- Title: FRANCE: "THE FIFTH ELEMENT" OPENS THE 50TH CANNES FILM FESTIVAL
- Date: 19th April 1997
- Summary: CANNES, FRANCE (MAY 7, 1997) (RTV - ACCESS ALL) STARS FROM "FIFTH ELEMENT" WALKING INTO NEWS CONFERENCE BRUCE WILLIS HUGGING GARY OLDMAN / DIRECTOR LUC BESSON HUGGING OLDMAN WIDE OF NEWS CONFERENCE / CAMERAMEN FILMING IT WILLIS (SOUNDBITE ENGLISH) SAYING I THINK THE FILM IS GOING TO DO BIG, IT'S A BIG, FUNNY, EXCITING, COLOSSAL, GIGANTIC, OUT OF PROPORTION TO ALMOS
- Embargoed: 4th May 1997 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: CANNES, FRANCE / LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES / FILM LOCATIONS
- Country: France
- Reuters ID: LVA98MQNY5YL0NHSI92418NJMGIG
- Story Text: The 50th Cannes Film Festival has opened with the glittering premiere of Bruce Willis' futuristic drama "The Fifth Element." Willis, co-star Gary Oldman and director Luc Besson were among the guests who arrived at the Palais des Festivals for the gala.
Other celebrities to arrive at the famous red steps included Willis' wife, actor Demi Moore, movie legend Tony Curtis, Dennis Hopper and Vanessa Redgrave.
Willis then officially declared the festival open -- in French and English.
Whilst "Fifth Element" was chosen to open the festival, it will not be competing for the prestigious "Palme D'Or" (Golden Palm) prize for the best film.
As one of France's most acclaimed young filmmakers, Besson has teamed up with one of the United States' most bankable action stars in Willis for his new film.
Willis plays Korben Dallas, a 23rd century New York cab driver who becomes an unlikely hero when a mysterious woman named Lilu crashes through the roof of his cab after a swan dive off the ledge of a skyscraper.
Actress/model Milla Jovovich plays Lilu, the woman who may hold the only key to saving the Earth from the evil anti-life force lurking on the threshold of the universe.
Besson's previous credits include "The Professional," "La Femme Nikita," "The Big Blue," and "Subway." The film's title refers to the four elements of alchemic Greek tradition -- earth, air, water, and fire. Four elements gathered together to create the fifth one: life. Besson conceived of this energy -- the energy used to talk, to engage in sports, even to think -- as an actual, living thing that never disappears, but spreads throughout the universe and beyond.
The director came up with the concept for this film while he was still a teenager. He created the whole world of the 23rd century and even another language that Lilu, Jovovich's character, speaks for the first half of the film. Then, 15 years later, after the success of his earlier films, Besson finally found the opportunity to bring his life-long dream to life on the big screen.
Bringing this world to life is in large part the responsibility of a production design team Besson has worked with in most of his previous films. This team consisted of top rank designers and illustrators who went through a lengthy development process and worked in close collaboration with the departments of hair, makeup and costume designer Jean-Paul Gaultier.
When it came time to build the elaborate sets, the crew took up nine stages at London's legendary Pinewood Studios, with Besson running from world to world as he crossed from stage to stage. One of the stages, the famed "007" soundstage, is one of the largest film soundstages in the world.
As if writing and directing weren't enough for Besson, once again, he acted as his own camera operator, in order to maintain a very "hands-on" directing technique with his actors. He first developed this approach at the start of his career, when limited budgets and resources required the director to work with smaller crews and to go to extremes to get the exact shot that he needed.
Also in the cast are Gary Oldman, as the film's bad guy. This is Oldman's second film with Besson. The two previously worked together on "The Professional." Chris Tucker plays Ruby Rhod, an intergalactic radio disc jockey who becomes part of the plan to save the world from the impending evil. His previous acting credits include the Ice Cube comedy "Friday" and the Hughes Brothers' "Dead Presidents." - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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