Luther Textual Analysis

 In the extract shown, many elements of mise-en-scene were used. As the Propp Theory suggests the villain was wearing all black which indicates to us he wasn't trying to draw attention but in a matter of fact just blend in with the crowd. The colour black is connoted with evil and mystery which may mirror his actions or intentions. The fact he is wearing sunglasses reinforces to us how he is trying to disguise himself. White men are usually seen as the hero as they are shown to be the more superior race however this crime drama challenges that stereotype of that as the white man is the villain in this case and Luther (the police officer) is the hero even though he is of african descent which is another countertype because black people are often showed as the villain. 


The extract was filmed in an alleyway which is often out of sight from the busy streets so that makes sense why something bad would happen there, however the fact this scene was filmed in the day contradicts the connotations of crime, for example that all crimes happen in the night where it would be dark- which would be hard to see what would be going on- and barely any witnesses there. The audience may be left confused by this because criminals are often exemplified as clever and doing this crime contradicts that.


In accordance with the Propp Theory, Luther is seen to be the hero, however this scene portrays him to be seen as the opposite. He is mostly wearing black which indicates he is trying to blend in, where as police officers don't blend in with their uniform, also the fact he is wearing a hat and sunglasses which suggest to us that he could be committing a crime and was in disguise to do so. As a whole the audience watching would feel torn and misled because in the scene Luther is depicted as aggressive and does assault the other man but that makes Luther look violent even though he is the hero. This would leave the audience confused as to why Luther hit that man.