Fifth Element

In the tradition of the perennial science-fiction favorite, Blade Runner, The Fifth Element dazzles with its blistering vision of the future. The movie, which stars Bruce Willis, Milla Jovovich, and Gary Oldman, takes place in the 23rd century. The plot revolves around a disruptive alien force which is terrorizing Earth by threatening to annihilate the planet vis-' -vis a Death Star-like device. Willis and other rogue earthlings get charged with locating the one weapon that can stave off the aliens, something called the Fifth Element. It turns out that the Fifth Element is actually a woman, played by Jovovich, who can't speak. Along with this woman and a cadre of characters (both good and bad), Willis pursues the four stones necessary to activate the Fifth Element as a weapon and stop the aliens.As with space epics like 2001 (which predated the movie) and Independence Day (which post-dated it), The Fifth Element produces some truly stunning visual effects. The cacophonous score, on-spot direction by Luc Besson, and cool digital effects all make this movie a really fun ride. Bruce Willis, who's no stranger to science fiction (he played the lead in Terry Gilliam's sci-fi apocalyptic adventure, Twelve Monkeys, and the hero of the movie Armageddon), does a serviceable job here as well.One of the things that distinguishes The Fifth Element from other movies in its genre is the script's sense of humor. Recalling the quirky cynicism of Harrison Ford's Han Solo in the original Star Wars, The Fifth Element's characters often produce snappy, self-aware lines. All told, the movie was one of the summer of 1997's most interesting flicks.