Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets

Dane DeHaan (Valerian) and Cara Delevingne (Laureline) had to be the two most unpleasant looking heroes in all of film history and yet, the pleasant surprise is the movie itself is unique, not connected to Star Wars, Star Trek or the Marvel Universe, which means the sky is literally the limit and it’s a throwback to the potential seen in films like Barbarella, immersed in pure alien aesthetics. The “city” of the film’s title is actually a huge, autonomous space station that is home to innumerable races from throughout the universe brought together to unite as one homeworld, and merely serves as the setting for countless stories to be told. Based on a French comic book by Jean-Claude Mezieres (who previously worked with film director Luc Besson on The Fifth Element) about two time cops, the series provides ample opportunity to explore something more than bipeds with green skin or pointy ears! Looking into a dark threat, Valerian and his constant companion Laureline discover a genocidal breech that occurred when Earth Force Commander Arun (Clive Owen) misidentified a planet as uninhabited and unleashed destruction that decimated an entire culture. Episodic in places, especially when introducing outside characters such as Bubble (played by singer Rihanna) and Bob the Pirate, both of whom would make for centerpieces in their own movies!

[PG-13]