"Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" is a new sci-fi adventure from French director
Luc Besson (
"The Fifth Element"). The filmmaker raised an impressive and unprecedented $177 million (including crowd funding and Besson's own money) over seven years, making it both the most expensive European and independent film ever made.
The film is based on the comic book series
"Valérian and Laureline" written by
Pierre Christin and illustrated by
Jean-Claude Mézières, and specifically the sixth album in the series titled
"Ambassador of the Shadows".
Dane DeHaan and
Cara Delevingne star as the comics' titular heroes, who are tasked with safeguarding Alpha, a vast metropolis and home to species from a thousand planets, against a dark, mysterious threat.
The cast also includes
Clive Owen, Rihanna, Ethan Hawke, Herbie Hancock, Kris Wu, Rutger Hauer, Sam Spruell, John Goodman, Elizabeth Debicki, Mathieu Kassovitz and
Alain Chabat.
"Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" opened in theaters in the U.S. on July 21st, 2017. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the film's imaginative visuals and impressive effects, but complained about the chemistry of the lead actors and Besson's writing.
The film has also been having a rough time at the box-office. In the U.S. it opened with $17 million and grossed only $36.9 million in 19 days, while overseas it managed to rake in $51.6 million. Pundits estimate that it would need to gross around $350-400 million worldwide to break even and justify a sequel. The film has yet to open in China, Russia, South Korea and Italy, but even so, breaking even seems like an impossible task at this point.
Find out more about the movie after the jump.
