test: drama

BBC's Luther

Luther S3

Luther is back!

You know Idris Elba from Thor, from Prometheus, and now from Pacific Rim. HOWEVER, did you know him from before all that? Have you met him yet as DCI John Luther? The beast from BBC's ongoing drama Luther? If not, OOHHHH, how you must correct that.

Idris Elba with his Golden Globe from playing Luther.

He won an AWARD!

Series 3 has recently aired in the UK and it's coming to BBC America on September 3rd!! Wherever you watch your shows, I highly recommend cueing up this one. BBC runs long episodes over a short season. There are only 4 episodes this series; and they do not disappoint. Each series has just gotten better.

WHY watch you ask? What's all the fuss?? Wot's it about? Imma tell you.

S3 Promotional Photo

This show falls under crime drama the same way Dexter does. Yeah, there are crimes and cases floating around the show, but it's really all about the character. It's all about Luther. Dexter breaks the rules because he IS a psychopath. Luther breaks the rules because he's a BAMF who doesn't care what he has to do to get the bad guy and actually protect the real victims. Does he go too far? Does he become evil? Does he stay good? Does he get busted? Is he really a BAMF?

But that's not all!!!

The scenes. The SCENES. They start out pretty chill in the first few episodes of S1, but they do escalate. Whether its a crime scene, or the crime happening, or the suspense of the crime maybe happening, there are some seriously epic moments. In series one, I'll never forget the time I was all "la, la, la" just chillin' and watching one moment, nek minnit, screaming "OH MY GOD!!!!!" and jumping out of my happy place.

Then there are the bad guys. They've had me gobsmacked, mouth agape, wondering "WHAT IN THE NAME OF HOBGOBLINS is this guy... WHAAAT??!!!!". Like a stunned mullet. Yeah, that's pretty much the only way I can describe it without spoiling it for you.

This new season, Series 3, also had a very particular scene completely catch me by surprise and scare the living daylights out of me. By now, I know these things do happen yet it still sideswiped me. But I am telling yooou, this particular thing was EVERY FEMALE'S NIGHTMARE. I completely freaked out and side-fist punched my bed from the shock.

Speaking of the females....

How YOU doin'?

Just waaaaiiiit till you get to this guy.

Get your Apple TV's, or set your DVR's for September, or wherever you get your shows from, and start watching Luther. The first half of Series 1 was a tad slow to take off, but it totally picks up in the second half then just soars higher every episode and every series after that. I can do a proper review of this latest season after it has at least aired in America. Because, you know, spoilers!

Free graphic novel for Luther Seasons Two & Three

I double-dog dare you to jump on the Idris Elba and Luther bandwagon. Join me!!!

Together We Can Rule The Galaxy,
Heather
The Incredible Dork
NGU's Resident BBC Nerd

Movie Review: Zero Dark Thirty

With every viewer already knowing how this movie will end when they walk into the theater, Zero Dark Thirty is faced with the task of presenting the events leading up to that inevitable conclusion in a way that keeps the audience interested. In the end, not only is the story told by this film interesting, it is captivating.

While many other films on this subject may have begun with a series of news clips showing the devastation of the 9/11 attacks, Zero Dark Thirty starts starts with truly chilling opening sequence that surrounds the audience with nothing but darkness and the sounds of real, human fear for over a full minute. This seemingly stylistic choice goes a long way, allowing us to associate our own images of 9/11 with the sounds they’re hearing, already giving the film a much more personal feel. Forcing us to recall our own fear from that day, we’re given a stark reminder of the mindset most Americans were in at the time the film’s story begins in 2003. Remembering and understanding this mindset is necessary when we first meet our protagonist, Maya (Chastain), a CIA intelligence officer who has just arrived in Pakistan and is witnessing the interrogation and torture of a Saudi detainee. This mindset, while not wholly convincing us that what we’re seeing is right, or even acceptable, still helps us understand that the characters performing these actions are still recovering from fresh wounds, and see what they’re doing as a necessary evil in order to bring about justice.

Although she doesn’t speak her thoughts, Maya is visibly shaken by what she sees. However, this unease with how information is obtained quickly disappears. Maya becomes accustomed to, and even proficient in extracting intel using these methods, resulting in her finding the information carries her throughout the entire film.

At a runtime of roughly two and a half hours, and a story spanning nearly a decade, the film barrels through the years with an intensity that doesn’t let up as Maya follows this lead down every possible avenue. Over this time, Maya develops from a clearly capable but fresh-out-of-the-box officer into an accomplished agent whom others in the CIA learn not to get in the way of. Her constant dedication to her theory fosters a personal need within her to see it confirmed, and seemingly nothing will stop her. When she is later asked why her beliefs should be trusted, what else she has done for the CIA, her response is, “Nothing. I’ve done nothing else.” And because we follow Maya on such an intense journey in which she devotes herself entirely to a long-shot theory, the story becomes personal for us as well, making that assured ending that we always knew was coming just as satisfying and emotional for us as it is for her.

Grade: A

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BBC's Luther

Movie Review: Zero Dark Thirty