The Fifth Element (1997)

As the credits rolled at the end of The Fifth Element earlier this week (the first time I’d ever seen it incidentally) I had to check Luc Besson’s Imdb page. I was pretty sure he’d made many films since The Fifth Element, but my initial reaction was confusion. How had he managed such a back catalogue when whoever wrote The Fifth Element must have surely been sectioned immediately on the films release?

Of course I should have realised earlier than I did, Besson was a producer on Taken and I’ve actually seen many of his films since The Fifth Element that I’ve inexplicably quite liked (Lockout, 2012, Lucy, 2014). Not to mention the fact that Besson was behind Leon (1995), undoubtedly his masterpiece to date.

The more I thought about the film, the more I liked it. It’s Blade Runner on so many drugs that the death knell should be imminent, but the final blow never comes. The invention in the film is second to none, the early flying car chase is thrilling and the visuals back up its $93,000,000 budget. I was reminded of several films as well as Blade Runner, Terry Gilliam’s Brazil (1985) is a touch point, and Star Wars is absolutely in the fabric of the film. The big difference between this and Star Wars however, is that The Fifth Element doesn’t take itself seriously at all, and in that respect you feel fine laughing at it. When Star Wars is silly, you get frustrated at the fact that people take it very, very, very seriously. The presence of Ian Holm also reminds you of Alien (1979), and there's even a nod to Moonraker (1979) at the films conclusion. What also must be mentioned are the performances. Sure, Bruce Willis plays John McClane in what must now be looked back at as The Fifth Die Hard (that’s a really good joke if you appreciate the 5th Die Hard film shouldn’t exist for crimes against cinema) but Gary Oldman and Chris Tucker almost walk off with the film with outrageously brilliant performances. It’s also highly amusing when Bruce Willis tells police he is not a human, he is identifying as a meat popsicle; and as a result avoids arrest. One wonders if it was screened now, whether that joke is vaporized from existence to avoid inescapable offence. Deranged doesn’t even begin to describe The Fifth Element, amongst scenes of cinematic carnage there are breathtaking visuals and wonderful performances. The only way to make your own mind up is to see it. 7.0/10