Mycroft finds her troublesome. As her legal guardian, Mycroft intends to send her away to a finishing school run by the stern Miss Harrison.
The flower cards left by her mother reveal secret messages and lead to hidden money, which Enola uses to escape disguised as a boy. On the train, she finds the young Viscount Tewkesbury hidden in a travel bag. She thinks he is a nincompoop but warns him that a man in a brown bowler hat (named Linthorn) is on the train searching for him. Linthorn tries to kill Tewkesbury so they jump off the train to escape. Neither having any food, Tewkesbury forages for edible plants and fungi. They travel to London, where they part ways.
Disguised as a proper Victorian lady, she continues to trace Eudoria and leaves cryptic messages in the newspaper personal advertisements. Enola discovers pamphlets and a safehouse containing explosives and learns that Eudoria is part of a radical group of suffragettes. She is attacked by Linthorn, who tortures her for information about Tewkesbury, attempting to drown her. They fight, but she is able to ignite the explosives and escape. Enola decides to pause the search for her mother and instead find Tewkesbury again to save him because he is not capable of defending himself. Enola visits the Tewkesbury estate at Basilwether Hall to learn more. Mycroft has Inspector Lestrade of Scotland Yard search for Enola.
Enola finds Tewkesbury selling flowers in Covent Garden and warns him of the danger. She helps him escape but is caught by Lestrade and imprisoned in Miss Harrison’s finishing school by Mycroft. Sherlock visits her and admits he is impressed by her detective work. Tewkesbury sneaks into the school, and they escape together, stealing Miss Harrison’s motor car.
They reach a fork in the road and, rather than returning to London, Enola decides they must go to Basilwether Hall and face Tewkesbury’s uncle, who she has deduced was trying to kill him. The estate is seemingly deserted, but Linthorn ambushes them, firing a shotgun.
Enola trips him using a jujitsu move, causing a fatal head injury. Tewkesbury’s grandmother is revealed as the real villain; a traditionalist, she did not want him to take his father’s place in the House of Lords and vote for the Reform Bill. She shoots her grandson in the chest, but he survives thanks to a plate of armor he had hidden under his clothes. Sherlock arrives at Scotland Yard and Lestrade asks him two questions: first, how he managed to solve the case, and second, how his sister solved it first.
Enola Holmes (2020)
Directed by: Harry Bradbeer
Starring: Millie Bobby Brown, Sam Claflin, Henry Cav, Helena Bonham Carter, Louis Partridge, Burn Gorman, Adeel Akhtar, Susan Wokoma, Hattie Morahan, Frances de la Tour, Claire Rushbrook
Screenplay by: Jack Thorne
Production Design by: Michael Carlin
Cinematography by: Giles Nuttgens
Film Editing by: Adam Bosman
Costume Design by: Consolata Boyle
Set Decoration by: Lisa Chugg
Art Direction by: Martin Hitchcock, Choi Ho Man
Music by: Daniel Pemberton
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some violence.
Distributed by: Netflix
Release Date: September 23, 2020
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