The Fifth Element

Someday in the future, theoretical physicists will discover an alternative universe composed solely of extreme hipness. Until then, The Fifth Element will suffice as a close approximation. The movie is cool, way cool. In fact, it is too way cool for its own good at times. It takes nearly forty minutes of viewing before it becomes apparent that The Fifth Element is actually a very sly and campy parody of itself. But once established, the movies snaps together as a strangely brilliant tour-de-farce.

This tongue-firmly-in-cheek attitude allows The Fifth Element to skip through a plot that unloads like a consumer's guide to the past twenty years of science-fiction. Even visually, the movie is a bizarre composite of designs freely lifted from everywhere else. Then it adds in a thick veneer of Parisian chic and Arabian Night gloss. The Fifth Element is less a movie and more of an exotic photo spread for Vogue magazine. Even the odd casting of Milla Jovovich is merely a logical extension of the movie's obsessive concern with its haute couture appearance.

So don't worry about the fact that The Fifth Element doesn't make much sense. Narrative coherency is not the movie's primary focus. Even the hair stylists were obviously ranked above the scriptwriters, with one of the funnier gags being a subtle but devastating take on the Princess Leia look. Of course, this is not counting the odd sight of Willis with a blond shag. The French are a little bit caustic, non?

But the latest fads in post-punk fashion wear is not the biggest worry faced by Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis). He's more worried about keeping his cabby license, especially since taxi driving is virtually the only job he has been able to get since leaving his post as a space commando. Though he was trained to be the 23rd century equivalent of Rambo, Dallas finds the high flying traffic of New York to be just a tad dangerous.

Dallas knows better than to get involved with a half-naked woman with bright orange hair who literally falls into his cab's back seat. Even worse, she only speaks the ancient language of a divine race whose mission is to save humanity from ultimate evil. Though Le-Eluu (Jovovich) promises to be a lousy tipper, Dallas impulsively decides to help her evade the police.

Good thing, because ultimate evil in the form of a fire-belching comet is currently heading straight for the earth. Only Father Cornelius (Ian Holm) and a ruthless millionaire named Zorg(Gary Oldman) are knowledgeable about the object's intentions. But while Cornelius is bumbling his way toward discovering the primal power of good, Zorg is hell bent on scoring a profit from the complete destruction of mankind. Since Le-Eluu is the chief component to an ancient weapon designed to defeat evil, Cornelius needs her. He also needs Dallas, because somebody has to blow up all of those nasty alien mercenaries that Zorg employs with a giddy abandon.

Between its metaphysical mumblings and two-dimensional characters, The Fifth Element rambles even more than Oldman's eccentric version of a Southern accent. The movie is essentially a warped comic book, minus the dialogue bubbles. Sort of a Judge Dredd II, only this time it's fun. Though the ending is a disappointment (visions of the Apocalypse never fare well in the cinema), most of The Fifth Element is a fantastic flight of smart (and smart aleck) wizardry.

The movie's extensive use of CGI results in a fantastic stream of outlandishly effective, otherworldly scenes. The cluttered texture of the 23rd century is played for both laughs and shocks, with an amazing degree of success on both counts. The visual effect plays as a wild union between American crassness and Euro trash decadence, with an unpredictable dash of classical art thrown in on the side.

Director Luc Besson has always been a great believer in style over substance. In such films as Subway, La Femme Nikita, and The Professional, the image conveyed more merit than any traditional dramatic point. With The Fifth Element, Besson scores his best exercise yet in the realm of pure visualization. The film is often bold, breathtaking, and audacious. If it made any sense, it would even be a masterpiece.

But then, whoever said that everything had to make sense? Sometimes, you just kick off your shoes, relax, and breath it all in. Besides, The Fifth Element finally explains to us what the most powerful force is in the universe. As the Beatles once said, all you need is love. Too bad that this final sentiment in The Fifth Element is the one thing that the filmmakers couldn't digitally enhance.