The Fifth Element 20 Years Later: An Ode Masquerading As A Review

For those who haven’t seen The Fifth Element, I suggest you stop reading and go watch. The science fiction film centers around a great galactic threat that’s heading towards Earth. A species of robots, charged with stopping the great evil, is mostly wiped out before they can get their plans into motion. The weapon against the great evil is a young girl who’s the perfect human. But she needs one thing to make her unstoppable, and that’s where cabbie Korben Dallas comes in.

Watching the Fifth Element today you’ll notice just how flawless and vibrant the effects remain. Every penny of the 90 million dollar production is well-spent. Costumes (from legendary designer Jean Paul Gaultier), ships, weapons, creatures, cityscapes, and sets are richly detailed. There’s nothing here that screams “I want to be like Star Wars.” If you know Director Luc Besson’s work, he doesn’t imitate or copy. Certainly, Fifth Element is inspired by science fiction before it, but it’s mixed with an attitude and style that’s rare. Fifth Element is as fresh and diverse a film today as it ever was and will likely be so for a long time.