Luther: The Fallen Sun's Frightening Man In A Mask Holds Real Meaning
Anyone watching "Luther: The Fallen Sun" (or anyone who has seen the trailer) will surely recognize the disturbing mask featured in the film. In "Fallen Sun," Andy Serkis' killer uses the mask as the face of his dark web live-streaming site, the Red Bunker, but it serves as more than just a mascot.
In the film, Luther (Idris Elba) suggests that the mask is another way for Robey (Serkis) to spread fear through the people. Not only does he capitalize on the urban legend of red rooms to achieve his goals, but the mask adds a layer of terrifying secrecy to his grand plan. Because he and his followers hide their identities with the incredibly-creepy mask, it suggests that, as Luther says, the lunatic "can touch anyone he wants anywhere he likes."
Robey also uses the masks to justify his villainous actions, thinking it'll unlock everyone's true identity, allowing them to act just as psychotic as himself. In "Fallen Sun," Robey believes everyone has a dark side, but fear of public perception prevents them from capitalizing on it. However, by incorporating the masks, people can rid themselves of any worries of punishment, assuming a collective secret identity to do as they please.
Luther: The Fallen Sun uses technology as the source of fear
While Luther's struggle with technology has been an ongoing battle in every season, "The Fallen Sun" brings that to the forefront, with David Robey using it to instill fear across London. With the show's first movie, "Luther" creator Neil Cross wanted to use a technology everyone's familiar with, the internet, to "articulate a shared fear."
Speaking with Mashable, Cross explained that the fear that Robey capitalizes on in "Fallen Sun" is something humans have dealt with for a long time. "Freud would have called it the super ego, Proust would have called it God," he explained. "But there's always a sense that in our most private, shameful, bestial moments, there's somebody watching and judging us. And that sense of being watched is what keeps us from enacting on our worst instincts."
While Cross doesn't believe anyone was watching over the people before, now, with the incorporation of the internet into our everyday lives, someone may be watching over online activity. With "The Fallen Sun," he asked, what if that somebody was like David Robey? In the movie, Robey sees what people are like online, offering them the unsettling mask so they can act on their inner desires before blackmailing them into carrying out his horrible tasks. Cross called the idea nightmarish, showing the harmful impact the internet could have on society.