Luc Besson’s Bombastic Masterpieces

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Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:

​ The 5th Element of DogMan, Roadhouse breaks records, Benedict Cumberbatch's war, Julianne Moore's starz, Liam Neeson's comedy, and a pub.

Let’s go!

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LUC BESSON’S 5 ELEMENTS

DogMan. EuropaCorp.

Luc Besson's The Fifth Element (1997) is a bombastic masterpiece.

Five major stars light up his imaginative world:

• Bruce Willis as a burned-out taxi driver. Jaded but lethal (​still​)

• Gary Oldman as a mustache-twirling villain in the zaniest hairpiece of all time (​still​)

• Milla Jovovich, as the stunning supreme being sent to save humanity from an unspeakable evil (​still​)

• Chris Tucker as the flamboyantly jumpy radio host (​still​)

• Maïwenn as a blue xeno-morph with a heavenly voice (​still​)

While The Fifth Element showcases a wild kaleidoscope of characters, Besson’s latest DogMan centers on a singular role.

Dogman, played by the incredibly versatile Caleb Landry Jones (Get Out, Nitram), has a simple dogma. When asked why he prefers dogs over humans, the answer has a surprising fifth element:

“Dogs have beauty without vanity,

force without insolence,

bravery without ferocity,

and all the virtues of humans have without any of the vices. As far as I can tell, they only have one flaw."

He continues:

“They trust humans.”

And as it turns out, this is also Jones' character flaw. At every turn in the film, those supposed to give him the most love, from the familial (his parents) to the institutional (the lawmen at an animal shelter he runs) to the romantic (his theater teacher), constantly abuse, embarrass or degrade him.

It is a multi-prismed character that is at once a superhero and villain, a recluse and a born performer, a romantic and a realist.

And for that alone, the film is worth every second.

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