 "Essential Luc Besson 'cinema du look' masterpiece..." | 2009-10-21 |
| - Reviewed By User: A21DIWOJ0FUV5C |
Simply put, this film is perfect. It's flawless in the sense that it is thoroughly engaging and electrifyingly satisfying, there is never a dull moment. Every frame is just dripping with Luc Besson's gorgeous signature style, the acting/casting is superb, the characters are wonderful, it's a fresh original sci-fi world, great love/adventure story, mind blowing special effects and a gnarly soundtrack to die for.
Critics condemn this movie because the plot is a bit absurd and outlandish, they can't help but put it down, just to rub that "style over substance" stereotype in Besson's face. Well you know what, I'll settle for not having every detail make sense or be plausible, simply because there are moments of pure cinematic genious in this film... action sequences that play out like an elegant meticulously orchestrated ballet with radical Luc Besson cinematography that'll make you want to cream in your pants.
Universally entertaining, solid acting, characters you care about, great original story, visual feast, amazing direction... that's a perfect movie in my book. |
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| "Awsome Movie" | 2009-10-14 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1KSAQBYLKOMY0 |
| I love this movie!!! I was glad to see in UMD format for my husbands psp so I purchased it. great now we can take it on trips! |
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| "Fitfh Element -- First Class Blu-Ray" | 2009-09-25 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1GB0HW46Y2EB |
From what I've gleaned from other reviewers, I guess I have the remastered version of "The Fifth Element" . The picture and sound are both stunning -- better, I think, than anything I've seen on Blu-Ray. The original DVD (non-Blu-Ray), which I also own, has a reputation for outstanding video quality and it does, but the BD is several levels better. Some claim that the DVD is very nearly equivalent in quality to Blu-Ray and you can believe it until you have seen the remastered BD.
As a film. this has to be the finest science-fiction comedy ever conceived. (Yes, Space Balls is funny in places, but it's mainly for kids). Bruce Willis and Milla Jovovich are perfect in this, Chris Rock is generally funny but gets a bit tiring before the film has ended and Gary Oldman is superb as he is in practically everything in which he has appeared. He tends to raise the level of all of his pictures -- from "Batman Begins" to even the "Harry Potter" he appears in. And I can't count how many pictures I've seen the superb Ian Holm appearing in, whom I didn't at first recognize. The same thing was true of the earlier Peter Sellers pictures. |
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| "Outstanding transfer - little if any room for improvement" | 2009-09-22 |
| - Reviewed By User: A35M8NMSRI9ZIO |
| A favourite film and easily better on Blu-ray than DVD. Most people probably already know this, but particularly for US viewers who may be less familiar, note that the multi-level New York of flying vehicles was later ripped off (but brilliantly and with its own original aspects) by a "Doctor Who" David Tennant / Freema Agyeman episode "Gridlock" - worth watching for comparison. The sound track, already excellent, is not much of an increment, but the picture, as one would hope from a remaster, is staggeringly sharp. Haven't looked at extras yet, but otherwise, can't think how this film could ever be enjoyed better at home. And to confirm: this US disk plays just fine on a recent Pioneer UK player. |
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| "SciFi action/adventure, intrigue, and superb plot with great acting and FX" | 2009-09-13 |
| - Reviewed By schtinky |
An ancient secret is needed to save the world, hidden deep in the deserts of Egypt. The movie starts with a prelude from 1914 when the Monascheiwans come to Earth to remove the four Element stones and the Fifth Element because war is coming. The priest in charge of the secret begs the Monascheiwans not to take them, for Evil is coming soon to Earth (every five thousand years) and the weapon of the five elements is needed to destroy the coming evil. The Monascheiwans assure the priest that in three hundred years, when Evil returns, so shall they.
Skip to three hundred years later. Mankind has mastered space travel and the new modern world is built into extremely high structures that loom far above the fog below. Major Korben Dallas has retired from the military and now drives a cab for a living. His ex-wife left him for his attorney, and he now lives in a singularly tiny apartment in a shady part of town with a cross-eyed white cat.
Priest Vito Cornelius is the priest in charge of the key to the temple in Egypt and the secrets of the five elements. He attends the president and begs that the newly discovered ball of flame not be fired upon, for he knows it is the Evil foretold in the legend. Ignored, the military fires upon the dark planet-like globe, increasing it's size by two hundred percent and wiping out the Earth vessels there to monitor it. Now Cornelius is listened to. The wreckage of the Monascheiwan ship entering Earth's territory is searched and there is just one survivor, a few cells still alive in a metal casing. Technology is such that the being is rebuilt from the few cells, and what the military and scientists don't know is that the woman they have just brought back from death is the Fifth Element from the legend. Escaping and pursued, the Fifth Element, LeeLoo, jumps from the building's ledge and winds out landing in Korben's cab. LeeLoo directs Korben to take her to priest Vito Cornelius, who discovers from LeeLoo that the four element stones were not on board the Monascheiwan ship but entrusted to a Diva named Plavalaguna (Maïwenn Le Besco) who is doing is charity performance on the planet Flostan in the Agean system.
Korben and LeeLoo must fetch the stones and bring them to Earth before Evil arrives, fighting both the evil corporate magnate Zorg and his army of Mangalore warriors. As they struggle to gain the stones, time is running out for planet Earth, and the entire universe.
This is one of the best SciFi movies I've ever watched. Definitely a ten star film. With a stellar cast, kudos need to be extended to the Editor, for his amazing work in cropping conversations to fit two separate scenes; and to the costume designer for some fabulous futuristic clothing designs (I especially love the flight attendant's uniforms) and to Eric Serra for a fantastic soundtrack - which I also purchased. The FX in this movie is superb - inventive and flawless.
The "look" that the casting director found is important to the movie's visuals - an exotic look to every secondary actor and actress for the futuristic population. The costume design is spectacular. Chris Tucker deserves an award for his performance as radio superstar Ruby Rhod. His extremely expressive face and fantastic comedic acting really put the movie together. Gary Oldman is unbeatable in his role as Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg - the bad guy to beat all other bad guys. Milla Jovovich really proved, in this early role for her, what an expressive actress she is. She is perfect, and beautiful, as LeeLoo ... the Fifth Element. Ian Holms as priest Vito Cornelius is spectacular, as he is in all the film he's been in. He is an extraordinary actor. Bruce Willis's character of Korben Dallas fits perfectly for Bruce, just as 'Diehard' did - a somewhat similar character performance for him. Character actor Brion James (Blade Runner) as General Munroe, does a splendid job, along with relative unknown Charlie Creed Miles as Cornelius's assistant and priest-in-training David. Lee Evans, as Fog, gives just a superior performance as he did in 'There's Something About Mary' where he played Norm/Tucker. The alien species, both the Monascheiwans and the Mangalores, are intriguingly unique and expertly done, the FX is flawless.
This is one of my favorite movies, I watch it all the time. The casting, performances, plot, soundtrack, costume design, FX, and editing all combine to make one of the best movies I've ever seen. If you haven't seen it, you absolutely must. If you didn't like it, you probably didn't pay enough attention to the entirety of the film. It's "perfect" (just like LeeLoo is the perfect Being). A great movie to watch anytime. Ten stars. Enjoy!!
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| "Best movie ever; It has everything" | 2009-07-17 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3QI6G5CL8TQUE |
The quality of the movie is very good, the movie it self has everything you need in a movie, action, drama, comedy, Mila Jovovich, Bruce Wills, a very good bad character and IRONY (a lot of it), i love this movie.
The bad part about this release is that it doesn't have a lot of extra features, only a text trivia along with the movie. |
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