THE FIFTH ELEMENT
A film review by Ted Prigge
Copyright 1997 Ted Prigge
Director/Co-author: Luc Besson Starring: Bruce Willis, Milla Jovovich, Gary Oldman, Ian Holm, Chris Tucker, Luke Perry, Tiny Lister Jr., Tricky, John Neville, Brion James
I remember when a movie called STARGATE came out a couple years ago. It looked so interesting and so damn cool. Then I saw it...dull as a lecture on the pros and cons of photosynthesis. 'Course it went on to make a lot of money while the director's second feature became the most overly popular flick of last year (that was, in case you've been shacking up with J.D. Salinger, INDEPEDENCE DAY...another nice idea turned pretty stupid albeit much better than STARGATE).
I've heard Luc Besson's THE FIFTH ELEMENT being compared to STARGATE. My big question is: "Like, in what ways, man?" THE FIFTH ELEMENT is a sigh of relief from those hokey sci-fi films of olden days that should be shown on MST3K like THIS ISLAND EARTH and THE AMAZING COLLOSSAL MAN.
While the plot isn't totally amazing (I know, we were all expecting satire here a la blade runner with a bit of Kafka tossed in just to differ the two), it's more interesting than anything else out, so why are we all bitching? I refuse to totally divulge the plot since it's been nicely bottled up by M. Besson so when one sees it, they're shocked, which is what SHOULD happen anyway: the world is going to be destroyed and a mysteriously woman with bizarre hair and a fluent other language (I'm giving Milla Jovovich a medal for speaking it so convincingly) is the only hope. She lands in the cab of a bitter ex-army guy, Korben Dallas (a very likable Bruce Willis) and the fun begins.
THE FIFTH ELEMENT starts off slowly but then never sags as it accelerates to what felt like 130 mph. The film just takes off from the first slow frame and by the end, you're going "Wow!" Not only is the film very wild, it looks like the inside of someone's head...allow me to translate what that meant: reportingly, M. Besson tried to put one of his stories from his youth onto celluloid and just had enough money to do that. I sympathize with him, because I've had bizzare futuristic visions in my head too and I can picture what it probably was like (too many plot holes, I can guess). The future isn't really grim or anything, it's just very technical, and he satrizes this with several "nice touches." For one thing, everything's compact and semi-convenient. A comical, Chaplin-esque scene takes place in his small, claustrophobic apartment where he hides people in several different places (i.e. the shower which moves up and down with a freezing closet and a bed that slides underneath a cabinet). And one of the best "nice touches" includes the cigarettes with a filter that takes up a good 9/10 of the actual cigarrette.
The film is a treat for the eyes and the story is a hoot to watch as it unfolds before our eyes with a touch of Kafka in it. The sight of a metropolis with flying cars buzzing by at high speeds is, well, orgasmic. This really could have sucked with a less-competent director. I can see Roland Emmerich making this into a disjumbled mess with hokey humor (my least fave kind of humor). But Luc Besson gives it a great sense of humor (with many great jokes and fine comical performances) and handles it properly: unseriously. If it had been serious, it would have sucked because the plot isn't made to be handled that way.
As far as the acting, it works with the good sense of humor. Bruce Willis is likable but not great. He gave his character a great feel, but it's no John McClane, James Cole or Butch Coolidge (but, hey! He only gets the last two roles ever couple years!) Milla Jovovich has been, well, okay in her past movies (like DAZED AND CONFUSED, KUFFS, CHAPLIN) but here, she's great. I'm not a big fan of her but she was definitely a good scene stealer. Gary Oldman is my personal fave over-actor and here, he has made a wonderful character to impersonate: a wildly eccentric capitalist with a hick accent which puts Jerry Lee Lewis's to shame. The only real kind of annoyance was the usually great Chris Tucker, who plays a D.J. on speed, crack and many other kinds of drugs (I assume). His character dresses worse than Dennis Rodman and speaks faster than the Micro-Machine man. His first scene goes on too long (but gets a good laugh when Bruce shudders at the sound of his name a couple scenes later) but once the opera's over (get the opera for an original plot twist) and the bombs are flying, he's great. And how can I forget Mr. Ian Holm (or, as I sometimes refer to him as "Mr. Most-Underrated-Actor-in-Modern-Times Holm"), who's comedy comes from his acting, not his hyperactivity (which he doesn't posess). His facial expressions are priceless and he should get some kind of medal, just for being a great actor no matter what...including being held at gunpoint by a dog-looking alien.
And how can I even forget the wild, original costumes by Jean-Paul Gautier? They're breathtaking and if they don't win an oscar, I'll hire those dog-like aliens to bomb the Oscar ceremony (just kidding in case anyone takes me seriously).
Overall, this is a must-see film: a child-like film with a wild imagination. It's definitely not for everyone, but it's at least original and a fun ride.
P.S. Luke Perry gets ousted in the first 5 minutes.
MY RATING (out of 5): ****
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