The reason I was excited to see “Sherlock” was primarily the trailer, which has been showing for a few months now. I mean, I know it’s a return from exile for Guy Ritchie. I’m a fan of the Holmes character, and of Robert Downey, Jr. But I got myself geeked on the droll, steampunky movie trailer.

I should know better than to do that. The dark art of making masterful trailers for mediocre films has become so advanced that none of us should for a moment mistake the map of “Coming Attractions” for the territory of cinema. But I did.

“Sherlock” isn’t a bad film, but it is not particularly distinguished. The plot is murky, the pacing is uneven and the love story is too cute by half. Maybe I expected too much, but with material as rich as the Holmes canon I wanted a great deal more.

There is no reason to rush to see it, but it’s worth a matinee.