Luc Besson’s 1997 sci-fi film is often regarded as one of the most ironically good films of all time. Part of Besson’s all-star cast, a cast including Chris Rock (Ruby Rhod), Milla Jovovich (Leeloo) and Bruce Willis (Korben Dallas), deliver strangely unique performances that help deliver on the rumor that this film is, in fact, ironically good. Through the first thirty minutes, seemingly random characters unsuccessfully attempt to explain what is taking place. Ancient Egyptian artifacts, creepy old men and a number of unidentified (not for a lack of trying) aliens grace the screen and leave audiences lost in a world with an unclear meaning. It is not until Leeloo first appears on screen that anything even remotely interesting takes place. Her ability to immediately connect with audiences through her unique performance allowed those viewers to, for the first time, find anything about the film or the story compelling. Through most of the film, Leeloo struggles to speak a language that anyone is able to understand. Due to this there is a clear disconnect between her, the rest of the characters in the film and members of the audience as she struggles to find herself and, like the audience, understand who she is and what role she plays in this vibrant land of make believe. Her stellar performance allowed viewers to make a connection with her, however. Her facial expressions, mannerisms and strong connection with Willis made her the star of the show. Many of Willis’ scenes are similar to scenes from John McTiernan’s Die Hard (1988). They were fun and full of energy and his typical facial expressions cause viewers to reminisce about McTiernan’s masterpiece. In general, the animation department was successful in creating seamless shots of transformation, cars flying and alien combat. Nothing that happened possessed any form of believability even with the flawless animation and spot-on acting. It appeared that Besson’s goal was simply to create an action-packed, futuristic western. He accomplished his goal of creating a western-esque final product full of shootouts and intense fun. The film fully encapsulates the idea of ironic success as not much about the film lends itself to a quality final product. With very few of the actors--essentially only the ones listed above--effectively delivering a quality performance and the story lacking many essential elements (including a coherent explanation of why things took place), ironic is the best way to describe everything that is this film. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119116/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
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