Luther the Fallen Sun

This week, the wife and I weren’t able to make it to our local moviehaus because we flew out to Dallas, TX to check another band off of our Band Bucket List (Duran Duran). Done. And I always want to give you the newest content I can, so I used our flight time to check out a movie on Netflix that I’ve had on my radar for some time: Luther the Fallen Sun.

I will tell you from the git-go that I have yet to see anything starring Idris Elba that I didn’t enjoy. (note- if you haven’t seen the movie Beast, it’s a hidden gem that the Average Dude recommends).

Currently the wife has had been obsessed with zombies. We have literally been watching Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead almost every night for months. With Walking Dead: Dead City coming soon – and I am psyched to see Negan again – and the Daryl Dixon spinnoff also in the wings, I am wondering just how long she can go here. I am working on a review of the Walking Deadworld shows and apparently need to hold onto it for now and see how these new shows factor in. And for crying out loud, can we find out what happened to Rick and Michone, please? Sorry. I digress…

My point is this: I knew that this was a movie spawned by the Luther series on Netflix, which I will definitely check out at some post-zombie point.

Idris Elba is top shelf on my star-list. Maybe because he has avoided the typecast pitfall. Whether he’s a driven, make the hard choice vigilante copper (Luther), the Black Superman (Hobbs and Shaw), the lone gunslinger (Dark Tower) or a dad facing the razor teeth and claws of nature gone insane (Beast) Elba has proven his versatility (RIP, Heimdall). He does it all and does it with excellence. Somehow, Elba takes the old trope of the grizzled, rogue cop who thumbs his nose at the red tape bureaucracy in order to get the job done and makes it feel fresh…or at least fresher than expected.

No, Mr Luther. I expect you to die!

Luther the Fallen Sun begins with our anti-hero being called in on a missing persons case that has befuddled London’s primo investigation squad. The villain of the show is known from the beginning so I’m giving you no spoilers here. Andy Serkis is David Robey, a brilliantly twisted mass-murder who turns his obsession into a very lucrative high-tech deathporn syndicate. Serkis turns in a fantastic performance as a Bond level villain – creepy, soul-less and full of evil intent. And man, when I say he was creepy, brother you best believe it. When a good story meets a great actor, it stays with you for a minute. Serkis’s villain did just that.

I wont go all Oscars and thank every above average supporting performance that went into making this move great. It’s enough to say that it only takes one performer phoning it in to bring down a movie. I found no such holes in Luther the Fallen Sun. Every piece, every bit part was delivered skillfully. Group hug everyone. Well done. I am giving Luther the Fallen Sun 4/5 stars. And don’t be afraid of this one if you haven’t seen any of the 5 seasons of the Luther series. I haven’t. It didn’t affect my enjoyment one bit. But that show has now jumped up the list of binge-ables for me. Looking forward to it, Luther.

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