First Clip Of Ian McKellen As Sherlock Holmes

You can put any hopes of seeing Ian McKellen bound about a cobbled London right out of your mind - his portrayal of the famed detective is a grand deal less energetic than that of misters Downey Jr and Cumberbatch.

Based on Mitch Cullin's novel A Slight Trick of the Mind, Mr Holmes sees McKellen star as the most-filmed literary character in history, retired from a life of sleuthing crime to a quiet house in a sleepy Sussex village. Struggling with a failing memory and rusty powers of logic, Holmes is caused to ponder on his final, unsolved case - a mystery that forced him into retirement. With only his housekeeper (Laura Linney) and her young, inquisitive son for company, the 93-year-old detective attempts to revisit the evidence of that final case before it slips from his mind. 

Set to screen at this month's Berlin International Film Festival, you can sample some 80 seconds of McKellen in action below. 

Mr Holmes arrives in cinemas later this year