Among the immensity of a thousand planets, lies two soldiers tasked with protective peace between it, in ‘Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets’. The film is the new adventure film from Luc Besson, and is based on the comic book series which inspired a generation of artists, writers and filmmakers. In the 28th century, Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline (Cara Delevingne) are a team of special operatives charged with maintaining order throughout the human territories. Under assignment from the Minister of Defense, the two embark on a mission to the astonishing city of Alpha-an ever-expanding metropolis where species from all over the universe have converged over centuries to share knowledge, intelligence and cultures with each other. There is a mystery at the center of Alpha, a dark force which threatens the peaceful existence of the City of a Thousand Planets, and Valerian and Laureline must race to identify the marauding menace and safeguard not just Alpha, but the future of the universe. ‘Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets’ is rated PG-13 for sci-fi violence and action, suggestive material, and brief language.

It should never be said that Luc Besson isn’t a visionary when it comes to capturing the attention and the imagination of his audience. Ever since ‘The Fifth Element’, Besson has etched his name as one of the very best in his field. So it should come as no surprise that ‘Valerian’ is undoubtedly the most beautiful film visually that I have seen this year. There’s a certain weight in matter that Luc establishes effortlessly with C.G.I effects and backdrops that nearly everyone else fail at, and his commitment to task sets a vibrantly colorful backdrop that constantly keeps raising the bar. Because this is a film about a thousand planets, it is important that each one comes across as contrasting, yet beautiful to the iris that takes it all in, and there was never a moment visually in this movie where I wasn’t completely blown away at the specter in immensity that an epic like this one captures so breathtakingly. For a movie set in 2150, I had zero doubts believing that the kind of concepts and visual extravagance like this could exist in a galaxy beyond the stars.

As for plot, there is a healthy offering that takes this film a tad bit above those other movies that I have deemed as all style and no substance. The problem is that as a writer Besson could use more hands-on in this bloated script that drags on for about thirty minutes too long. As I mentioned before, the concepts and the dissection of a variety of species will certainly satisfy even the most hardcore of Sci-fi buffs, but its more in its graphing that could definitely use some trimming, even despite it at times being so appealing to the masses who are foreign to their livings. When you’re 90 minutes into a movie and character exposition is still a thing, you’ve certainly got a problem, and this kind of storytelling certainly limited my investment and patience in this movie that was wearing thin with each passing minute. The pacing caught up to me with about forty minutes left in the movie, when it becomes apparent at just how frozen we are in story progression. So much of this filler during the second act could certainly use an edit button, as it often times feels like we’re watching a director’s cut instead of a theatrical release. In addition to contrivances, there’s also an antagonist subplot involving a certain actor in the movie that is treated like a mystery, when from the very beginning of this character’s intro, you can tell from the ominous tones in music, as well as his speech patterns that this character isn’t in to the best of intentions within this galaxy. The resolution between our duo and this character amounts to nothing more than the simplest of ways out, and the lack of confrontation between them in the film’s closing moments leaves with a wimper, and not quite the bang that we so rightfully deserved.

The performances was also an aspect that greatly bothered me. When Rihanna as an evolving chameleon who is in the movie for twenty minutes serves as the single best performance, you’ve got problems. On Rihanna, she gives a presence here that proves she has grown immensely and is destined for the silver screen. There’s a sadness in her eyes that brings a much needed layer of melancholic weight to the ever-adjusting tonal shifts within the movie, and I found her to be quite enjoyable in this role. As for the duo of protagonists, I found that I enjoyed them separately, but when they are together (Which is very minimal), they lack great chemistry to ever come across as believable in these roles. Call it lack of conjoined screen time, or the fact that their constant bickering is about as enjoyable to listen to as Nickelback’s greatest hits, but they don’t work well together. Delevingne does exert some swift action moves to feed into the females in the audience, but her character constantly gets in these binds where she has no choice but to become the damsel in distress, and after a while, enough is enough.

With enough negatives, there is one more positive that I had for the film, and that is in the pulsating musical score of craft composer Alexandre Desplat in the chair. Usually known for sophisticated tones in films like ‘The King’s Speech’ and ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’, Desplat here feels slightly more at home omitting these rumbling numbers that really feed into that space opera kind of feel that is transcribed throughout the film. Alpha feels like a place where there’s always music in the air, the most echoing of sorts happening when a chase sequence or shoot out happens among them, and it makes for a much-needed pulse and reminder of excitement that this film should’ve provided otherwise. What I found so delightful about its blends is how each number that gets repeated somewhere else in the movie has these minor tweaks and twists to them that make it sound like an entirely different number, but in deep listening you start to hear the familiar notes that bare resemblance. Because the action sequences are only so-so in the film and barely worth mentioning, I will say that Alexandre did lift their depictions slightly, encompassing the kind of urgency to play with hand-in-hand with the surreal atmospheres that adorned the film.

THE VERDICT – ‘Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets’ can at times feel like we’ve visited them all. The two hour-plus runtime does very little favors in combating the wooden performances that lack chemistry, as well as the jumbled narrative that can sometimes stop a bit too much to keep the fluidity of the story competent. What works is strictly the scope here, with luxurious eye-catching details, as well as musical accompanying that breathe life into this picture, but ultimately fall a bit too short in overcoming the increasingly stacking odds against them. Besson is still one of those directors who you anticipate their next big project, but it’s clear that this planet might be his orbit from prominence.

5/10