Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets is the perfect spiritual successor to The Fifth Element
Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets‘ arrival in theaters, the same year as The Fifth Element‘s 20th anniversary, feels like cosmic karma. Luc Besson directed both films, and his late-1990s cult classic has a lot in common with the new celebration of his favorite childhood comic. Both are colorful takes on a science fiction future filled with fantastical creatures and brawling heroes.
Besson has said he will never make a Fifth Element sequel, and there’s a lot to be grateful for there. It’s hard to imagine that the original film’s charming kitsch would translate well on modern screens. Bruce Willis plays a retired special forces soldier, now stuck working as a taxi driver with a flying cab. After Leeloo, played by Milla Jovovich…
