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The Fifth Element

The Fifth Element

List Price: $19.94
Your Price: $15.95
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Weak plot and dialogue
Review: I was very disapointed in this film, mainly because it had such enormous potential (great special effects and actors), but stunk so bad. The plot and dialogue were very weak, and Chris Tucker (who is usually good)'s character was so annoying I couldn't stand it! The only reason I gave this movie two stars (instead of one) is because I must admit the effects (especially the city-scape) were very good. But they should've done a better job on the script. The writers could have taken a lesson from "Stargate".

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Fun to look at. A nice R-13 movie.
Review: This is a a "threefer" film: you need to see it three times to get it. I originally did not like this film. It was visually vivid, which is one of the reasons why you see a film, but I came away feeling that this film wasn't very ennobling.

I saw it again yesterday and did two things: I did a fast foreward edit and made it actually into a PG-13 movie, and I also paid attention to the editing. It became a better film in my eyes.

This is a wonderful film to look at. Besson used graphic novelists to help design the costumes and aliens, so it has that glitzy look to it. Remember film, is primarily a visual medium. We need more Fritz Lang's (M, Metropolis) and Gregg Tolands (Citizen Kane) who have that sense of sight and can make movies look like Louvre pieces.

Look at the police uniforms, look at the aliens, look at Leeloo. They actually look like something, and are not just there in the latest fashion. Even the actors have that artsy look, as if they were pulled from a graphic novel. Study the President's face, the general's profile, Leeloo's hair. It is fun to look at!

The editing is great, where you are seeing two stories at once, and are shown how they interrelate. It is wonderful plot building and is funny to boot! Speilburg is another director who does this well.

The plot is an interesting one, mixing element of the Mummy and Indian Jones films with the history as destiny, and is therefore one of those great sci-fi films that have a healthy dash of fantasy thrown in. For some reason, it doesn't work backwards! Ghostbusters, Star Wars, and Dune all have this magical aura about the technology, and it make the stories almost religious.

My hang-ups are these:

The first is the Ruby Rhod character (Chris Tucker), who is a Steve Urkel-RuPaul-Dennis Rodman combinations and got annoying at times. In fact, I would prefer Jar-Jar Binks of Ruby Rhod! I understand he is in there for comic relief, but Ruby at times is as funny as a hemeroid.

The second hang-up was with the secondary characters: the have no souls. Everyone is subsumed into Korban Dallas's ubermensch shadow. Look at the acolyte, who is always trembling and jumpy. Would you want him to receive your confession, or preform a circumcision? I realize that this is a cartoonish movie, but it was overdone at times.

Lastly, this is an R-13 movie, not a PG-13. So how does all of the nudity help the plot or tell the story? Anyone. The scene where they reconstruct Leeloo from the hand (a resurrection motif), had Leeloo all exposed in edenic glory. Compare that to Metropolis when Rotwang gives the robot Maria's likeness. A similar transparent tube device is used, but Lang is more discreet with his actresses and they are covered. A similar thing could have been done here, without any violence being done to the story. But you already know that!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: I paid to see this movie? They should have paid me instead.
Review: I went to see this movie with a good friend, and when it was over we looked at each other and simultaneously asked two questions: 1.) What the hell did we just watch? & 2.) We paid $7 bucks to see THIS? It was one of the most disappointing movies I've ever seen. Reading many of the other reviews, it seems others saw a lot more in this movie than we did--something I have a hard time understanding, much less explaining. I won't try to analyze their mindsets and reasons, and rather than ranting about it and getting lots of "This review was not useful to me" points, I'm just going to try to help any kindred spirits out there to avoid our miserable experience by listing a few things that made this movie less than a pleasant experience for us. If you like Euro-type "art films"--or at least that style of visually stunning, heavily symbolic but low on comprehensible plot type of film--you'll like this movie. If you're like me and prefer a strong plot where you don't have to hurt your brain trying to figure what is going on on the screen and why it's going on, you'll struggle with this movie. It's interesting to me to compare this movie with one like "2001: a Space Odyssey": this movie is also visually stunning science fiction (though it makes no feeble attempts to be humorous like "The Fifth Element"), low on dialogue and consequently, an obvious message and/or plot. However, the notion of "a picture being worth a thousand words" comes across strongly here: the images are carefully chosen and edited in to communicate the story non-verbally (with the exception of the HAL sequence which is more of a typical story told in dialogue). "The Fifth Element" is more like a confused series of "How does that connect with the rest of the movie?" images. Throughout "The Fifth Element" I repeatedly found myself wondering "Why did they put that there?" or "Was that really necessary? (Why?)" or "What was that??" I have to give credit to Bruce Willis though: his peformance--and his character's humorous lines--are about the sole entertaining aspect of this movie. If I had to see it again, I think I would just turn off the sound and watch the visually-stunning images fly by; however, I would probably find it even more enjoyable if I were intoxicated the next time I watched it. At least that way I'd get a lot of laughs out of the movie.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Ridiculous- and delightful
Review: If you're a fan of the French comic "Metal Hurlant" (or its English edition, "Heavy Metal"), then you're the perfect audience for this marvelous piece of comic art brought to life. Bruce Willis is in his element playing the reluctant hero living, plucked from his life as a taxicab driver to save the world from destruction. Milla Jovovich is superb as Leeloo. Gary Oldman is absolutely marvelous as the trancedentally evil Jean-Baptiste Emmanuel Zorg.

"The Fifth Element" never takes itself too serously, and indeed there are a number of wonderfully comic moments. Buy it, and save it for a dark winter weekend when everything outside is frozen slush and you need a bit of adventure and silliness to cheer yourself up.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Eye popping movie, Creative, Funny, and beatiful
Review: One of the best uses of special effects I have ever seen. This movie is in a class all its own. Most will enjoy performances by Gary Oldman, Bruce Willis, and Jovovich (sp?)

Luc Besson's creative power is at its peak. Fantastic costumes by Jean-Paul Gautier. And intense realistic creature effects.

Buy this movie

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the greatest movies I've ever seen!!!
Review: I've had this movie ever since it first came out and I love, love, love, love it!!! Bruce Willis is just great, Milla Jovovich is the lovable Leeloo, Gary Oldman was perfect as Zorg, and of course Chris Tucker as Ruby Rod was just... excellent!! These four actors (and actress) is just what I think the greatest ever! This movie has the right blend of action, adventure, and humor. The DVD doesn't have so many special features but you can watch in either wide screen or full screen. And the image and sounds are so clear. I can watch this movie over and over and over. If I could, I'd rate "The Fifth Element" 10 stars! Watch this movie!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Impressive!
Review: Hey, you can't ask for much more than this! Really icky, mean monsters, a beautiful heroine with some pretty impressive kung-fu skills, Bruce Willis playing his usual humorous self, Gary Oldman as his usual villainous self (with a Southern accent? where did that come from?) excellent special effects, a wonderfully futuristic city...it's all a lot of fun. I did, however, have a problem with Chris Tucker, who just doesn't fit and is really really really annoying. Besides him, though, the whole thing is a blast.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Just Plain Fun
Review: There's just something about this movie that makes me watch it again and again. It's an interesting story with a good futuristic setting. One of the features I liked the most about this movie was the music. It was well suited to the action sequences and sychronized with the movements of the actors. The movie is funny and just plain fun to watch.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the best movies ever!
Review: I saw this movie a while after it came out. One of my friends was always trying to get me to watch it but I never would because what she likes is usually not so good. But I have to hand it to her... on this movie anyway. It's about a fifth element that can save the world through a divine light. Corbin and Leeloo must get the other four elements and use them before Zorg gets them and stands where the fifth element should. That would creat total chaos you see. And they must do all of this before a massive evil comet like thing hurtles into Earth. Leeloo (Milla Jovovich) really catches your attention. This movie is largely visual, and innovative. I really wasn't expecting this. I'm trying to think of other movies to compare this one to, but there aren't that many. Atleast, not presented in such a beautiful way.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A new cult classic
Review: One of the best science fiction films made in recent history. The only other film I would give this rating to is "Blade runner".

Personally, I thought Bruce Willis to be a pretty bad actor but after this movie he has really taken a step forward and has made a lot of progress with some excellent films.

I had never seen any movie with Milla Jovovich, but after this one I'm definitely looking forward to her next one!


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