The Limehouse Golem (2016)

The British horror-mystery film, The Limehouse Golem (2016), directed by Juan Carlos Medina and written by Jane Goldman, tells the story of a series of murders that have shocked the docklands community of Limehouse in Victorian London. Known as the Golem, after a well-known Jewish legend, the killer has not been caught yet. However, when John Cree is accused of poisoning his wife, Elizabeth Cree on the same night as the latest Golem killing, Inspector John Kildare uncovers evidence linking him to all the murders. In order to save Elizabeth from being hanged and solve this twisted case, Kildare searches for clues and finds a diary written by the Golem himself in one of Thomas De Quincey’s essays at the reading room of the British Museum. It becomes clear that one of four men who were present in the library on the day of the last entry must be responsible – Dan Leno, Karl Marx, George Gissing or John Cree himself.

To confirm his suspicions, Kildare gathers handwriting samples from each suspect while listening to Elizabeth’s personal story about her rise from being an impoverished seamstress to becoming a music-hall star. After the passing of her abusive mother, Elizabeth found solace in the company of Dan Leno and joined his music-hall group where she sang comedic songs while disguised as a man. Despite quickly gaining popularity, she had aspirations to pursue dramatic acting. Meanwhile, she caught the attention of struggling playwright John Cree, much to the dismay of her colleague Aveline Ortega, who also had feelings for him. To make matters worse, Aveline deliberately sabotaged Elizabeth’s first dramatic performance. However, things took a dark turn when ‘Uncle’, the theater’s owner, trapped Elizabeth into posing naked for photos and fulfilling his sexual desires through physical abuse.