Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
Short description
In the 28th century, special agents Valerian and Laureline are assigned by their commander to the intergalactic metropolis of Alpha, a city that has grown over centuries into a home for thousands of species from across the universe, whose inhabitants have pooled their knowledge and technology for the common good. Not everyone there is content with the way things are run, and a dark force threatens the city's stability. Valerian and Laureline set out to find its source and stop it before it endangers more than Alpha alone. The film is based on the French comic series Valérian and Laureline.
Luc Besson wrote, directed and produced the film, the sixteenth of the twenty features he has directed, arriving between Lucy and Anna. Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevingne play the two leads, with Clive Owen as Commander Arün Filitt; Rihanna, Ethan Hawke and Herbie Hancock appear in supporting roles. The production was large in scale, with 121 credited cast members and 357 credited crew. Made on a budget of about 177 million US dollars, it took roughly 226 million dollars worldwide.
Reception was moderate. On IMDb it holds 6.4 out of 10 from around 209,000 votes, and on TMDB 6.7 out of 10 from more than 8,000 votes. A critics' rating of 5.4 out of 10 from 297 reviews places it below both audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- Director Luc Besson intentionally filmed the movie based on French comics in English with English-speaking actors. He hoped this would reach the widest possible audience.
- Luc Besson showed short clips from the upcoming film during the international Comic-Con festival in San Diego in 2016. The audience greeted them with applause.
- This is the second adaptation of the «Valerian and Laureline» comics. In 2007, an animated series based on the comics by Christin and Mézière premiered in France.
- This is the fifth joint effort between visual effects and computer animation companies Weta Digital and Industrial Light & Magic for film and television. They have previously collaborated on the films "Contact" (Robert Zemeckis, 1997), "Van Helsing" (Stephen Sommers, 2004), "Eragon" (Stephan Falk, 2006), and "Avatar" (James Cameron, 2009).
- Cara Delevingne spent several months preparing for the role of Lorelai.
- This is the second film starring Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevingne. The first was "Tulip Fever," which had its world premiere four days earlier.
- The film features representatives of 200 alien civilizations. The film's screenwriter, director, and producer Luc Besson wrote a 600-page book with their detailed descriptions. The actors involved in the film had to read the book before filming began to know who they were dealing with in each specific case and to act accordingly.
- For this project, which he had dreamed of since childhood, screenwriter, director, and producer Luc Besson waived his fee.
- Luc Besson decided not to shoot the film in 3D format because 3D cameras are too heavy and unwieldy, and his directing style does not preclude running after actors and shooting from unusual angles. Besson shoots his films himself, without the help of cinematographers, so he always approaches the choice of cameras and lenses with particular care.
- Luc Besson always dreamed of making a film based on the “Valerian and Laureline” comics (by Pierre Christin and Jean-Claude Mézières).
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
