luc besson – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

DRACULA 2026 – Review by T.J. Callahan

February 4, 2026 T. J. Callahan Caleb Landry Jones, Christoph Walz, Dracula 2026, luc besson

There have been over 200 Dracula movies made since the invention of moving pictures…what’s one more? Especially if it’s an amalgamation of most of its predecessors. Dracula 2026, from The Fifth Element and Lucy director, Luc Besson, stars Caleb Landry Jones as the ageless and anemic Count searching for the reincarnation of his murdered wife and Christoph Walz as the overzealous priest on a mission from the church to vanquish the vampire. This period piece with an exclamation point starts out as a steamy, gothic romance, quickly turns into an ornately armored war movie, then becomes a dance party and finally settles in as a bloody revenge and redemption horror flick as Vlad begins to impale.

General Archives Movie of the Week Reviews Women on Film

THE FIFTH ELEMENT — Review by Cynthia Fuchs

May 24, 2017May 24, 2017 Cynthia Fuchs 0 Comments leeloo, leon the professional, luc besson, Lucy, Movie of the Week, the fifth element

“This woman is mankind’s most precious possession.” So exclaims Father Cornelius (Ian Holm), gazing with awe and adoration at Leeloo

Movie of the Week Reviews

MOVIE OF THE WEEK, May 26 to June 2, 2017: THE FIFTH ELEMENT

May 21, 2017June 8, 2020 Betsy Bozdech 0 Comments bruce willis, cynthia fuchs, dorothy woodend, jeanne wolf, jennifer merin, liz whittemore, luc besson, milla jovovich, nell minow, Sheila Roberts, sony, the fifth element

Leeloo is back! SONY marks the 20 anniversary of Luc Besson’s The Fifth Element and its iconic heroine with theatrical re-release and July delivery of a special edition 4K UHD. Milla Jovovich’s Leeloo is perfection, a supreme being who has unique survival skills and high power compassion. The film is still visually stunning, thrilling to watch. Continue reading…

General Archives Movie of the Week Reviews Women on Film

THE FIFTH ELEMENT — Review by Dorothy Woodend

May 21, 2017May 21, 2017 Dorothy Woodend 0 Comments bruce willis, chris rock, luc besson, milla jovovich, the fifth element

On the eve of another Luc Besson science fiction extravaganza (the director’s new film Valerian and the City of a

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THE FIFTH ELEMENT — Review by Jennifer Merin

May 15, 2017May 22, 2017 Jennifer Merin 0 Comments leeloo, luc besson, milla jovovich, the fifth element

Luc Besson’s classic femme-centric scifi actioner is being re-released in theaters to mark the film’s 20th anniversary. Concurrently, SONY is

Commentaries General Archives Movie of the Week Reviews Women on Film

AWFJ Movie of the Week, Jan. 5-9: TAKEN 3

January 5, 2015January 12, 2015 Nikki Baughan 0 Comments anne brodie, Dougray Scott, Famke Janssen, Forest Whitaker, Leland Orser, liam neeson, luc besson, Maggie Grace, Olivier Megaton, Pam Grady, Robert Mark Kamen, Sam Spruell, Sandra Kraisirideja

Opening Jan. 9, AWFJ’s Movie of the Week is Taken 3, the third outing for ex-spy Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) who this time must use his particular set of skills to clear his name after he is wrongly accused of a brutal murder. Read on…

Reviews

LUCY – Review by Susan Granger

July 22, 2014June 8, 2020 Susan Granger 0 Comments luc besson, Lucy, scarlett johansson, science fiction

Cleverly utilizing computer-generated imagery, while suspending all sensible logic thru fragmented, episodic story-telling, French writer/director Luc Besson (“La Femme Nikita,” “Leon: The Professional,” “Taken,” “The Transporter”) has created a fast-paced, blood-splattered, eerie escapade, shot on a mere $40 million budget. Obviously inspired by Michelangelo’s “The Creation of Adam,” Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey,” and Neo in “The Matrix” franchise, Besson even takes the name Lucy from the fossilized skeleton of man’s earliest ancestor, Australopitchecus afarensis, which was discovered in 1974. Read more…

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AWFJ Movie of the Week, July 21-27: LUCY

July 21, 2014October 11, 2014 Sandra Kraisirideja (Archived Contributor) 0 Comments luc besson, Lucy, mmaryann johanson, Morgan Freeman, nellminow, scarlett johansson

Opening July 25, the AWFJ Movie of the Week is Lucy, starring action It Girl Scarlett Johansson as a woman who gains the ability to use one hundred percent of her brain function, turning her into an unstoppable killing machine. Writer-director Luc Besson has created his share of strong, female action heroes as witnessed in La Femme Nikita and The Professional. Johannson is turning into that rare actor who is interesting to watch in both big-budget action movies, like The Avengers, and riskier films, like Under the Skin. It will be fascinating to see what Besson and Johansson have created together in Lucy. Read on…