and that "[s]pecial effects coordinator Daniel Parvulescu has fun on all accounts, creating realistic props as well as a rich, atmospheric London set." Anita Gates of The New York Times wrote: "Case of Evil is a competent, well-plotted mystery, and it's awfully pretty, thanks to the production designer (Chris Roope) and the director of photography (Lukas Strebel). ... The film has its tongue in its cheek a good bit of the time. At least the director, Graham Theakston, makes it seem tongue in cheek, going for just the right level of knowingness." Steve Lewis of Mystery*File wrote: "I think you can be a lifelong Sherlock Holmes fan and still enjoy this movie. ... [W]hile there were several nicely done attempts to show Holmes’s deductive abilities ... there is, sad to say, no great attempt by the end of the movie to be little more than just another action flick. The atmosphere and general ambiance is nicely done, though. ... I surprised myself by warming more and more to the characters as the movie went on." Jay Seaver of eFilmCritic panned the film, giving it a single star out of five, writing: "[L]et's just accept the idea that Sherlock Holmes needs to be sexed up and made relevant for a twenty-first century audience. Do writer/producer Piers Ashworth and director Graham Theakston manage to make an entertaining movie out of that? No. In their hands, Sherlock becomes a generic hero tortured by the past and Moriarty becomes a thug without any sort of air of mystery about him. ... The two leads, D'Arcy and D'Onofrio, are especially weak. Forget previous portrayals of Holmes and Moriarty, and just focus on their tendency to chew scenery and do little, if anything, with body language." References External links American television films 2002 television films 2002 films 2002 action films 2000s crime films 2000s serial killer films Action television films Crime television films Films about drugs Films about heroin addiction American serial killer films Sherlock Holmes films Sherlock Holmes pastiches 2000s American films