The iconic trench coat flutters in the wind as Detective Chief Inspector John Luther stands tall on a terrace overlooking London’s cityscape. A continuation of the popular British television series, “Luther: The Fallen Sun” chooses to leave out quite a lot of details to cater to a larger audience. The choice to simplify and not carry the baggage from its previous seasons can be a disappointment for the series‘ ardent fanbase.
A cyberterrorist, David Robey, released all the possible dirt he could find on Luther to lock him in prison. The man was aware of the power Luther held, and he was a little shaken when Luther promised Corinne Andrich that he would find her son, Callum. As long as he could keep the city safe, Luther never hesitated to use criminal means. Robey felt indisputable after Luther’s arrest, and he believed it was the perfect time to put his grand plan into action.
Spoilers Ahead
‘Luther: The Fallen Sun’ Plot Summary: What Is The Film About?
Corinne Andrich received a call from Callum asking for her help. She arrived at the location and entered a bungalow. She followed the sound of his phone and walked into a room where she found Callum’s body hanging from the ceiling. He was one of the many victims of the ruthless killer. The parents watched helplessly as their children’s bodies burned. They noticed a hooded man standing at the window. The man had a screen mask, and it displayed the victim’s pictures over and over again. It was evident that the killer was a lunatic and took great pleasure in his grand display of torture. The sight of the parents gathered in a room wailing for their loved ones was comforting for the psychopath.
DCI Odette Raine was in charge of solving the case. The heinous nature of the crime called for urgency, and she demanded that her team find the common link between his victims. Some victims had disappeared eleven years ago, while Callum’s case was quite recent. Raine concluded that the perpetrator was someone who had the time, space, and money to store corpses over the years. She was confident that once they discovered the connection, the case would be simple to resolve. Meanwhile, Luther received an anonymous letter in prison. It consisted of a card with the frequency of a radio station mentioned. As soon as he plugged into it, he heard the desperate cries of Callum and the killer laughing at his misery. The killer recorded the audio with Luther in mind and taunts him for his inability to solve the crime. He offers Luther an important clue to solving the puzzle; he mentions that he met Luther at a bus stop and offered him a mint, which he gladly accepted. He had hoped for Luther to recognize the darkness he carried within himself, but that never happened. The killer was proud of how he managed to bring down a man of Luther’s stature, but challenging Luther was surely not a clever choice.
After listening to the killer’s taunt and watching Corinne breakdown in front of him, Luther was more determined than ever to find a way to get hold of the madman. He called DCI Raine and informed her about the audio recording, and he was not surprised to learn that every victim’s family was sent the tape. Luther was now certain that the killer had something elaborate planned, and the tapes were his way of announcing the danger that lay ahead. But Raine was not ready to listen to a word uttered by Luther; after all, he was a dirty copper held in prison. Unable to find help legally, Luther chose to seek help from his friends on the other side. His plan was to convince the prison guards to allow the prisoners to come at him. The disturbance in prison would eventually lead to a transfer. During the transfer, his friend would stop the police van and rescue Luther. Though complicated, his plan turned out to be quite successful. Out in the city, Luther now had to join the dots to find the perpetrator, and his first task was to find the radio transmitter.
How Did Luther Track Down David Robey?
Odette reached out to retired Detective Superintendent Martin Schenk, who had previously worked closely with Luther. After going through Luther’s belongings, Martin came across the letter and was confident that Luther would go after the source. His guess was right; Luther discovered the location of the broadcasting station for the crime. The owner of the tattoo parlor, Derek, attempted to flee the moment Luther asked him about the broadcast. Luther held him down and questioned him about the transmitter that he found in his parlor. Funny how Derek did not utter a single word when Luther tried to tattoo his eyeball, but he shared the truth when Luther expressed how he believed Derek was a decent person. Sometimes, kindness does pay off. Luther learned that Derek was sent the transmitter by courier and was asked to run it for twenty-four hours. The killer knew a dark secret about Derek. He had been involved with a man who was into submissive sexual fantasies that gradually turned brutal, and the man did not use the safe word to stop Derek. Derek realized that he had been catfished and that the man he was with was sent by someone else. The cat-fisher had videotaped the entire event, and Derek obeyed his every command to stop him from posting it online. Derek handed over a phone that he used to contact the person, and Luther had a day to figure out his location.
It is gradually revealed that David Robey had an entire army working for him. They had access to every webcam, and they classified every dark secret of their subjects. Robey had developed a catalog, and he chose the most vulnerable subjects to target. Meanwhile, Luther contacted Schenk to trace the number he got from Derek. Schenk helped Luther track down the number to Piccadilly Square and, at the same time, helped the police locate Luther. At Piccadilly Square, when Luther dialed the number, he spotted a man who received the call. Robey held a civilian hostage and warned Luther of the chaos he was about to unleash. The police aimed to arrest Luther and Robey, but the sudden series of suicides in the Square led to mayhem. Robey had planned the show well in advance, and he was waiting at the Square to witness his plan in action. Luther’s presence was shocking for Robey, but he managed to escape to the underground station. While Luther got hold of Robey, the delayed action of an armed cop provided Robey the perfect opportunity to attack him and flee. Luther was a wanted man, but that did not change his loyalty to his men. He catered to the wound of the young cop, and it was only when the cop requested him to leave did he escape from the scene.
Luther contacted Schenk again and discussed the possible common factor among all of Robey’s victims. After his discussion with Derek, he realized that the killer’s targets had something shameful to hide and chose death over being exposed. Even though he was no longer a cop, he continued to be the protector of the common people and loyal to those working for the law. While Luther tried to figure out the psyche of the killer at hand, Robey threatened Archie Woodward to find a way to stop Luther in exchange for not exposing his disgraceful secrets.
‘Luther: The Fallen Sun’ Ending Explained: Why Did David Robey Create The Red Room? Is Luther Hired By The MI6?
David Robey kidnapped Raine’s daughter, Anya, to secure his final plan. His assistant, Kachimov, had already launched a website inviting the audience to watch the torture and vote for the murder method of their victims. Victims would be executed according to the most popular method. With little time on his hands, Martin Schenk figured out that Luther was right in assuming that there was a commonality among all his victims. Five of his victim’s family members had befriended a man in his 40s, and the man had always discussed with them how his wife had burned to death in a house fire in Eccleston Square. This was a breakthrough discovery, and Raine was impressed. She immediately searched her system and came across the profile of David Robey. Robey knew this was inevitable, so he planned it all ahead. He used Anya to threaten Raine into keeping his identity hidden, and he expected her to take care of Luther for him. Raine’s world had come crashing down with just a phone call, and she was ready to do whatever it took to protect Anya. She got rid of Martin, realizing that he was getting too close to the truth. She called Luther, and they agreed to meet at a public place.
Odette met Luther at a bar, and she disclosed all the information she had on Robey. He was accused of sexual assault, but it was never proven in court. When his wife decided to leave him after a few months, she was injured in a fire accident. Robey was accused of arson, but again it was left unproven. After the accident, his wife was admitted to a facility, and she continued to live there. After she shared the information, John followed her to her car. He realized that Robey had gotten to her and instead of holding him hostage to save her daughter, he offered to help her come up with a plan. Even though trusting John was not ideal, it was better than hoping a serial killer would spare her daughter. They arrived at the facility where his wife was admitted. Georgette initially was not keen on speaking with them but when John confirmed that they were not sent by Robey to test her loyalty and that he had Odette’s daughter, she opened up. She disclosed the location of the Scandinavian bungalow where John kept his victims. John and Odette learned that Robey was not operating it alone; he had an entire group of people working to make the Red Room a reality. While Luther and Raine left to follow Robey to Norway, Archie informed Robey about their plan. He instructed Archie to drug Georgette, and just as Archie was about to execute the plan, Martin Schenk and his men arrested him. As it turns out, Luther had predicted that someone would be sent to take care of Georgette, and Martin had a hunch that Archie was involved.
While walking to the snow-covered bungalow in the middle of nowhere, John noticed the corpses beneath the sheet of ice they were walking on. Raine followed the audio recording of Anya, which was playing continuously. She followed it to a room and found Anya’s body hanging from the ceiling. Raine was devastated, and she blamed Luther for destroying her life. To give Raine a moment to take it all in, Luther left the room. He found a passage to the basement that led him to an area with a red light. Robey attacked Luther from behind before he had time to process the entire situation. Meanwhile, upon attentively inspecting the body, Raine realized it was not her daughter. Nevertheless, it was too late, and Kachimov knocked her unconscious. When Luther opened his eyes, he found himself in a room surrounded by multiple cameras. Robey was live streaming his show on his website and Luther was his first victim. Raine was feeling conflicted as they brought her inside the red room since she could see Anya through the glass window in the adjacent room. She would not let anything stop her from saving her daughter, even if it meant hurting Luther in front of an audience. She pushed the dagger into Luther’s body according to the instructions of the audience, and Luther held no grudge against her.
The goal of David’s entire endeavor was to enable individuals who, like him, were shunned and rejected by society. He believed they had the right to explore and enjoy what gave them pleasure. It was self-righteous people such as Luther and Raine who had labeled people like him as monsters. He attempted to blur the lines between right and wrong by compelling them to use violence against one another. But when Luther was asked to shatter Raine’s kneecap, he chose not to play according to Robey’s rules. He instead tried to get under the skin of the psychopath by screaming out his vulnerabilities. He informed the audience that the police were tracking their location. He added that the cops were on their way to the bungalow and that Robey did not have much time on his hands. Luther’s words got to Robey, and he fled from the room. Luther followed Robey while Raine freed her daughter. Kachimov’s obsession with burning the victims did not end with Robey’s exit. He activated the burn mode in the room and tried to hold the mother and daughter back.
While Raine dealt with Kachimov, Anya managed to open the valve on the water pipe. Kachimov died in the fire, while Anya and Raine managed to escape the room with Luther’s help. Luther followed Robey inside his car, and it eventually fell into the lake. Luther did not give up; he grabbed the remote control and unlocked the red room door. The car drowned in the lake with Robey and Luther in it. Robey tackled Luther and tried to escape, but by the time he got to the surface, he was trapped underneath the ice sheet. His body floated with the corpses of his victims. He might have felt helpless in his final moments, just like his victims did. Luther was rescued by the police, and they provided support to the caged victims of Robey. Mark and Raine reminded Luther that it was time for him to surrender himself to the law, and Luther obeyed their order. But instead of prison, he woke up at a safe house. As it turns out, Luther’s life will not be wasted behind bars. He was too valuable to the force, and they believed it was time for him to accept a new job role. He met with “Chief,” presumably the head of MI6.
We can expect Luther to be back in action, not as a cop but as a secret service agent. Perhaps, in order to avoid the legalities, he will be officially reported dead, but he will still operate as a vigilante in a covert manner. By the end of “Luther: The Fallen Sun,” he was dead to the world; his life ended with the fall, but he was reborn as an agent with a new life and a new beginning.
