[Steve_Seattle]

I thought Downey’s Holmes was a bit too slovenly, with his “House” five-day beard, tattered clothes, and incredibly filthy apartment. In fact, the film made London look like a horribly filthy place, which perhaps it was in those days.

[Liberty Valance]

Holmes?

[Finny]

Yes, that was ONE thing about Downey's portrayal that was not in keeping with Doyle's Holmes. The real (!) Holmes was as tidy as a cat, and even when camping out in the Moor in "Hound of the Baskervilles" managed always to have a clean collar and cuffs; he'd never have had a three-day growth of beard!

As for the filthy apartment ... in the written stories, Holmes was pretty much a slob. London was never described overall as being awful and filthy, but I read a bio of Conan Dolyle, who was origially from Edinburgh, Scotland. Doyle was very happy to leave that city because it was absolutely horrid, filthy, and grim.