Am I the only one who thinks that the main characters looks like brother and sister?

I'd go as far as to say the chemistry wasn't just non-existent, but I was actually genuinely creeped out at some of the "flirtatious" scenes.

I couldn't get over how alike the actors look. They look like actual clones. Their facial structure is virtually identical. It kind of creeped me out...

That city sounds very interesting. It sounds like it would make for a good video game. Scrap the plot of this movie and make a game where you can explore the city and interact with its inhabitants.

Why would ambition cease to be a major motivating factor for humanity in the future? Ambition is what drives science (or more specifically scientists). Striving for achievement isn't a bad thing, so long as what you strive for is advantageous for others (at least in the long run).

Yes, I know that this movie is based on the French Comic. :)

Gary Oldman is not an actor, he's an artist

Like many comic book adaptations the sin is that is only faithful visually. I can´t tell any, any similarity between Valerian and Loraline from the film and the comics. Valerian is a tall, strong square chin by the book man of the agency and Loraline a street smarts an ethical character that question things and Valerian follows blindly. There are no sexual tension, they are a perfect stable couple that complete each other and work amazingly well together in the comics. Also the majority of the plots in the comics comes with a social commentary about human condition.

Another great review! Sorry about the weekend, hang in there

Maybe Bruce Willis and Milla Jovovich...

If you watch the cartoon version the characters are kind of stupid. Its still imaginative and takes you away for 2 hours. Valarian was originally a time cop who observes Lauraline getting abused by some mideviel lord and intervenes. They escape on his ship and because he meddled earth and his timeline disappeared. They then take odd jobs in Alpha. Its Saturday morning fare.

They are not Bruce and Milla. Visually was amazing but the actors they used just could not carry the movie.

You bring up an amazing point that I've never really noticed before, in most futuristic movies that are super far in the future, the humans are the same as people living in the 80's and so on when that makes no sense at all considering how much people change in span of just 10 or 20 years.

Great scenery, but the actors keep getting in the way, apparently.

I Agree, the script ruined the potential of this movie.

I'm happy to have found your channel. Your reviews are insightful and honest. Love that.

This movie had so many problems. No-one seems to mention this one: when Our Heroes complete a dangerous mission with the help of a special ops team, then literally throw said team under the bus on their way off the planet. And they don't skip a beat, apparently this is standard operating procedure. And they're not even debriefed when they get back to HQ. No-one asks, "so, where's that team of trained operatives that was assigned to you?"

Yeah... I hate to say this (because I love foreign comics, I really do...) but have you guys READ French comics? Sigh... sometimes I want to blame it on the translations, but I have found things that are just so damn beautiful, and yet the plot is just awful. (I'm looking at you, Jodorowsky... Omg the artists he collaborates with are so amazing, and the CONCEPTS are wonderful and thought-provoking, but it's as if plot is sort of a side-concern sometimes.) I haven't yet read much of Valerian and Laureline, but from other French works I've read (and there have been many) I want to posit the idea that the world building, concepts presented, art and tone are possibly considered more important that plot. Which, you know, one could argue that that is just a different way of doing things, but it can be jarring to a movie audience. (Btw the original Ghost in the Shell manga was pretty guilty of that too - Shirow would sort of start a story and then kindof get distracted talking about how many sensors per square inch would fit in synthetic skin...seriously, if other people hadn't stepped in and helped write cohesive stories, then I doubt it would have been near as popular. Love the manga anyways, but it's... different.)

If you look at the comics, Clive Owen would have fit Valerian perfectly

It was Sergeant Lauralie and Major Valerian...

I personally thoroughly enjoyed this film. I also liked Dane Dehaan and Cara Delevingine. This film will be on my guilty pleasure list along with others like Chappie and Morgan

Valerian should have been played by a bit older actor.

The dialogue in this film killed me. It was so damn bad. The visuals were cool tho

Love your perspective! Keep making video.

keep up the good work, hope you feel better!!

Alachia! Always dig your opinion! I'm strapped in! Go!

You're awesome Alachia!!

Could the film be re-edited or have subtitles added.

I love your theme song Alachia. Reminds me of the South Park cash for gold song, lol.

Gotta tell ya, I really enjoyed this film & had a lot of fun. We need more fantasy sci fi flicks like this. It reminded me of a good Ray Bradbury story, or those old swashbuckling cartoons I use to watch on Saturday mornings. The two actors did a pretty good job in light of the tone, & the pacing was surprisingly good considering the length. I never felt bored, other than on Rihanna's intro. Based on the films that you approve of, I'm not surprised that this isn't your type of film.

Alachia Queen hi, Valerian is a high concept? low concept ? or execution dependent?

Great movie ! Better than most of the other Sci-Fi blockbusters this year ! I enjoyed it allot !

Who was bessons casting director?

Thank you for such a clear thinking review. I guess I was so drawn into the worlds that were being presented that I pretty much turned off my attention on the two main human characters. I wanted to like this movie so much. And on different levels, I did...matter of fact, I loved a lot of what was presented, minus the human interaction that was portrayed. You make an amazing point, that I hadn't fully considered until watching your review. For humankind to have interacted with alien races, other cultures from Earth and even having gone into deep space....you're right, human understanding would have had to develop as well. The greedy and alpha-male type personality would not exist in this type of universe. That mind-set would never consider building bridges between all the cultures of Earth humanity and then to peacefully co-exist with thousands of alien species. I wondered why I felt angered by the concepts of humans in this film. You helped to clarity to this. I still stand by the notion that there is a lot to applaud in this movie. It tried to be positive. Colorful, imaginative (loved the inter-dimensional market - such an awesome idea). And I really liked the attitude of the "peaceful beings" at the end for choosing not to take a certain action. Beautiful. Maybe this is a step in the right direction. As far as why the rest of the story turned out the way it did, I'm not sure. Perhaps the comic book series this is based on was childish as well, but with great ideas. Have to do research on this one day. Thanks again...sorry for being so wordy. There was so much potential in the movie. Will get it on DVD as a keepsake.

Besson wrote Taken and Wasabi. You should also add to his credit that he directed Nikita (the french version).

Gosh. I was rolling my eyes when Dehaan and Delevegne were introduced. You lasted longer than I did.

I actually communicated with my friend that I was leaving after an hour and I would meet them afterwards. I then went to go grab a bite, talked to a friend on the phone, and chilled till the monstrosity ended. And it was MY IDEA to go see this movie. I love Luc Besson! Someone needs to reign in some of these genius director types when their egos go off the deep end. It's happened to several of the greats. Besson, George Lucas, Spielberg, and now Ridley Scott with the recent Alien installments. The genius of their earlier works was that they built fantastical worlds, yet maintained a connection to the earthy and real, along with characters we actually cared about. Look at Game of Thrones as an example of what works. Yes the source material is amazing. But the show runners have mostly done a fantastic job on top of that. You even LOVE to hate the villains and often grieve and celebrate their loss. Everyone is three dimensional and relatable somehow. The magic of that universe is connected to the gritty real world everyone resides in. It's like many of these film directors stopped caring about how human emotions and minds actually work; both in their characters, and in their audience. They get treated like demigods socially and professionally, and to their demise, they actually start believing it. Indeed they get insulated in these highly toxic, little insular "yes men" bubbles. They need somebody whispering sanity in their ears. Keep them connected to humanity and their roots... For all our sakes.

I also went to see Valerian and Dunkirk on the same night IMAX for Dunkirk and 3D for Valerian

I love your savagely honest reviews Darth Hater.

question whats so impprtant about this movie if i may ask

I don't care about the reason for any delay, I'm just happy whenever we get a new video because they are always great :) take your time over them and look after yourself.

Good review. I enjoyed your viewers' comments too.

Love your reviews 👍👏👏

Great review - nailed most of the things I thought about it.

I know if I should see a movie just from your thumbnails, so a big thanks for that.

I had to walk out a little over halfway in. I never walk out. Nice to see someone shared my opinion of it :)

I'm just starting this review, so I haven't heard your words yet. I enjoyed the beginning, and the market was interesting. That being said I literally considered leaving before it was over. Cheers --

2:33 - I CRACKED up... 11:35 - TOO funny Keep your head up AQ. We support you and love your videos.

ILM didn't do the CGI for Valerian. It was Weta.

I wonder if the problem is sticking close to the source material? Some things, like plots, work fine as comics, but not necessarily on screen.

You don't have to apologize for "hitting walls". You are awesome.

I thankfully can turn my brain off during movies and was able to overlook a lot of its faults. But I think what makes this film frustrating is that it is so well crafted production wise but the chemistry between the 2 leads was shocking.

As a fan of sci-fi, I was hoping this would be good. Eh...

I really like when you say "tour de force" ㅋㅋㅋ

i thought the source material had time travel involved?

i would like to hear your thoughts on which movies (ranked) display the greatest divergence between their society and the world they inhabit. often it feels like movies do the equivalent of bringing a group of neanderthals to the 21st century. and i don't necessarily mean motivations but rather logic.

Hang in there. Loved hearing you rip this movie to shreds.

I don't tend to comment much, but just remember when you hit those walls, there are people like me who really look forward to your reviews. I have to go rest now coz I spent my sharing-emotions quota for the week with that comment.

I saw it and honestly even though I personally didnt like alot of it and can see why people dont like it, I still enjoyed it. It tried really hard and yeah it probably failed on most of the things it tried but it was fairly unique, and I really like Dane Dehaan too so I could see past its flaws and still find things to enjoy about it. It went all out and wasnt perfect but I give it alot of credit for trying something different.

I agree with a lot of your points. When I left the theaters my first thought was that this would have made a much better TV show that allowed a slower build and exploration of the world and a more believable build up of the protagonist's relationship as partners with the blossom of romance. A slow build up in a space setting like that reminded me of Robotech on how their relationship was supposed to be professional and turned more. The only point I did not agree with was the idea of humans being beyond war. Unfortunately, our species will always have pride and as such the young, brass Commander making a choice to sacrifice to win a battle that likely ended a war and brought all that 'honor' and 'prestige' upon him was a very believable scenario. Hope you feel better.

I think this movie would work more as a videogame or something, one of those were you can focus on the main story but also walk around for 3 hours just exploring the world and talking with npcs and doing side quests that have nothing to do with the actual plot

What are your fave Luc Besson films? I have a soft spot for The Big Blue.

I understand what you meant when you were talking about human progression. While it is hard to believe that humans can change and that there won’t be corrupt leaders, I don’t understand how we’re meant to believe that a hundreds year old city of thousands of planets with extremely different species and cultures could peacefully and realistically exist, when the major leaders of the human species are like the ones today: corrupt. Either humans would need to socially progress, like you said, or this city would have never be able to exist.

Appreciate your feedback, still gonna go check it out since you and your "hand in the pants hubby" have totally endorsed the visuals. Thanks Alachia!

That goddamn wicker basket. I was so mad. >_< Thank you for validating my disappointment rage. lol

I agree with the complain about the casting, but I loved the movie and I will see it again (but I had to watch a dubbed version). I think the story was a little outdated but still ok. It is really interesting to listen to the detailed complains, because I disagree with it (but I was young in the 80th and I'm European). I somehow have the feeling, that the movie has something in it that make critics overreacting. Maybe, the fact, that ambition, world building and story wasn't matching.

Right on, with the review.

I so completely agree with this review. Awed by the visuals yet soooo...

I saw it yesterday and agree 100% with you.

Nice work!

I still want to see this but I heard also its not doing too well at the box office.

Luc Besson directed Taken!?

the sense I get from this review is that if Luc Bensson's had helped develop a game instead of a movie, exploring Valerian and the rest of his created universe would be the perfect experience, instead of having to pay attention to the plot and the characters.

2:34 This should have been the thumbnail image Alachia. You know it.

Haven't watched the movie but I haven't heard you saying it's an adaptation of a french comic book, that people should read (it did inspire star wars, and heavily inspired the 5th element, also because the comic book artist worked on it..)

I laughed 3 times in this review quite heartily. I enjoyed that. Hearing you tell about those wonderful story-arc speeches about what love is... "What is love? Valerian don't hurt me, Valerian don't hurt me.... no more." Now that's what I'm talkin' about. REAL STORY ARCS! I don't need a "difficult plot line" to follow that'll only "weigh the movie down." Just give me crappy end speeches about babies transitioning out of their precious Acting School diapers! Runway diapers I mean. =P Hope you feel better, Alachia. You hit a wall? Like... which one? But speaking seriously, please don't hit those walls too hard or otherwise you won't be able to wake up in time for all the horrible scripts we're bound to see this year! And I do mean "bound." We are bound by law to suffer them. They will find us one way or another and shove those delicious plotholes down our very dry gullets. Dry because they make us dry with the "fries" and then offer us a tasty beverage to die the salt down and trick us into thinking we've quenched our thirst. In this case, the tasty beverage is Valerian and the City of a Thousand Useless Plotlines. So sad such beauty and such waste. Please be well. =) Love your reviews. Oh btw, I was surprised to hear you say that in the future you would expect (or hope? I hope too) that people wouldn't have such domineering world-destructive traits... maybe you just meant in the movie, funny the way you put it "Muahaha" kinda character. But I thought maybe that you're trying to be positive about the future, and there ain't nothin' wrong with that. ;p This world is awfully depressing when we stop and stare at it. But if it makes you feel any better, you make the world a brighter place. =)

I will check out the original comics versus the film (until it pops over to Netflix) as european material in general does tend to be a bit of a pain to successfully make it an "accessible" big screen feature. A quick google revealed that it could of been quite cool, but alas it appears that Luc Besson played the short game versus writing of it as part of a possible trilogy. I imagine that this would of worked as a live action Dirty Pair movie. All one would need to do is keep the world building, visuals add comedic lines, two Lovely Angels, overpowered weapons of mass destruction and a lot of collateral damage. It may be too late, but maybe someone will reboot a faithful (i hit the wiki on the series) version of the original material in the future.

My dad is a huge fan of the french comics/graphic novels this is based on and told me some of the storylines of them and they sounded really weird and out there, for example Loreline is from the Middle Ages and in the first issue I think they fight a crazy wizard? Anyways I was super excited to see the movie and ended up being really disappointed. I think this could've been really awesome if it took more risks and did a freaky storyline from the comics. I mean Guardians proved that audiences are all for weird sci fi stories of they're done well. Anyways, loved your review, spot on as always! 🤗

I still want to see it!

Excellent review.I know you don't enjoy panning a movie that so many worked so hard to make. Thanks for genuine review. I'll probably watch this after digital download available. Planet of Apes proves great technology can be used to produce great stories and movies. I've never been neutral about a Besson film which means he's not afraid of making mistakes. obviously here was no one there who could or would help him identify and force him to defend against these glaring weaknesses.

I can't be the only one who got one manly tear to come out when the princess knew she was about to die😢😒😭😎

Just seen it - and I really liked it. seriously if you don't see it on the biggest screen you can manage you will be seriously missing out. I think the criticisms of it are unfair - Luc Besson has always been a style-over-substance comic book visionary - this is camp - you don't expect character development. It's jam-packed with ideas and is best seen as a set of short comic book episodes with an over-all story arc, and its amazing visuals are well worth catching on the big screen.

balls-deep? lol.

I think my biggest problem with the movie is i went in expecting the spiritual successor to the Fifth Element. A large portion of that was the intense music that was out of this world. It actually made me feel like i viewing this futuristic alien world. There was absolutely no tension, just awkwardness and boredom. Luc Besson has really let us down.

The wetwork kids. Children enforcing "peace", what a novel idea.

From the moment I saw her face - I knew what type of review this was going be lol

I really enjoy your review, eventhough I did stop at the Spoiler Alert. I will probably see this because I sort of like Luc Besson. Eventhough I think Aurther and the Invisible was a hack. I recently rewatched 5th because II think that movie is the expectation when it comes to his film. Also I was doing a study of Moebius (Jean Giraud) and it circled about to Besson, some how. Probably with the both being french and in the same industry.

Luc Besson + comic + Hollywood + Cara Delevingne plus Rihanna. What possibly can goes wrong?!...(glups)

I didn't read the comics, but I watched the 40 episode anime a few years back and man this movie seemed to completely missed the characters. Like Valerian is supposed to be something like a time cop and Laureline is supposed to be a medieval french lady. This is why there are so many lines like "see you in another space AND TIME" and why Laureline is somewhat ignorant but otherwise hyper competent. They're also supposed to be in like a love hate relationship where they're constantly bickering and in denial about their feelings. Also in the anime the Earth is missing and humans are rare as a result of Valerian choosing to save Laureline in the past. The ship they destroy and crash into planet Mul looks very similar to those used by a race called "Vlagos" which are the primary antagonists in the anime. Love ends up being their weakness which takes a bit of the sting out of the whole "power of love" message. Anyway I'm not sure how accurate the anime is to the comic but the movie's take on other characters (such as the converter and the shingouz) is very similar to the anime... so I assume the anime in general isn't too inaccurate? I'm very sad to see this movie miss the mark as badly as it did.

Great review.

I completely agree, charismatic actors would have made this watchable. It needed good actors to emerse you in this crazy universe

On point!

One of the funniest film reviews I have seen in a long time...'a fucking wicker basket'

But it's space wicker. It's a lot stronger than regular wicker.

I would definitely watch this in 3D. It's that beautiful.

it based on the graphic novels that was made in France, look it up

thumbnail says it all LOL!!!!!

am i the only one who loved the movie?

I still kind of want to support this movie if just to show support for bigger budget sci-fi that's not part of an existing franchise (not counting the French comics it's based on). I dunno, I'm just getting movie franchise fatigue, where each movie within certain franchises that have already been planned out well into the next decade really just feels like a prelude to the next movie in the same franchise, but that doesn't mean I only want to watch low-budget sci-fi anymore as the antidote to my franchise fatigue. Low budget sci-fi can be fantastic but sometimes I still want to see the best effects money can buy.

Well, I was looking forward to this...