The Limehouse Golem - A Fantastic Gothic Murder Mystery

Certificate – 15

Directed by – Juan Carlos Medina

Starring – Olivia Cooke, Bill Nighy, Douglas Booth, Adam Brown, Daniel Mays, Eddie Marsan, Amelia Crouch, Morgan Watkins, Sam Reid.

Running Time – 109 minutes (1hr 49 mins)

★★★★✩

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My biggest worry before seeing The Limehouse Golem it was going to be a horror based story. To my surprise, it was a dark, gothic tale that had its funny moments and with superb performances.

Based on Peter Ackroyd’s novel, The Limehouse Golem follows Inspector Kildare (Bill Nighy) of Scotland Yard as he's handed the impossible task of investigating who the serial killer known as the “Golem” is in Victorian London in 1880. Kildare believes famed performer Little Lizzie Cree (Olivia Cooke) holds the keys to help to unlock the identity of the “Golem”.

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This is a brilliantly well done, interesting, dark murder mystery that kept me guessing throughout and this was straight from the beginning until the end.

I said at the top this had funny elements, but this is never a comedy and you learn that in the first 10 minutes.

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The reason it was never boring and will keep you interested is down to the performances of Nighy, Cooke and Douglas Booth.

This could be Nighy’s best performances as he doesn’t play himself, instead has a character to dive into, but it still had features of Nighy.

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Meanwhile, this is a star turn by Booth, who kept me interested as Dan Leno and was terrific. I seriously could see him as a young Joker for this rumoured DC Elseworlds film.

However, Cooke steals the film as a smart, strong, modern woman and as you get more infested you’ll see why this young actress is going to have a great career.

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Additionally, Daniel Mays needs to be the star in more things! He’s fantastic in everything!

Spanish director Medina did a fantastic job bringing this gothic, Victorian London world to the cinema. The way he uses the words of the Golem to life with the suspects is hauntingly beautiful and really clever.

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This included moulding myth of the story and Victorian historical figures like showman Leno, Karl Marx and novelist George Gissing. 

Finally, I’d happily see this becoming a trilogy led by Nighy’s Inspector Kildare set in this time period.

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Verdict

A fantastic gothic murder mystery with superb performances by Nighy, Booth and Cooke.