Blake Howard on the first two seasons of the BBC crime drama Luther…
Luther follows the cases of a troubled yet brilliant English police detective, DCI John Luther (Idris Elba), and his squad assigned to serial / unusual murders. Now I know that when you hear about another detective show / crime procedural your initial impulse may be to say; “what could this show possibly offer me that all of the cop shows haven’t already?” Well quite simply, the absolutely fantastic Idris Elba in a leading role with the space and depth for his great range as an actor to shine.
I don’t think that until very recently that I’d seen African British actors assaying lead roles in major BBC shows or British films. Based on my exposure, it’s a very ‘white-anglo’ centric cinema that is only beginning to embrace its increasingly diverse racial spectrum.
And with an actor of the calibre of Idris Elba (most famous for his role as Russell ‘Stringer’ Bell in the greatest piece of American Televisual Art of all time – The Wire) it’s a welcome change of scenery and along with it comes a whole new set of prejudices and preconceived notions that inform and influence the portrayal. ***Slight Spoilers*** From the opening sequence of the series you see the creators play with the impulse of a prejudiced audience, as the tall, broad, dark and shabbily dressed dark man stalks a suited man through the night. The suited man is trying to escape from pursuit through an abandoned factory, and while crossing a dilapidated causeway he falls, only being able to hold onto a railing and dangling precariously over a dark metallic chasm. When his pursuer catches him however, it’s revealed that the suited man is a serial killer that has kidnapped a child and that he’s being pursued by the unorthodox DCI Luther. Luther refuses to assist the killer until he reveals the location of his victim. When he caves and Luther’s partners find the victim it’s too late. The killer loses his purchase on the protruding metal handle, he falls… Luther does not assist.
This sequence alone hooked me. I love moral ambiguity in a series and particularly a protagonist because in the moment you see the lifeless corpse of a child, you find yourself having multiple opposing impulses; firstly wanting this huge man to throw the killer into gaping metallic tomb that awaits him, secondly for him to arrest him and stop this kind of thing from happening again but I think that writer / series creator Neil Cross chooses Luther’s absence of assistance to heighten your awareness of some presence of codified justice present in Luther.
Idris Elba’s Luther is magnetic. He’s a character that is initially totally unpredictable. In the context of his failing relationship, he’s a volatile open wound; explosive and destructive to property and furniture when his emotions spill over. In the presence of a suspect, he’s a clinical grandmaster of body language, expression, and the minutiae of reactions – keeping his suspects uneasy in his presence. He’s exciting to watch and his imperfections make him a sympathetic and relatable protagonist. Elba nails the subtle, observant, intelligence while being physically imposing.
I have to give a special mention to writer / creator Neil Cross who builds a gritty London that feels lived in for Luther. The streets of London are gritty, and none of the iconography of ‘tourist’ ads are present. It’s a bleak city with the skeletons of the industrial age left to rot. The tenements are ugly, and any of the beautiful locales feel like their veiling a grotesque and unspoken darkness. The episodes are cinematic and the benefit of less episodes and greater running time is the collapsed production budget. This is a slick and sharp series, with cinematic production value.
Neil Cross’ Luther doesn’t suffer stupid foes for their great lead character. For those of you familiar with something like Dexter, it felt like the killers here had drive, purpose, intelligence packaged in with their psychopathic rage to rape and murder. Cross’ great foes don’t come much better that the fantastic Alice Morgan (Ruth Wilson). Alice proves she is Luther’s equal by murdering her parents without leaving any evidence present. Luther meets his match and Alice develops a strange fascination for Luther and their continued exchanges and interplay are a highlight throughout the series.
I must also give an especial mention to Warren Brown’s DSI Justin Ripley is the up and coming career Detective assigned to Luther. Luther mentors Ripley and throughout the series he becomes Luther’s key supporter, advocate and accomplished partner. He’s the great ‘every man’ character that the audience can relate to. He sees to the heart of Luther’s questionable decisions – to their intent and he’s a great character rewarded with more screen time as the series progresses.
This is a tense thrill ride of a detective series, with the high stakes of competent and frighteningly intelligent antagonists. But the characters in Luther’s orbit are all fully essential people that are invariably increasingly morally ambiguous. The series focuses on Luther obviously, but you get a greater understanding and appreciation of the character through the spectrum of what they’re doing to protect who they serve, and what they do to protect themselves. Luther’s on his own path, honorably bending the rules to beat his opponents regardless of the reputational and actual damage that he’s causing himself and the people who care for him. Luther’s work is his life and his ugliest and most terrifying opponents take a personal interest in his friends and family.
Season one twists and turns to seemingly unbeatable crescendo only to shift gears and deliver on an equally good but altogether different follow-up in season two. I love the way that tastes of the following week’s show are spliced into the end credits of each episode. It’s one of the most innovative and cool touches to make the audience rabid for more. I would say that it’s of the same calibre as my other favourite British detective – Steven Moffat’s Sherlock – and one of my new favourite shows.
Luther transcends the detective sub-genre. It’s a powerful, visceral, exciting, intelligent, emotive, affective, frightening and ambivalent series; and a vehicle for an the amazing presence and acting prowess of Idris Elba. Lets just hope that Elba’s able to pause his meteoric rise into Hollywood superstardom to revisit a character built for him to play, and for us to enjoy.
Blake Howard is a writer/site director/podcaster at the castleco-op.com. Follow him on Twitter here:@blakeisbatman.
