Murder on the Thames
Murder on the Thames is a British- Canadian crime film from 1979 and combines elements of the historical crime of Jack the Ripper with Arthur Conan Doyle's world-famous detective novel Sherlock Holmes , played here by Christopher Plummer . Directed by Bob Clark .
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In the Whitechapel slum in London, two prostitutes were brutally murdered and mutilated within a short period of time. The murderer, named Jack the Ripper after sending anonymous letters of confession , has always managed to escape from the crime scene in time, the police are groping in the dark and the new police chief Sir Charles Warren does not seem to be overly interested in a quick solution to those "prostitutes' murders".
Only when two victims are found within one night does the famous private detective Sherlock Holmes begin to delve into the case. Together with his loyal comrade Dr. John Watson, he goes to the crime scene and the first thing he realizes is that the dead woman was not murdered in the same place where she was finally found. He also noticed grape stalks in the hand of the dead. The murderer must therefore be wealthy so that he can afford the luxury of the expensive fruit and also be on the move in a carriage to murder the women undisturbed and ultimately to be able to dump them somewhere.
In a side street not far from the crime scene, Sir Charles, who was present, gave the order, much to the dismay of the investigating inspector Lestrade, to wash off a chalk graffito that reads " The Jews are not The men That Will be Blamed for nothing ", ostensibly to avoid anti-Semitic excesses and to avoid attacks. But Holmes sees a completely different meaning in the inscription. In his office, he confronts Sir Charles with seemingly mystical hand gestures, which turn out to be secret greetings from exalted members of the Freemasons' union , to which the police chief belongs. Holmes has recognized that the inscription is not (Engl. Against Jews Jews ) addresses, but a nod to Jubela, Jubelo and Jubelum, the murderers of the founder is the Freemasons, which if their crime, their throats and bellies slit open and its innards had been thrown over her shoulders. Jack the Ripper , whose victims have been mutilated in exactly the same way, is therefore a Freemason who is protected by his powerful friars.
Sherlock Holmes' investigation leads him through numerous detours to the clairvoyant Robert Lees, who is sure to have recognized the Ripper after he saw his face in a vision on the street, and to a young prostitute named Mary Kelly. The frightened woman tells him about something they have in common with the four victims so far. They all witnessed the marriage of a friend named Annie Crook to an attractive young man named Eddie. Annie and the husband also have a child together. Soon after, Eddie went into hiding and shortly afterwards Annie and her daughter disappeared without a trace.
Holmes eventually finds said Annie Crook out of town in a mental institution. She fables that she is married to a prince who will be picking her up shortly. He begins to understand the connections. Annie does not fantasize, without knowing his true identity, she married Prince Albert Victor, the grandson and heir to the throne of Queen Victoria in a Catholic ceremony and fathered a child with him who has a legitimate claim to the British crown. Sherlock Holmes realizes that Jack the Ripper is an envoy charged with covering up this immense scandal that could throw the entire British Empire into chaos and removing all witnesses.
On his return to London, Holmes notices that he has been under surveillance since he first took on the case, which has put the killer right on the trail of Mary Kelly. Together with Watson, he succeeds in locating Mary's quarters. As soon as they burst into the small room, a bloodbath was revealed to them. Two men wrapped in dark coats bend over the dead body, which is literally torn to pieces.
The older of the two is obviously in shock and completely catatonic while the other takes flight. After a chase through the nocturnal streets, Holmes is able to catch the fugitive in the London harbor, where, after a scuffle, he strangles himself by an unfortunate accident.
A few days later, Holmes called on Prime Minister Lord Salisbury, Home Secretary Matthews and Sir Charles Warren, who had since stepped down as chief of police. Holmes accuses the three of them, all of whom are Freemasons, of having instigated this terrible series of murders, fearing that Annie Crook, who committed suicide after Holmes' visit to the asylum, might discover her husband's secret the idea would come up to claim the throne for her child.
After the Ripper, the respected doctor Sir Thomas Spivey, also a Freemason, has completely lost his mind over his deeds and is now no longer able to think clearly, his coachman and assistant William Slade is dead and all witnesses of the Catholic wedding have been eliminated, Holmes is the last living confidante. However, he promises to remain silent about this scandal, which extends to the royal family, as long as Annie Crook's daughter is not harmed.
Reviews
- Lexicon of international films : "Atmospherically dense, well-cast reinterpretation of the 'Jack-the-Ripper' material."
DVD release
- Sherlock Holmes / Murder on the Thames / March 4, 2003 / Kinowelt Home Entertainment
Others
- The idea to let Sherlock Holmes and Jack the Ripper meet was taken up in 1965 in the film Sherlock Holmes' Greatest Case (original title: A Study in Terror ). The actor Frank Finlay also played the role of Inspector Lestrade at the time.
- Anthony Quayle, who played Sir Charles Warren, Chief of Police, has also starred in Sherlock Holmes' largest case , where he played a suspected doctor.
- Originally, Peter O'Toole and Laurence Olivier were as Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson provided. Both actors had not gotten on well with each other in previous joint projects and were not ready to resolve existing differences for this film.
- James Mason was hired as one of the final cast members for the film. Director Bob Clark made a special trip to Spain, where Mason was filming, to speak to him. Mason had only agreed on the condition that Dr. Watson would be a serious and serious character and not the cumbersome joke he is usually portrayed as.
- Murder on the Thames was filmed at the same time as Ridley Scott's Alien - The Uncanny Creature from an Alien World in Shepperton Studios .
- According to director Bob Clark, Murder on the Thames had a budget of less than four million dollars.
- The character of Sir Thomas Spivey is based in its basic features on Queen Victoria's personal physician , Sir William Gull .
Web links
- Murder by Decree in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Murder by Decree at Rotten Tomatoes (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Murder on the Thames. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed April 9, 2017 .