There's a certain element of Dan Brown in the new Sherlock Holmes movie–secret societies, symbols drawn over cities, the usual stuff. I can't say it helped the movie, but with the exception of that, I thought it was a lot of fun. A good bit of escapist entertainment.
Robert Downey Jr. is great and his chemistry with Jude Law and Rachel McAdams are also very good. The next movie, as there will almost certainly be, could very well start the exact moment this one left off (a la Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace) and it wouldn't be a bad thing at all.