Star Wars, believe it or not, is not. It's a space opera or fantasy.
Not that it matters.
Star Trek fits the bill frequently, but the movies are hit or miss, and tend to have a crapload of television reruns to satisfy our science fiction movie tastes. Fantasy? Lord of the Rings? That's the only active fantasy title out of a Disney movie that I can really think of. Oh, don't get me wrong, there's a few gazillion titles, but in my movie-phile brain, why can't I think of them off the top of my tiny head? Because they didn't make that much of a mark on me or the public?
I will admit, however, one title does pop up-the Fifth Element, by Frenchman Luc Besson.
Yeh, there we go.
As soon as I start to see that, other titles pop into my noggin. Aliens. The Fly. (I tend not to count the superhero genre, since they tend to go fast and loose with the science items).
So, yeah, it took a bit of work to get to that point.
Thank Fate for Monsieur Besson.
Leave it to the French to bring us more science fiction, I mean, really. These are the guys who brought us Jules Verne and every wonderful thing after that! But science fiction is rare, as itself as a genre. It tends to be absorbed into other genres, like fantasy or high adventure. Rarely, however, do it seem to live the life it proposes. Even a dystopian nightmare isn't truly science fiction-it's a setting.
But where the science takes center stage? Rare.
What's also rare? A movie that isn't a franchise. Or, at least, not yet.
Which brings us to Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.
Valerian is a French comic book and Luc grew up with it. Imagine a hard-boiled military man who works for Alpha, a spacestation with a few million inhabitants. Here's the deal that's bound to piss off the uncreative-millions of those inhabitants are from different alien races. All in harmony. All adapting to their specific needs on this huge city, living a life with others they may or may not get along with.
See? Fiction, for sure. No wall being threatened here.
The point being, the who premise is inviting. Of course, our military man, played by Dane DeHaan and his counterpart (I dare not say sidekick, for, I noticed, even if he gets the top billing, her character is truly the protagonist) Laureline, investigate a kidnapping after obtaining a McGuffin.
On a sidenote, this is Laureline's film. She is played by Cara Delavigne and is a sight to behold. She is slick, to the point, and fascinating.
That's what I mean. Were this an Amercian title, I don't know if we'd see the same kind of well-rounded female character with so much of the film relying on her.
The film starts off with a delicious bang, with the prerequisite bickering of the two leads, keeping their dialogue moving forward. They head to intercept said McGuffin at a setting that can only exist in science fiction. A multidimensional "Great Market" where people use virtual reality to make deals. The sequence is creative, exciting, and, since people are in at least two different dimensions, science fiction-y.
But Valerian himself is the weak link here. He needs a certain confidence that this performer, who every time I've seen is engaging and excellent, seems uncomfortable and unauthoritative. His limp portrayal is strangely lacking, as if he doesn't want to be there. He doesn't bark commands, he merely suggests them. I want to see more from this young man. Just not here.
The fact is, this is a foreign film. It meets all the notes of the French aesthetic, while meeting all the requirements of solid plotting that American films excel at. Also part of that aesthetic?
This film is lush. We have five different biomes of existences and each and every denizen is given full digital renderings in eye-popping colors.
It's glorious. So, even when the film wanes in the second act as characters prep for the finale, you don't mind as much. Laureline is kidnapped and Valerian has to do some old school sleuthing and subterfuge to obtain a "Glam-Pod," played by R and B singer Rihanna.
I can't review her. I fucking love her and her music. Cause if I did review her part I'd have to point out, well, the camera loves her, she looks awesome, but, ah, she can't act at all. She doesn't have that strength. Even when she is digitally removed from the movie (she is, after all, a shapeshifting jello GlamPod), she doesn't have the presence to hold the character to the audience. Unfortunate.
I should not have said that. Because I want you to like this wonderful movie. It's really good.
So good, that I noticed a trend. People who like French films are find with the title. People who liked Lucy, also from Luc, they liked this movie. And if you liked the Fifth Element? You'll be fine.
Did I mention it's lush?
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