The Fifth Element Reviews

When I first saw this one in theaters, back in 1997, I thought it was great, except for the annoying DJ played by Chris Tucker. I hated that character. So, imagine my surprise when, this time, I found the movie to be pretty meh, but the DJ character was OK.

Generic, poorly thought out action flick, with weak action and rubber-masked aliens. The reasons why things are happening and the motivations of the villains are confusing. Just a bunch of poorly thought out events happening one after another. 6/10

I remember it very well, when this movie came out, there was a huge buzz about it, at least in France, my homeland. Indeed, at last, a French production was finally competing with the great American blockbusters and Luc Besson, probably the most ambitious French directors at the time, was finally coming up with a huge SF movie starring no less than Bruce Willis, one of the biggest movie stars, and the expectations were pretty high. Eventually, it was not really great (like most of Besson’s work) but it was still a very fun and entertaining science-fiction feature, no doubt about it. First of all, it really looked awesome. I re-watched it again 16 years after its release and it still holds up very well with some great costumes by Jean-Paul Gaultier, some great sets and designs and, to sum it up, Luc Besson created one of the most compelling futuristic world I have seen. Basically, the main issue, as usual with this director, was with the plot. Like I said before, it was quite fun but still terribly pedestrian. Furthermore, even though Bruce Willis was really good in this, giving his usual John McClane performance, I wasn’t really convinced by Milla Jovovich. I mean, she looked good, that’s for sure, but the whole autistic acting grew thin pretty quickly and, after a while, except for her great body, you wonder why Korben Dallas would actually fall for her. Still, in spite of its flaws, I really have a weak spot for this flick and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

I kind of stumbled onto this movie years ago, being familiar with only Bruce Willis. This was pretty much the beginning of my infatuation with Mila Jovovich so I could never dis the movie. I thought that Gary Oldman played a excellent bad guy and Willis was his normal great good guy. In my opinion a good action movie for anyone who is a fan of the three actors/acttress that I mentioned.

Ok, so we have Korben Dallas and the gang travel light speed to meet this blue smurf to get the stones. Now, as far as I can remember for E=MC2 that would mean that if Korben and his crew travel light speed to this planet and back, then Earth would age a lot. It never says how far this planet is but it can't be any shorter than at least two light years away because that's how close the nearest star is next to us. So everyone on Earth ages 4 years...at least. Yeah, sounds like a great vacation hey? We get to go to this planet for a bit while the rest of my family ages a shit load! My point is; there is this evil rock heading towards Earth and yet Korben and his crew travel light speed to this planet and back and yet this rock still hasn't reached Earth? They say it's travelling very fast and they show it pass Saturn too. Yeah, this part never made sense to me.

Overall it's not the worst movie and it has some cool moments but arg! Get it right if your gonna play with light!

I remember when I first saw this movie, it was soo different from all the other movies I had seen at the time. Right away it really pulls you into the story line and keeps you interested. I love this movie, and Milla Jovovich she is awesome. One of my favorite science fiction movies!

" I don't know love. I was built to protect not to love, so there is no use for me other than this."

The Fifth Element is a tangy, interesting science fiction film which deals with a man destined to save the world and protect the one being who can save the Earth. Korbin Dallas (Willis) is a retired soldier who is thrown into a battle to save the Earth after the prophesized Supreme Being, also known as Leeloo (Jovovich), crashes through the roof of his taxi while on the run from the police. Amidst the babble of Leeloo's alien chatter, Korbin takes her to Father Cornelius (Holm), who is in fact part of a secret society which aims to protect the four stones which represent the four elements, plus the fifth element, which can save the Earth in case of dire need. However, wealthy art collector Zorg (Oldman) is also after the stones, after learning about the power it brings from Father Cornelius himself. Korbin wins a trip to a luxury cruise yacht courtesy of DJ Ruby Rod (Tucker in one of his hilarious performances), and the entire film climaxes in an explosive action sequence which isn't over-the-top or too little. I loved the way the events unfolded in the film, and everyone gave great performances. But the two actors who really sold this movie were Chris Tucker and Gary Oldman. I just love it when actors give unexpected, eccentric performances, and these two definitely bagged it. One thing which confuses me though, is the real nature of DJ Ruby Rod. Is he really a straight male, or does he zigzag a bit? :D Despite that, the film is a fun thing to watch. ;)

When I first saw the DVD cover and a couple of pictures of The Fifth Element, I thought it looked really bizarre but interesting at the same time. When I did see it, I actually liked it more than I thought I would. In fact, I was blown away by this film. I love films about planets and space which is why I love films like Star Wars and Star Trek. I figured that a couple of things were ripped off from The Fifth Element as well as The Fifth Element ripping things off as well. The sceneries on Earth with the floating vehicles and the cities in the sky was ripped off by the prequel Star Wars trilogy. The Fifth Element copied that from Ridley Scott's Blade Runner too which is where that kind of thing originally came from. This film reminded me a lot of Star Trek (2009 film) because the dialogue would be something that would be used in a Star Trek film. Obviously the visual effects did as well and the genre it was part of. It shows that history is a myth most of the time but shows that it should be taken seriously as well. The Fifth Element would make a good family film because it has a wide range of things within the film that can expand your imagination just like you can with epic sci fis like Star Trek and especially Star Wars.


Bruce Willis' performance was fabulous as ... He goes through a hard time because he has separated from his wife and lives alone with his cat. Also, he gets frustrated with a job being a taxi driver. He inadvertently meets Leeloo who is the so-called Fifth Element who can destroy evil and save the world alongside other Ancient stones: earth, wind, water and fire. It was really weird seeing Bruce Willis with blonde hair because we usually see him either with black hair or almost if not completely bald. Gary Oldman was pretty funny as Zorg who wants to find the stones and destroy the world. He was an idiotic villain but was actually quite frightening at times due to his desperation to find the stones. Milla Jovovich was good as Leeloo who is the Fifth Element. Before they made her in human form, she was one of those extra-terrestrial robot-aliens and they had the remaining parts of her. She was a good choice because she seemed a woman who can play that kind of character. Mixing the clothes that she wore with the hair colour she had made her seem a bit of a weirdo but also a gorgeous woman. Ian Holm is a really good actor who has been in a lot of famous films over the years. His performance as Cornelius was awesome! Cornelius was the man who would tell everybody the truth of what could happen.


Luc Besson caught my attention when I saw Léon: The Professional because I loved that one. I admire his work even more now after seeing The Fifth Element. Everything about this film was beautifully and creativity crafted. J.J. Abrams would have done a decent job at this film but I am glad that Luc Besson did it though. Personally, I don't think there are many science fiction epics at all because they don't feel like epics and some don't have realistic or powerful characters within it. The film was really well written which did surprise me. I think everything about this film surprised me as it did with Star Trek (apart from, perhaps, the visual effects).


The Fifth Element is another science fiction film that will expand your imagination from start to finish. I think it is one of Bruce Willis best films; same with Gary Oldman. It is one of the best films of 1997 as well as one of the best science fiction films ever!

"Everything you create, you use to destroy."

I found The Fifth Element to be an extremely enjoyable and entertaining experience; without being the greatest sci-fi film ever, it's bucket loads of fun.

The plot is about a great evil that comes to Earth every 5000 years with the intent of destroying it. The only way to combat this evil is using four stones and a "fifth element", a perfect being.

In a colourful vision of the 23rd century, a N.Y.C. cab driver named Korben Dallas (Willis) comes into contact with the "fifth element", named Leeloo (Jovovich), who drops into his cab. Dallas is ex-military, and is called upon to battle the evil forces that descend upon Earth.

I will not waste your time writing a more elaborate plot synopsis, because if I did then I'd spoil the whole movie for you.

The film moves at a slick pace, and contains some absolutely outstanding visual effects and amazing set design. The vision of the future is just fantastic; many clever ideas, great designs and some of the best costumes you will ever see in a sci-fi movie.

Bruce Willis is in one of the best performances of his career. This can be classified as a Die Hard of the 23rd century due to the traits exhibited during the movie; he's in the wrong place at the wrong time, and gets mixed up in some rather large plot that threatens the lives of many. Willis was nothing short of exceptional.

I could barely recognise Milla Jovovich in some very exquisite costume design, and delivering such peculiar dialogue. Nevertheless, she is superb. Chris Tucker shines like always. He plays a flamboyant radio host who steals the spotlight in every scene he's in.

One of the film's biggest strengths was its sense of humour. Into the second half there's some great action mixed with a host of hilarious gags. Chris Tucker in particular is just downright side-splitting as always.

The great visual images are accompanied by an excellent score by Eric Serra.

The Fifth Element is nothing short of great entertainment. There's action, great sci-fi images, has some great humour mixed in...and it's just a whole lot of fun. Highly recommended.

One of my favorite movies of all time! Jean Paul Gaultier did the most amazing job ever with the costumes. The entire environment is so well put together and it's really one of the best futuristic movies there are in that aspect. Not only that but Leeloo is one of the best female leads ever due to the fact that she is both adorable and deadly at the same time.
Yeah, just an amazing movie overall.