Enola Holmes 3 (2026) Review: Millie Bobby Brown Shines in a Familiar Sequel

Enola Holmes is a series that is starting to run low on fresh ideas.

Plot

Detective Enola Holmes heads to Malta, where her aspirations merge in her most complex and dangerous case yet.

Good Points

• Millie Bobby Brown is still excellent as Enola

• Malta provides a beautiful backdrop

• The humour lands more often than not, with a few genuinely funny moments

• The pacing is steady, so the film rarely drags

• The film continues to celebrate Enola’s intelligence and independence

Bad Points

• The mystery is fairly predictable

• Henry Cavill has far too little screen time

• The story follows a very familiar formul

• Some scenes don’t really have much impact at all

My Thoughts on Enola Holmes 3

A familiar return that doesn’t quite recapture the magic

Can a series really keep solving mysteries forever before it starts solving the same one over and over again?

That’s the question I asked myself after watching Enola Holmes 3 (OK, I didn’t really, but just for the sake of this review…) The first film had that fresh, energetic charm that made it stand out from the endless list of detective stories, and the second one also kept enough of that spark alive to make me want another adventure.

This third outing, though, while perfectly watchable, feels like it has run its course.

Millie Bobby Brown is still the heart

One thing this franchise has definitely always understood is that Enola works because she’s interesting - she’s smart without acting like she’s the smartest person in every room, she’s stubborn without becoming annoying, and she’s confident enough without turning her into someone that is impossible to like.

Brown has found a certain rhythm with the character that really feels effortless now, and she makes Enola funny without ever having to try too hard, and this one featured a few more very solid moments where I laughed simply because of her.

The moments where she talks directly to the audience are still here too, and I know people are split on them, but I’ve always kind of enjoyed that, as they help give the films a bit of their own personality, even if a couple of times where it felt like the film leaned on them because it wasn’t quite sure how else to explain something.

Brown still makes it work though, and that’s been the story of these films from the beginning, where she manages to cover up a lot of the weaker writing simply because she has such a likeable screen presence.

The mystery is a bit meh

For a detective film, the mystery is obviously the most important part, and this is where Enola Holmes 3 loses some points.

While I wasn’t bored, it still all unfolds in a fairly straightforward way, and you will no doubt find yourself connecting the dots easily enough, which is never ideal for something that’s supposed to keep you guessing.

There are plenty of clues as usual, plenty of running around, and plenty of people acting suspiciously, but none of it has you gagging to know what happens next like a good detective film should.

The cast are still fun enough

One thing I also did miss was seeing more of the relationships that made the earlier films enjoyable.

Henry Cavill’s version of Sherlock has always bounced nicely off Enola, and I wish there had been more of that, in fact, a lot more, as we don’t really get much of it at all, while Louis Partridge continues to be charming enough, although his character still has the personality of warm wallpaper - nice wallpaper, admittedly, but wallpaper all the same.

Himesh Patel also gets more to do this time, and I enjoyed seeing his version of Watson become a bigger part of things, as he’s easy to like without trying to steal every scene.

Helena Bonham Carter pops back in as well, and even when she’s only around briefly, she brings some welcome energy.

It looks great, even if it sometimes looks very... Netflix

The production side of things is solid enough.

Malta is a gorgeous location, and the film makes full use of it when it is on screen, where the scenery gives everything a brighter, more adventurous feeling, and there are plenty of shots that genuinely made me wish more streaming films were shown in cinemas.

At the same time, there are moments where it is hard to shake that polished streaming look, and if you’ve watched enough Netflix originals, you’ll probably know exactly what I mean.

Everything is clean, colourful and expensive looking, but occasionally it almost looks too perfect, it’s hard to explain without sounding like I’m complaining about something that isn’t really a problem, but there is a certain visual style that many Netflix films seem to share.

But I am not sure if yet again that is a me problem.

The humor works better than the drama

One thing these films have consistently done well is balancing mystery with comedy, and while the jokes aren’t flying every thirty seconds or anything, there’s enough light-hearted banter to stop everything becoming too serious.

The emotional side isn’t quite as successful, however.

Whenever the film slows down to focus on the more serious conversations, those scenes didn’t have quite enough weight behind them, where they just came and went without leaving much of an impression.

Thankfully the film doesn’t stay still for too long before moving on to the next clue or action sequence.

The biggest problem is that it’s running out of new ideas

My biggest issue wasn’t actually with this film by itself.

It’s with the series.

By the third film, I really wanted something that really shook things up, but you get something that mostly sticks to the same formula that’s worked before, and while there’s absolutely nothing wrong with sticking to a winning formula, but eventually you start recognising the pattern.

It still has the charm, humor, and the sense of adventure, but the surprise not so much.

Instead, the whole experience reminds you of ordering your favourite takeaway, as you know it’s going to taste nice, you will enjoy eating it, but halfway through you realise you’ve ordered exactly the same thing for the tenth time this year.

Still good, just not very exciting anymore.

Final Verdict

Enola Holmes 3 is a decent watch thanks to Millie Bobby Brown, who continues to carry this series with ease, and I had a good enough time, but I do wish the mystery had been sharper and the story had taken a few more risks - it’s a decent sequel and watchable enough though, even if it is too safe for my liking for a 3rd installment.

Film Credits

Directed by Philip Barantini

Screenplay by Jack Thorne

Based on The Enola Holmes Mysteries by Nancy Springer

Cast includes - Millie Bobby Brown, Louis Partridge, Himesh Patel, Sharon Duncan-Brewster, Henry Cavill, Helena Bonham Carter and Susan Wokoma

Cinematography by Matthew Lewis

Edited by Tommy Boulding

Music by Aaron May and David Ridley

Running time - 108 minutes

Trailer

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