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Upon its release, Valerian faced harsh criticism for its dense narrative structure and atypical casting. However, when viewed outside the lens of standard Hollywood expectations, the film reveals itself to be a masterpiece of pure imagination.
To understand the sheer scale of Valerian , one must understand its roots. The film is directly adapted from the French comic series Valérian and Laureline , created by writer Pierre Christin and illustrator Jean-Claude Mézières. First published in 1967, this groundbreaking graphic work heavily influenced decades of science fiction, including George Lucas’s Star Wars franchise.
The writing was also a frequent target. The dialogue was described as “stilted” and “cheesy,” and the romantic subplot between Valerian and Laureline was seen as forced and, in its early stages, highly problematic. One of the film‘s opening scenes, where Valerian propositions his subordinate on a fake beach, was widely interpreted as a scene of workplace sexual harassment, leaving a bad taste that many viewers could not get past. The plot was often described as “clunky,” “meandering,” and a pale imitation of better films like Avatar . As of its release, the film holds a “rotten” . Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets - E...
The duo must identify a mysterious dark force at the center of Alpha that threatens the city's peaceful existence and the future of the universe. This journey uncovers a deep-seated conspiracy involving the destruction of the peaceful planet and its inhabitants, the Key Characters & Cast
A significant point of critical contention involves the casting and characterization of Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline (Cara Delevingne). In the source material, the duo operates with a level of professional parity and romantic tension that defined the "space-agent" archetype. In the film, however, the chemistry is often described as discordant. Upon its release, Valerian faced harsh criticism for
If you want to explore deeper into the lore of this sci-fi universe, tell me:
In 2017, visionary French director Luc Besson (known for The Fifth Element and Lucy ) delivered what might be the most expensive independent film ever made: Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets . Based on the seminal French comic series Valérian and Laureline by Pierre Christin and Jean-Claude Mézières, the film is less a conventional blockbuster and more a $200 million love letter to the sci-fi medium itself. The film is directly adapted from the French
: Dispatch ships to various galaxies and scan them to uncover missions and encounter new alien lifeforms. Diplomacy & Missions
As they dive deeper into the mystery, they uncover a dark military conspiracy. The plot revolves around the , a peaceful, holistic, and technologically harmonious species whose utopian home planet, Mül, was completely destroyed as collateral damage during an interstellar space battle decades prior. The film shifts from a standard procedural space cop mission into a poignant commentary on colonialism, corporate greed, military cover-ups, and the ultimate power of empathy and environmental stewardship. Groundbreaking Visual Effects
The critical core of the movie revolves around its final act—a sequence where a massive intergalactic cover-up unravels, forcing the characters to choose between government protocol and interstellar justice. The Climax: Uncovering the Tragedy of Mül
