Parents' Guide to

Sherlock Gnomes

By Sandie Angulo Chen, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 6+

More peril, action in sweet but unsurprising sequel.

Movie PG 2018 86 minutes
Sherlock Gnomes Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 8+

Based on 24 parent reviews

age 6+

superfluous lewd gay character

The story was good. But it was ruined by the sudden appearance of a male gnome wearing a thong, lipstick, with two red dots on his buttocks, gyrating across the screen. My children were surprised and disappointed. They insisted that I write this review and helped choose the wording.

This title has:

Too much sex
4 people found this helpful.
age 18+

Scary. Questionable. Not worth your time.

I have a 5 and 2 year old. We saw the first one and thought “oh fun another gnome movie” but this movie is AWFUL. Like seriously bad. It has scary gargoyles That terrified my kids. The main villain is also like a super scary doll character that even I found disturbing. Not to mention the overly sensual dance routine by a doll that was totally unexpected and not needed. There is nothing good to say. Not a single thing. I set my age suggested high to hopefully caution other parents to skip this especially because I saw age 6 in the recommended age and thought it would be ok. Should have read more reviews.

This title has:

Too much violence
2 people found this helpful.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (24):
Kids say (23):

Aimed at young kids, this amusing but unsurprising sequel offers an easy-to-follow introduction to Sherlock Holmes' sleuthing genius. Depp voices the master of deduction (here named Sherlock Gnomes) with just the right amount of detached arrogance, and Ejiofor's Watson is appropriately patient and long-suffering. The missing gnomes mystery is intriguing, but the secondary drama surrounding Gnomeo and Juliet's relationship stress may fall flat with younger audiences -- especially considering how happy the couple was at the beginning of the story. Some of the jokes and one-liners are clearly targeted at adults (like when a male character demands not to be called "Tiny D"), and Mary J. Blige's performance as Irene Adler (who sings the mature post-breakup song "Stronger Than I Ever Was"), is going to go above kids' heads. That said, Blige's cameo as a Barbie-esque doll is one of the movie's highlights, and Demetriou's clever-and-crazy Moriarty is reminiscent of Andrew Scott's take on the villain in Sherlock.

Blunt's Juliet is a fine example of owning up to your mistakes, displaying courage under fire, and recognizing that a true partnership requires trust and communication. McEvoy's Gnomeo is good-hearted and utterly in love with his gnome mate, but he's got slightly less to do than Juliet, who's by Sherlock's side for most of the action. The romantic subplot between two other gnomes isn't as compelling as the original's love story, but the action-adventure is definitely a bigger part of the film. It's fun to hear executive producer Elton John's music, too. Ultimately, this is a cute family pick the kids will enjoy -- but probably not more than once.

Movie Details

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