Ruth Wilson Satellite Awards nomination

Ruth has revieved a nomination for best "Actress in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for Television" for her part in the BBC's Luther.

The nominations in that category are as follows:

Claire Danes - "Temple Grandin"
Hope Davis - "The Special Relationship"
Judi Dench - "Return to Cranford"
Naomie Harris - "Small Island"
Ellie Kendrick - "The Diary of Anne Frank"
Winona Ryder - "When Love is Not Enough"
Ruth Wilson - "Luther"

The winners will be revealed on 19 December 2010.

Idris Elba and Ruth Wilson Luther Interview

www.collider.com/2010/10/02/idris-elba-ruth-wilson-interview-luther/ have an interview with Idris Elba and Ruth Wilson about crime drama Luther which premieres on BBC America on 17 October 2010. Here's a Ruth excerpt:

Ruth: When I first read it, it did resonate with me as a piece that was a bit similar to Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling, except it’s the other way around. That really appealed to me. You certainly don’t get many female roles like this. The relationship develops throughout the series. It starts off with her having committed a crime and Luther trying to pin her down for it. And, as the series goes on, it becomes a game of cat and mouse between the two of them. They actually realize they have an intellectual interest in each other, as well as a sexual chemistry. They are just fascinated by each other, so it’s a really interesting dynamic. She ends up helping and they become partners in crime a bit. It’s a fascinating dynamic between the two characters, and something that hadn’t really been explored that much on TV before. That’s why it was so appealing.

Follow the above link for more.

By the way I noticed links on that page about a prequel to The Thing so I'm off to investigate that!

Luther to return (and Sherlock too)

I've not found much detail but apparently the BBC's Luther will return in 2011 for "two hour-long specials". One would hope that Ruth Wilson will be returning as Alice Morgan. Note the use of the word "specials" as they can't very well call it a series with just two episodes.

Still, it's welcome news even if it's only two episodes.

Sherlock will also be returning for three more episodes.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-11124783

Sherlock is also out on DVD. I'm tempted to buy it as it includes an un-broadcast pilot episode that according to the IMDb Zoe telford is in, whereas in the broadcast series she was introduced in the second episode and only makes a fleeting appearance in the third.

Luther episode 6

The final episode of Luther aired this week and while it was an enjoyable conclusion to the series it's plot perhaps does not stand up to much scrutiny.

A few cards had been thrown up into the air at the end of episode 5, not least Luther going on the run after finding his wife's body, knowing he's the main suspect. He finds refuge in Alice Morgan's flat, saying he needs somewhere to think. She sees though this immediately and get him to admit he wants her help to get Ian Reed.

Thankfully Ruth's screen presence has been bumped up significantly in the last episode and Alice Morgan clearly is relishing the whole Bonnie and Clyde double-act with Luther.

As mentioned, there are a number of plot holes. Here's just a couple.

Why did Luther go to meet Reed when he knew there would be armed police and snipers ready to shoot him? If he wanted to get Reed's diamonds why not arrange the meet, and instead of turning up just phone or text to say "We've got the diamonds"? And how could he know his partner would be in a position to stop the sniper?

And how did Luther convince Mark to help him so quickly, especially when Alice has been holding a knife to his throat? There's a lot more plot holes where they came from.

By the episode's end Luther, Alice and Mark are standing over Reed's body with the sound of sirens approaching. One can't help wonder what will happen next. I do hope we find out.

Luther Episode 5

Right, that's long enough for you to have seen the episode. If not beware of spoilers, although I won't spoil the big finale. At least not totally...

What a cracking episode.

It starts off as a typical episode of Luther. (Well, typical for Luther but very few other BBC dramas.) Some bad guys kidnap a man and his wife demanding diamonds that they know the man has. The make their point by cutting out the wife's tongue (mercifully off camera). The husband can't tell them where the diamonds are as his wife swallowed them to smuggle them out of the country and he's pretty convinced that the bad guys will cut her open to get them.

How's that for a set-up.

So the husband is released to get the diamonds and goes to the police station looking for Luther's partner Ian Reed. He gets Luther instead and they start looking for the bad guys.

Except.

Except Ian Reed it turns out is a dirty cop who is involved with some criminals who in turn are involved with this episode's bad guys. He's off trying to undo the damage, rescue the wife and not get caught.

And everything that can go wrong does, the body count rises and Luther finds out that Reed is involved. Reed goes to visit Zoe and asks her to phone Luther.

And then...

And then it all makes sense. All the scenes from the previous episodes where Luther smashes stuff and shouts and throws stuff around. The scene in the first episode where he goes to the ex-wife's house to punch Paul McGann and she calls the police. All of a sudden it all makes sense as Luther says "what have you done?" And you think to yourself "that's a bloody good cliffhanger and I did not see that coming."

I should note that Ruth Wilson is only in one scene of this episode but the preview of the next episode bodes well:

Luther: "Alice, I need you to help me."
Alice: "Where do we start?"

Ruth Wilson interview in the Telegraph

Today's Telegraph newspaper has an interview with Ruth Wilson focusing mostly on the ongoing Luther on BBC1 and the upcoming Through a Glass Darkly.

Is it possible for an actor to be too good? There was a moment when it looked that way in Luther, the current BBC One cop drama (which ends next week). Idris Elba, playing a detective with anger issues, attempted in episode one to tease a confession from Ruth Wilson’s deliciously insane physicist. Though prime suspect in the murder of her parents, you wouldn’t have guessed it from the storm of tears she prettily conjured up in the interview room. Wilson, the scene told you, is a very good actress playing a very good actress - maybe too good for such a shameless slice of high-concept hokum.

“I’ve had more positive comments about that show that I’ve had about anything I’ve done,” she says - this a slightly bruised riposte to its negative reception. ”I love the fact that it’s bold and completely unrealistic. I just loved the tongue-in-cheek element about the dialogue and thought you could have a lot of fun playing with it. It was completely different to everything I’d read before.”

And I had to include this bit aboug her hair colour:

The features in question have been framed by striking bottle-red hair ever since Wilson went out to Namibia to film The Prisoner, in which she played a doctor. “I thought, she’s a bit of an odd character, a little bit on the edge, let’s
make her red. I loved it and I’ve kept it ever since.”

You can read the whole article at www.telegraph.co.uk

And I'll wait a day or two before posting my thoughts on Luther 5, just so I don't spoil anyone. :)

Luther episode 4

Another enjoyable episode of this show. This one features another serial killer who uses a taxi to catch his victims.

Early in the episode Luther is told that the serial killer he put in a coma (at the start of episode 1) has woken up. He goes to Alice to tell her he can't see her any more because his phone and email will be monitored. Alice doesn't take it very well.

Alice disguises herself as a doctor and manages to get the policeman guarding the serial killer to go to another ward. Then she smothers the killer so she and Luther can be together.

When Luther finds out he Smashes Stuff again. Brilliant.

She also breaks the news to Luther's ex-wife's boyfriend that the ex-wife is cheating on him (the boyfriend) with her ex-husband. Yes it's complicated.

Once again Ruth is great as Alice Morgan, coldly calculating and just on this side of barking mad.

As an added bonus here is a nice photo of Ruth from the new issue of the Radio Times.

Luther Episode 3

Episode 3 and I'm really enjoying this show now. I do find myself looking forward to each new episode. This is largely due to Ruth Wilson's performance as Alice Morgan. I don't think you could find a role farther away from her Jane Eyre.

However be warned that this weeks episode contains some disturbing imagery. The lead bad guy is sick and twisted beyond what I've normally seen in UK cop shows. He's an occultist who has a thing about abducting young mothers and writing in their blood. Told you it was disturbing.

Very early in the episode the boyfriend of Luther's ex-wife is attacked by some girl hoodies. He suspects Luther was behind it but of course it is Alice Morgan who arranged it. She's enjoying pulling strings.

Luther is obviously trying to keep his mind on catching the mad occult guy and at one point goes to Alice to get an "insight" on what he should do. It's a scene obviously and deliberately reminiscent of Silence of the Lambs but rather than take place in an over-stylised movie dungeon it happen in a modern university computer lab. Alice advises Luther to "change the game". And he does.

At the end of the episode Luther and his ex hook up for some passionate smooching in an apartment with no curtains. Predictably Alice is watching from another building and I suspect she's not too happy.

It looks like things start to kick off next week.

Ruth Wilson in JFK movie (maybe) and Luther episode 2

Just a quick alert that www.imdb.com is reporting a potential Ruth project about JFK with her playing Jackie!

Now, on to Luther...

Last night's second episode was very interesting. Ruth wasn't in it as much as she was in the first episode because the story focused on Sean Pertwee's son assassinating police officers in revenge for his dad being locked up. However Alice Morgan was around and clearly up to no good. In one scene she's disguised as a hospital volunteer and chats to Luther on the phone while sitting next to the serial killer he put in a coma.

Later in the episode Luther's wife and boyfriend hear a noise downstairs and investigate. There's Alice at the kitchen table drinking a glass of wine and chirpily enquiring if Mrs Luther knew her husband put said serial killer in the coma. Zoe's silent rely speaks volumes and Alice happily lets herself out with a cheery goodbye.

My favourite moment in the episode was the scene at the end when Alice and Luther meet up on the bridge where they had a Dramatic Confrontation at the end of the previous episode. I think Luther's last line was something like "one cup of coffee doesn't make us friends" and off they went practically arm-in-arm! I guess no one else "gets" him and they've made a connection. Bless.

This is not your usual cop show...

Luther Episode 1

Episode 1 of Luther was on BBC1 last night and seeing as Ruth Wilson was in it I made a special effort to watch it. Actually it did require a bit of extra effort as BBC1 Northern Ireland broadcast the episode almost two hours later than the rest of the country. This was because we in NI had the dubious pleasure of watching the Northern Ireland Leaders Debate.

Please note I use the words "pleasure", "leaders" and "debate" in the loosest possible sense of the words. But I digress...

On his first day back on the job Luther is given the task of investigating the murder of a husband and wife. The only witness is their daughter Alice Morgan played by Ruth Wilson.

Luther early on realises Alice must have committed the murders but he cannot prove anything. However he is sure that the chink in her armour is her intelligence and she will be too arrogant to stop letting something slip eventually. After she is released he confronts her in an attempt to try and provoke her. This in turn reveals his own arrogance at thinking he can outsmart her.

Ruth's character Alice promises to be an unwelcome presence in Luther's life in future episodes. Ruth as always is a revelation. Alice looks likes she is having too much fun and Ruth gives her a presence that puts me in mind of a cat lapping up a particularly delicious bowl of milk, especially when sparing with Luther.

To be honest not a lot happens in the first episode but I think it's very much a setting-the-scene type of episode and the series probably should be assessed as a whole. For example I wonder what Alice has in mind for the serial killer in the coma...

Writer Neil Cross wrote the following on the BBC website:

I love John Luther, naturally. But I also love unreservedly the character of Alice Morgan. In fact, on that first night out with the cast I seem to recall telling Ruth Wilson (who plays her) that in many ways I considered Alice to be the perfect woman. She looked at me, it has to be said, with a degree of horror.

Alice was a formidable role - chilly and flirtatious, murderous and vulnerable, high-minded and caustic, sometimes in the same sentence. But Ruth makes her absolutely real, and utterly riveting. There's a moment in episode four where she truly frightens me.

I was on set when Idris and Ruth filmed their first scene together. It was a spine-tingling event - but I don't think it's good for me to hang round on set, because that's just not where a writer belongs. So I made myself scarce and let them get on with their jobs.

Source:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/tv/2010/04/introducing-luther-with-love-t.shtml

News on the first ratings can be seen here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/may/05/tv-ratings-luther-idris-elba

PS There was also a good scene where he kicks the crap out of an innocent door.

The Prisoner on DVD and Luther update

I was a little surprised to see the The Prisoner is out on DVD in the UK this week, exactly half-way through ITV1's broadcast of the six-part series. Normally TV DVD's are timed to appear the Monday after the last episode of the series has been shown.

In any case it's out there for those who can't wait to see how it all turns out. Here's the Jim Caviezel-shaped cover art:


In addition to the six episodes the DVD contains the following special features:

• Deleted scenes
• The Making of The Prisoner
• Character profiles
• The Prisoner read-through
• Jamie Campbell-Bower interviewing Ian McKellen
• Comic Con 2009: The Prisoner panel
• Inside The Prisoner

In other Ruth Wilson developments we have episode 1 of Luther on BBC1 tonight. I had assumed that Ruth was only in the first episode but looking at the Radio Times today I was very pleasantly surprised to see her name listed in episode 2's cast list. Can we hope for Ruth in all six episode I wonder? If so I give a resounding "yippee".

Trailer and presskit for Ruth Wilson's Luther

The BBC Press Office website has posted some material on the upcoming six-part crime series Luther staring Idris Elba. Also appearing is Ruth Wilson as Alice Morgan, who is described as "beautiful, extraordinarily intelligent and a key witness in Luther's first investigation."

Here are some Ruth quotes from the presskit on her role:

"What intrigued me about the script was the writing, which was fantastic, and the characters within it – you don't get many female roles which are evil in that sense. I was really intrigued by it, and thought it was a wonderful piece that you could have a lot of fun with."

"I try all the time to do something that's going to take me somewhere else as an actress. The parts I played, both Jane Eyre and Queenie in Small Island, there’s always an emotional drive throughout the story with those characters.

"It's been quite weird for me to play, because I'm so used to being emotionally driven by being in love with someone, or loss of something, or frightened by someone – suddenly she is this all powerful woman who doesn’t have those feelings."

You can read all of ruth's comments in the Luther presskit.

Plus you can get a glimpse of what promises to be a very different role for Ruth by watching the Luther trailer.