Fifth Element/C,A-

   Columbia Tristar/1997/126 minutes

       Is it actually a comedy?  The hilarity confounds me. As an action flick it is ridiculous. The spectacular look of the film seems wasted on the silliest character interaction this side of Planet X. Director Luc Besson pokes fun at icons like Blade Runner with a floating air junk selling chinese food, but wherefore art thou stylish director of La Femme Nikita or even the overblown elements of The Big Blue. Bruce Willis goes through the action hero motions while newcomer Milla Jovovich is a delightful red-headed alien. Gary Oldman is rather an embarrassment as the villain.

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Great effects but zero gravity. ãColumbia Tristar

      This may not be the first rate movie director Besson intended but it sure is a fantastic looking DVD. Exciting color pops right off the screen. The anamorphic transfer is sharp and film-like. The depth is amazing. The Dolby 5:1 surround is awesome, with bass vibrating deeply and firepower enveloping the home theater arena.

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Home Theater Reference System
Laser discs and DVDs are evaluated on the following current home theater equipment:   Stewart 6' x 11' Videomatte 1.33 Gain Screen, 2 Runco 980 Ultra Projectors stacked, Faroudja LD100 Line Doubler, Lexicon DC1 Surround Processor/Switcher, 2 Pioneeer Elite CLD-97 Laser Disc Players with AC-3 Modification, Sony 7000 DVD Player, Toshiba SD-3006 DVD Player, Total Media Systems Reference Home Theater Suite, LR Fronts, Center, LR Sides, LR Rears, 2 Velodyne F1500R Subwoofers, Sunfire Cinema Grand5 Channel Amp, Sunfire 2 Channel Amp, Lexicon RF Demodulator, Lexicon T-500 System Remote Control, Speaker Wire and Interconnects by Straight Wire. 

HOT LINKS

The American Widescreen Museum
The wealth of information about widescreen movies is presented in a intelligent and easy to understand interface. Color in movies is given a similar treatment.

Tilting at Hollywood

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Robert Harris is part of the dynamic duo that restored Lawrence of Arabia, Spartacus, My Fair Lady and Vertigo. Harris rides a white horse into the battle to preserve our film legacy. Click on the image to read more.

Check out the  Movie Poster   Archive for short bios and images of Susan Hayward, Kirk Douglas, Katharine Hepburn and many more. This month's featured star is  John Wayne. The Feature Archive has articles ranging from Akira Kurosawa to Blonde Bimbos and John Ford. 

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Click on the image of The Heistmasters for an interesting feature on the tough guys that pull off the big jobs.