Friday, 17 March 2023

VOD: Luther: The Fallen Sun (dir: Jamie Payne, 2023)

"I'm still a copper."
"No, you're not. Not any more."

The opening scenes of this expansion of the Luther TV show effectively create a new story linked to the ending of the previous series which finds the disgraced detective in jail and establishes Andy Serkis as David Robey, a very twisted, manipulative and cold-hearted serial killer, even taunting the imprisoned Luther that leads to a prison-break in order for him to track down the killer.  The narrative stacking of Luther tracking Robey with the police hunting the escaped Luther keeps the momentum going well, and with its rain-drenched blue/grey palette, this typically downbeat thriller works very hard in conveying the sense of grimness - this movie keeps up with the TV series by going very dark indeed.  Idris Elba plays the character with comfortable ease and real commitment, Cynthia Erivo is good value as the Division's new boss and Andy Serkis plays the arch-manipulator of chaos very well.  Central London is used as a very good atmospheric backdrop to the mayhem, and the unexpected location shift for the final act is a little jarring but visually rich, even if it goes rather Hostel at the end.   The Fallen Sun is a worthy and generally successful movie-length iteration of Luther, and it will be interesting to see where the character goes next.
 

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