Thursday, February 12, 2015

Luther (TV Series Seasons: 1-3)


Creator: Neil Cross
Cast:      Idris Elba, Warren Brown, Dermot Crowley, Ruth Wilson


A crime drama series starring Idris Elba as a near genius murder detective whose brilliant mind can't always save him from the dangerous violence of his passions. Luther doesn't always go by the books and some in his department thinks of him as a dirty cop whom they tolerate just because he is exceptionally good at solving stuff. He is involved in the department 'Serious & Serial' and that just sort of sums up the series as it celebrates him solving very inventive serial crimes while battling through personal problems. You do get the perception that London is really a fucked up place where serial crime is a daily routine.

Idris Elba will always be known for his role as Stringer Bell in 'The Wire'. It is sad that he has not went on to be a proper leading man in the films business so far. The leaked mails that came as part of Sony hack suggests that the studio heads see him as a possible candidate to be the next James Bond after Daniel Craig. He can certainly carry it. Coming back to 'Luther', it is much more closer to 'Banshee' than it is to 'The Wire' in terms of its sensibilities. The plot can be very convoluting but you just go it with because it is enjoyably bonkers for most parts. First season consist of six episodes and the personal theme running in it is that he is going through a heart-breaking divorce process. The culprit from the first episode, Alice Morgan, develops a relationship with him and it gives the show a different feel. Her acting can be very hammy though. The crime plots find resolution in each episode while in seasons second and third they are tied up over two episodes and each of those seasons have four episodes each. The second season's personal story angle is very grating but the crime solving in it makes up for that with some bat-shit crazy ways of killing people involved. The last episode of this season is the high point of the entire series. It goes downhill from there with the third season which I found very difficult to finish. They just lose it as it become more and more ridiculous to the point of me not enjoying it at all. There is supposed to be a fourth season of it coming out this year and I am not really interested in watching that.

To sum up, it a good enough watch the first two seasons with a very bad third season which leaves a sour taste. Recommended just for the fact that Idris Elba is fucking great and this coming from someone who didn't like Stringer Bell that much, the character I meant not the acting.

Rating: 2.5/5
                                                             

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