Director Review: LUC BESSON

I'll preface this by saying in general I hate the action move genre. I think it's really hard for a filmmaker to say anything, let alone something of value, in between scenes of people beating each other up. Luc Besson is an example of someone who has attempted just that and succeeded half of the time.

Besson's directorial debut THE LAST BATTLE (1983) is an interesting black-and-white sci fi picture with a lot to offer. THE LAST BATTLE takes place in a post-apocalytic future where humankind has lost the ability to speak. The protagonist is a lonely dude in search of friends and female companionship. After building a strange airplane he leaves his hideaway near the desert and crash lands in the city. The film follows this character as he meets new people, some friendly and some barbaric and dangerous. The most interesting parts of the film are the ones where items fall from the sky miraculously (perhaps another one of P.T. Anderson's influences for his 1999 film MAGNOLIA). This happens on a couple occasions and is never explained, but is a compelling element of this noteworthy accomplishment.


In 1994 Luc Besson wrote and directed my favorite of the films by him I've seen, LEON (known in the U.S. as THE PROFESSIONAL). This movie features plenty of super stylish, unrealistic, gunslinging action scenes, but they're offset by a patience in unfolding a touching and unique story. Natalie Portman presents and really impressive performance in her first screen role at the age of 13. I suggest this to any Tarantino fans.


Years ago in a Science Fiction Literature class in high school we watched Besson's edgey, fast-paced film THE FIFTH ELEMENT (1997). I remember it being described to me by my teacher (a role model of mine and someone who, without, I wouldn't be anything of a writer today) that the film made reference to dozens of previous sci fi works and that it could be viewed as almost an ode or tribute to the genre. Yesterday I rewatched the film specifically looking for references to other works and expecting to really enjoy my viewing experience. While I did find a lot of sci fi allusion that are way cool, I was actually surprised to be a little bit disappointed by the movie. Though it is an impressive accomplishment I found it to be a little bit less smart than I wanted it to be. Visually it's fast-paced and frantic, colorful and interesting. Specifically the art direction and costume design are stunning. Thematically it hits all the social commentaries you would expect and hope to find in a sci fi movie, from man's ever inflating self-destructive nature, to the mind-deadening effect of our over-stimulated culture. But this time through the movie I felt like it leaned too heavily on Mila Jovovich's naked body and the "love conquers all" concept. All in all I'd recommend it, but it's certainly not my favorite sci fi film.