Project Geekology
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Project Geekology
Multipass! Revisiting The Fifth Element
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Bruce Willis drives a flying cab, Leeloo crashes into his life, and somehow McDonald’s is still around in the far future. This week on Project Geekology, we revisit The Fifth Element to see if this sci-fi classic still holds up.
We talk about what makes the movie so memorable, from its unique futuristic world and practical effects to its unforgettable cast. We break down Bruce Willis as Korben Dallas, Milla Jovovich's iconic Leeloo, Gary Oldman's delightfully over-the-top Zorg, and Chris Tucker's scene-stealing Ruby Rhod. We also touch on the parts that haven't aged quite as well and why the film is still a cult favorite nearly 30 years later.
Whether you're watching it for the first time or the fiftieth, join us as we revisit one of the most unique sci-fi movies ever made. If you enjoy the episode, be sure to subscribe, share it with a fellow movie fan, and leave us a five-star review!
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Welcome Back With Two Hosts
SPEAKER_00Come on, man. You guys just f fell out of the sky into my cab. I'm I'm down to my last few points on my license. But you know what? While we're here, welcome to episode 170 of Project Geekology. I'm one of your hosts, Anthony, and this week we're going to be covering the fifth element. But you know what? I can't do it alone. I have to do it with the man who always is having a rip roaring good time.
SPEAKER_01Rich, uh glad to be with you this weekend. Excited to dive into the fifth element. Uh, it's been such a long time since I seen this movie. Uh some sneaky, recurring, I'd say, uh, guys on the show that we uh actors we've covered before. So uh the priest here is he's played a lot of roles in science fiction, man.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, man. Yeah, it's gonna be a good time to cover that. It's been a long time since I've actually seen this too. And the good podcast listeners, obviously, you notice that it's just Rich and I this week. It's gonna probably be like that for uh a few or so weeks. Dakota and Jen, they just they're celebrating the birth of their child, and so you know, they're getting acclimated with having a new person in their home. So uh Rich and I are we're gonna be holding it down. We're gonna be uh we're honestly already planning podcast episodes for the future. We're gonna cover uh Masters of the Universe, the movie that came out this year. We'll be covering that next week. So uh be listening out
Catching Up On Batman And Monarch
SPEAKER_00for that. But before we get into our discussion of the fifth element, you know we always start each week with what we've been up to. Rich, what have you been up to? It's been a couple weeks. You know, we've I've been playing a little bit of catch-up, so it's been yeah, a couple weeks.
SPEAKER_01Uh let's see. Uh well, I I I think I was talking about I talked about last time that I wanted to play Lego Batman, and I did. It's amazing. And I uh I got a platinum on that baby. I loved it. It's fantastic. I'm gonna replay it on Dark Knight mode. I um also started watching Monarch Legacy of Monsters on Apple TV. I thought it was fantastic. I watched the whole thing. And then um actually that we were talking about this before the show, but the um the actress from the the I think it's Godzilla V Kong Godzilla X Kong movie, right? Specifically, and then the f this the following one died in a car accident. It's just crazy.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, what was it? Um Kaylee Hoddle. And yeah, she she was young, 18 years old. Very, very young. That is definitely some sad news that we got this week, and my heart goes out to her family, and uh, you know, she was it it's crazy that we literally just went over this Godzilla series that she was in, and then this happens.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you know, and it's I was reading the article, and I you know, um obviously she's been in movies and she's pretty famous, but I know when I read that the um the car she was in was like a nineteen ninety-five Toyota Corolla. I was like, man, this is like you know, I teach seniors, you know, this is a kid being a kid, right? Like being in an old jalopy with their friends going somewhere. Because I mean it's 2026 to be fair. And I mean that's a ninety-five is, you know, still being on the road is pretty impressive. So it's a 31-year-old car, so it's just uh it actually kind of made it for me a little bit almost sadder because she's just trying to be a regular kid. You know, you look listen, if I were in a Kid Kong movie, I don't know if I'm getting someone's 95 Corolla, you know, I'd be like, hey. So just um unfortunate, but um again, and just kind of really weird that we just recently watched it, and you know, I w I was I was literally just watching Monarch and thinking, oh, I gotta watch one of the Kongs in the middle because not that I missed out on it, but I would have liked to have a flow to it when I watched it.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, man. Yeah, it's that was definitely some crazy news. You know, aside from Batman, uh the last time we spoke you were on uh uh a bit of a
Mets Road Trips And Summer Plans
SPEAKER_00vacation. It looks like you're back home back in front of the Death Star.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, just taking it easy. Uh Charlie's at camp, so it's kind of the downtime around here where it's weird because it's so quiet. But uh we're gonna be uh heading to uh Cleveland and Pittsburgh in a couple weeks. Believe it or not, we're following the Mets. Well, we're gonna do a lot of stuff around that, but we're gonna also see the Mets lose in Cleveland and in Pittsburgh. Because I don't see them lose enough in New York, so.
SPEAKER_00When are you gonna go to Colorado? Isn't that the place that has the the Glazilla or whatever?
SPEAKER_01That giant that one's a little bit tougher. This one um got a little, I'll be honest, it got a little lucky that uh basically they're the Mets are going to Cleveland and Pittsburgh, and it's close enough that I'm like, okay, I'll just do both. It kind of depends on what what where they're going in July or August, is kind of like my uh my thing. But uh what what have you been up to?
Supercon Highlights And Missing Panels
SPEAKER_00In the the couple weeks that since we last recorded, I went to SuperCon. The the last episode that we recorded together, I was actually in preparation of that. I put out a mini episode last week, uh one as a as a buffer so that I could get the uh episode out the sheep detectives, but also to kind of document that it was always my plan to put out a mini episode for uh Supercon anyway, so it ended up working out. But yeah, I went to SuperCon. Uh I did have a good time. I I would say that I I did have my gripes, it felt a little smaller than than I'm used to. I used I feel like Supercon used to be like massive, and I don't know. I mean it's owned by Repop. It's owned by your peeps that do NYCC. So I don't know why I I feel like they they should inject a little bit more uh money into it. Uh I mean we did get some uh well-known names, uh Hayden Christensen, Charlie Cox, Rosario Dawson, pretty much all the defenders were there. But like weirdly enough, like Hayden Christensen, Rosario Dawson, and Charlie Cox didn't there was no panel. They were not a part of any panels. And I I thought that was a little interesting. Usually the the headliner guests have some sort of panel going on, and like Hayden Christensen and Rosario Dawson could have done one together. Honestly, Rosario Dawson has been could have been part of the defenders one too, along with Charlie Cox, but Charlie Cox wasn't there either. I mean, I definitely I but I will say I did have a good time, I did get some merch aside from my gripes. You know, if you want to hear a little bit more, uh dear listeners, uh go ahead and uh go back and listen to my my mini sode on that. Aside from that, you know, I've been doing some catch-up on the podcast, uh, you know, getting getting these episodes out, planning episodes uh with you, especially with uh Dakota and uh Jen out of the the picture for the
Marvel Rivals And Fallout Remaster Hype
SPEAKER_00moment. But yeah, man, it it's you know gaming, been playing uh been hopping onto Marvel Rivals. I know you played that a while back. Since you last played it, that they've definitely added a lot of characters. They recently just added Jubilee. They have um was it Cyclops is on there, so they've definitely added uh a couple of uh uh X-Men on there.
SPEAKER_01So you're gonna have to put that down for a little bit when the uh Fallout New Vegas remaster comes out that they just recently announced.
SPEAKER_00Man, I I'll I'll I'll be on that. I love me some uh Fallout New Vegas. That one, it's so crazy because that one wasn't even made by Bethesda, wasn't made by even the the OG developer Interplay, Obsidian. Obsidian made that, which they were also they also made, you know, they made Outer Worlds, but they also made Knights of the Old Republic 2. Oh so Obsidian is definitely known it seems like they they're pretty good when it comes to like making sequels that other companies that the main companies don't want to make. But I mean I enjoyed Knights of the Old Republic too. A lot of people had some gripes about it. I enjoyed it. Same with uh New Vegas, like I mean, come on. New Vegas. New Vegas is definitely I would say one of the mo the more involved uh Fallout games. There's a lot I feel like there's a lot going on in it, but it's really good. You know, I mean there's a reason why season two of Fallout took place in New Vegas, so yeah, no, I agree.
SPEAKER_01I love that one. So I'm looking forward to that. You know, they said they're gonna come out there also gonna after I guess after Elder Scrolls 6 comes out, they're gonna be they're gonna be looking towards a new Fallout 5. Um excited about all that news, I'll be like probably 55 before it comes out, but Yeah, I was gonna say, like, I mean, Fallout 5 is probably well off.
SPEAKER_00I mean, when was the last time we got any news for Elder Scrolls 6?
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00I think literally we really got news from it like before COVID. I like I don't I don't even think that's a joke. I think that was the last time we got the trailer and that we've really heard much about it. I I just I don't like it when companies do.
SPEAKER_01I'm gonna read Winds of Winter Winds of Winter while I'm playing Elder Scrolls 6 and watching the Mets Win the World Series. Alright? Or it's all gonna happen the same year.
SPEAKER_00All when you're 85. You'll be 85 when that releases. But uh surprisingly, it seems like this year the GTA 6 will be coming out. I didn't think that that was gonna I I'm still I'm still thinking there there's a possibility that they might pull a fast one and push it to next year, but I could be wrong. But uh yeah, I mean uh aside from that, I haven't really had much going on. I don't know. If you have anything else you want to add, uh we can hop into uh the fifth element.
SPEAKER_01Let's get straight into the fifth element, man.
First Impressions Of The Fifth Element
SPEAKER_00Nice. So I know you said that it's been a long time since you've seen it. Like, what is your relationship with the fifth element? Like as as a young rich, when did you hop onto the the fifth element bandwagon?
SPEAKER_01See, it's weird. I probably only saw it on TV when like TBS or TNT was like playing it on repeat. I did not see this in the theater. I think when it was released, which was like ninety-five, right? Alright, so in ninety-seven, I'm like fourteen or something. It just looked really weird. Uh it had a lot going on, you know. Um I was like, I love Bruce Willis, and um I had seen Emila Jovenich and a couple of things. I I don't I can't remember if Run Lola Run came out before or after this, uh, but I believe she was in that. So there were a couple, and then of course she's in the uh the weird Resident Evil movies, which I terrible.
SPEAKER_00With her uh that her husband made directed and it's like in literally every single movie that he directs, she's in it. It's just absolutely ridiculous.
SPEAKER_01Uh so I think I didn't take this movie as seriously, and like in retrospect, like I like it, but oh man, Bruce Willis is such a weird choice for a dude in space. He's supposed to be like your everyman, right? And in this movie, it's funny because he is an everyman, right? He's a cab driver, but he's just such an earth everyman that like it was just so weird. It was I you know, even when like uh in Armageddon, he's in space, but uh it makes sense because he's like a he's actually like an oil tank or drill an oil driller or something, so they bring him up to drill on the asteroid, you know. Um so it was weird. Like I liked it, and I and the premise was fine by me and uh and the way they got everything going, but it it still was a little awkward to have Bruce Willis in space.
SPEAKER_00I don't think that I had seen it as odd, be and I think mostly because they put him in in the exact role that he's like known for. Like his character in that movie is a very diehard character, right? Like, I mean, so that uh you know they they got that down packed, but uh as far as for me, I honestly couldn't tell you when I seen it. I remember I mean I remember seeing it a long time ago. Um I might have been probably either pre-teen or you know, in my tweens or like early teens when I seen it. So I'm pretty sure that I caught it post me Milo Juzovic in Resident Evil. I think that like that's where I had really I think that was my first real like exposure was those Resident Evil movies, and I agree with you, they are very weird and not like Resident Evil, but it's definitely an interesting, you know, movie, especially going back to it. I'll watch it maybe periodically from time to time. I think the last time I seen it was probably 10, you know, at le at least within the last 10 years, I
The 90s Future And McDonalds
SPEAKER_00I've seen it, but like not not recently. But I do find it interesting that it is like it's very cyberpunky in a way, like kind of like Blade Runner, but still like it's oh it's like they have McDonald's. Like it feels that movie feels exactly like with the technology that they had at the time that they understood, that's exactly like what they had, you know, like old CRT TVs, but like up in space, you know. So that's like they it was definitely like nine they were living in the 90s, but in space, the 90s.
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah, it was like in demolition, man, where and they're in the future, but they have Taco Bell everywhere.
SPEAKER_00Dude, the McDonald's was so funny. Like I that was definitely like product placement. They were obviously like paying their sponsor for this movie for sure. Oh, yeah, I know 100%. Especially like when they show because they showed like the actual McDonald's, and then when Corbin was running away from the cops, the cops like drive right into like a it's it's like a like a flying McDonald's space truck.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00And they like you see like all the like you know, it's like fries and hamburgers and stuff. I'm like, so like when I saw that, I'm like, yeah, yeah, McDonald's is definitely sponsoring this movie.
SPEAKER_01Hey, I mean, yeah, you know, I I never honestly I never kill a movie for product placement. I think it's very you know, the only thing I don't like is when like on like Walking Dead when they would have like brand new, I think it's Ford or something, you know, whatever. Whenever they found a car, somehow it'd be like a brand shiny new like Ford. They'd be like, uh look at and it's like, alright, I guess you guys are selling the Fords, but you know, like you're not finding brand new cars during the middle of a zombie outbreak.
SPEAKER_00Right? Yeah, like the world ended in like 2011 for the Walking Dead world, but you see uh you see like a 2019 Highlander or something, you know?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, but you know, going to McDonald's, like that makes sense. Drinking a Pepsi, you know, having a Budweiser, you know, like all those things.
SPEAKER_00McDonald's is timeless. It was in the back of the day, and there's still gonna be what you know when they're flying cars to to uh to a restaurant, they're gonna be flying to McDonald's. They're gonna be flying to Wendy's. And I I like how the the girl at the uh the drive-thru had red hair like Ronald McDonald's. Yeah, yeah, that was so weird. It was like very cyberpunky because like her outfit and it kind of reminded me of uh what's her name from the later Blade Runner movie with like the pink hair or whatever.
SPEAKER_01I can't remember her name, I don't know what you're talking about.
SPEAKER_00So there was that.
What The Fifth Element Really Is
SPEAKER_00But this movie it's it's interesting, right? Like, you know, okay, the fifth element, what is the fifth element, right? Like, you know, the old there's the the four elements of old, right? Back in the day, they had um, you know, it's it's water, earth, air, fire, and the fifth element is uh Lilu, you know, multipass Lilu. And so it's like, okay, well, why, you know, why is this existing? Well, every it's like every five thousand years, this like evil energy ball like comes to threaten everybody. And so like the fifth element, which is like this kind of supreme being, which is uh Lilu's character, uh, comes in and kind of joins in with the four other four elements to like create this like weapon to like destroy it. So I mean it it's really it's it because it's it's like very spacey, but then there's the also this kind of like ancient, you know, they have like that ancient Egypt kind of thing going on.
SPEAKER_01With Luke Perry, man. Luke Perry. Uh fun fact, Luke Perry's son actually became a wrestler in uh the company that I I briefly did commentary for. Uh it was so weird. I was like, oh my god, that's Luke Perry's son. But that was a random appearance at the beginning there, the Egyptian scene, it's like 1913 or something.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and and and you had like these aliens that like showed up, and then the actual show or the actual movie itself is like three hundred years later. Yeah. And I d I think it's like twenty I think it's literally it's in the nineties, but like two thousand two hundred like ninety-six or ninety-seven. So they're like in the nineties, but like two hundred years later in the nineties.
SPEAKER_01It's so weird. I do appreciate movies like this, though, that have this like future, but it's not the future. Like I I kind of like that. That's what I think made like Back to the Future 2 so good, you know. It was like the future, you know, but it wasn't the future, like it wasn't too crazy to imagine like that. And now when we look back on it, other than the hoverboards, like we suppressed all of it.
SPEAKER_00You know, I think like the with me kind of like hopping into the 90s, watching the fifth element, something that I actually forgot to like mention what I've been up to, is remember I told you that I've been watching this show called Sliders. Sliders. And it dude, it's insane. Like, supposedly I like I've never heard about it. It like it uh it was mid-90s to to like 2000, and it had uh was it Jerry O'Connell in it and John Reese Davies. Like, dude, what the like bro, there was a sci-fi show with with um your boy well he wasn't Gimli yet, but he was like known for Indiana Jones, his character in there. But I think like watching the fifth element kind of like got me like, you know, oh, you know, like man, I really like you know the the vibe that they had, like, you know, the the uh it's like futuristic, but it's also dated at the same time, you know.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I yeah, I think the thing is that like shows like Sliders existed because Fox was trying to get a foothold, so they would kind of green light a lot of weird things. So you got to see a lot of cool stuff uh sometimes like that because of that. I mean, you know, short-lived sometimes, but still pretty good.
SPEAKER_00Right, like it lasted three seasons on Fox and then it went onto sci-fi for an additional two seasons, which honestly surprises me that it was on Fox because like right out the gate feels like a sci-fi show to me, like a sci-fi channel show. You know, yeah, like this movie right here, the fifth element, got me into that. Like, you know, what what other media from the nineties, you know, sci-fi media, did I miss, you know, did I miss? And Sliders was one Outer Limits. I grew up on. I loved the Outer Limits, the 90s and 2000s one. Um I caught some of the old ones, but the one I grew up on was the ones from the 90s and the early 2000s. I've I've there's a lot of like really cool uh sci-fi that came out from the 90s, and um, you know, sliders was one, outer limits, you know, it's that anthology kind of um and the fifth element, honestly, like the fifth element is I'm trying to I don't think it's based on anything, right? Was it a book? I don't think it was a book.
SPEAKER_01I'm gonna look it up. I I actually don't know the answer to that. I don't think it is, but it very well might be. Let's see. Good. It seems like it's just a movie. Oh star uh started writing it. I just started writing it.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I I'm I'm I'm looking at this now. It says that that it's not based on a book and that the director and creator, Luke Besson, what wrote it as a story and screenplay when he was in high school to like to kind of like I guess like escape reality, which which is cool because you know he he went and he made it into a movie, so that's really, really cool.
The Cast That Makes It Work
SPEAKER_00And and like the man had like he he got a like a pretty crazy cast. You know, like you have uh Mila Jojevich, which I don't think I mean I think she had been in some stuff, but like nothing too insane yet. Chris Tucker. Yeah I was surprised when he jumped out. I was like what? Obviously Bruce Willis uh Gary Oldman. Come on Gary Oldman. Ian Holm you know we got we got uh pre-Bilbo Ian Holm. Cross out aliens yeah yeah you're right he uh the like there there was a good bit of yeah he had some like a good cast in here Chris Tucker's character is so funny and like it's a character that only Chris Tucker could play. Yeah yeah I felt like it was really it it had to have been written for him but it was so funny because like you know like he he is this like you know major celebrity that had this giveaway that um they kind of hijack you know the winnings of right Corbin and Lelu and you know his squad right and then your boy gets like put in it was a Ruby Rod right and then you have uh was it Gary Oldman like John Baptiste or something like that you know coming and throwing things down and like uh Ruby gets like thrown into this like crazy action like oh my god is that is that a bomb yeah and he's like was it Corbin's like making him like hold up guns to like you know these you know to these like alien creatures that are like throwing down that that whole sequence like towards the end to me that's the part I always remember that the opera right like the singer I always remember that but I always remember that like end sequence with Chris Tucker like you know when they go on that that like cruise on that ship and then they go go out to that place and like there's that just like that literal like diehard action explosions everywhere bombs blown up you know literally Bruce Willis like playing the characters that he you could essentially typecast him into because he's he was like the Jason Statham just before he started coming out with all this stuff.
SPEAKER_01Yeah I mean and uh I think the movie could have been like twenty minutes shorter. I feel like they did some stuff just for like the huge explosions and everything. Because like when I got at first when he gets to the opera I'm like what is happening here? I'm like we have lost the plot you know like I was like this is getting a little um off the rails but then it it came back around Gary Oldman's character I think my favorite thing that he does is like the classic bad guy thing where like he gets the jewels he thinks he has or the stones but he never checks the b you know the the bag like he waits till he gets back to his place and he sits down and he's like you know all ready to ex uh see them and then he opens it and he's like they're not here you know uh which is kind of just uh and then Bruce Willis like right away just like chopping up the opera singer like yeah the stones are here you know just putting them in a bag like you gotta take this to safety it's it is so over the top and ridiculous you know what it is his character his demeanor is so understated that it it almost makes everything around him seem even more ridiculous because he he feels like the normal one in all of this right you know you you kind of expect him to be like yo this is weird and like he very quickly just accepts it so I guess you like you have to accept it too but um I I like how he's like looking for the stones and he asks the singer and she's like they're inside me and and like you may think like oh maybe metaphorically right that they're like inside of her no they were like literally inside of her the uh oh my gosh the one of my favorite parts is like all of those people like coming up to check into that ship and they're like oh I'm Corbin Dallas and it like happened like three times.
SPEAKER_00Like it was like it was like initially Lilu and like that kid and then Corbin actually like comes up then that like alien with with like a his like girlfriend or whatever does it and then like the other guy after that comes up and says that he and it it was like so ridiculous like the lady that was checking is like really now did the uh the machine that helped uh recreate Elu know that Elu was going to be a female even though nobody else did because that strap system would not have worked for a dude.
SPEAKER_01I just don't you know the stuff the strap across the chest would have been a little superfluous. I think the straps on the bottom wouldn't have worked quite well.
SPEAKER_00Who knows? I mean because it it's something that happens you know it this happens well it's like like I said every 5,000 years right so I wonder if it's just Lelu being reincarnated over every time or if we're getting like a like a Time Lord type deal where like this the fifth element dies and then another one is like reincarnated in their place but it's like a different being right instead of like being the same. So I don't think that they really like explain that.
What Aged Weird And What Works
SPEAKER_01That he falls in love with her almost feels wrong you know so nineties.
SPEAKER_00Yeah you know like she's just created man like she's really like two weeks old you know like pump the break sister uh like I don't know it's just so weird and that like um you know he he was he's down on his luck you know he was down to his like last five points on his uh I think I had like five points on his license and then like when everything started happening the points were just gone.
SPEAKER_01Yeah it's um I don't know and then like she's like smart right so I love that like she also you know it's like this is the guy for me. I'm like the most perfect being in the universe I could be with anyone but it's gonna be my pal Bruce Willis over here.
SPEAKER_00Well she literally fell for him or on him on his taxi to be exact so that was like really her only like interaction you know she didn't really have enough time to meet too many people. And he did make the first move you know he started kissing her and she was gonna blast him his head off.
SPEAKER_01Feels so wrong but I don't know obviously a movie in a time capsule right so things are a little bit different. I just I I like the idea of like flipping it like I when she's created like all the dudes are sitting there just wh like looking at a naked guy for a few seconds before they're like oh we should probably put clothes on right because she just gets formed and like oh it's a woman like she's like I doesn't one of them say like she's beautiful like it it is it's a little it is like so weird because you like flip it with like Arnold Schwarzenegger coming out naked in Terminator 2 right when he zips from the timeline. But you know they very carefully don't show any of him and then he goes and does the iconic your clothes give them to me but here and then you know I do like that the pervs kind of get their comeuppance because the guy comes close to the glass and she obviously like just bonks his head off the glass like 97 times in a row which I thought was kind of there's like there is a uh a lot of they should have used the strap system for him on on that movie.
SPEAKER_00See if it works. Your straps give them to me is that like the she like gets dressed in clothes but then still has like straps.
SPEAKER_01Yeah it's like I know it's it's like part of my primordial costume you know like and then I didn't really I didn't think that she was quite literally going to be the weapon. It was so weird. You know it's sci-fi so I'm gonna like let things go but I love that like okay so comparatively right if you're you know an X3 Gene Gray's like so powerful and she's you know given all this energy and only Wolverine can get close which I still think is BS because I don't think he could have gotten that close and kept regenerating that quickly but that's for another time. But anyway you know like it's hard for you to be that close to that much power. Bruce Willis is just a regular cab driver dude and she just like lets off this like sonic like this crazy beam of energy to destroy that ball and he's just holding her the whole time like no nothing happens to his hands he seems totally fine it
The Stones Puzzle And Simple Answers
SPEAKER_01like that to me was a little bit like what like just step back man like maybe she should be in a an a like a podium you know and he steps back while this happens and the power knocks him back a little bit but he's just like holding her yeah no problem babe you got this I like how literal the elements were right they're like oh how do we unlock these and like the like the was it the assistant to the priest who was like it's just like oh my gosh we're gonna die or something like that and he's just like and then like it activates something and like he's like he's like I don't know what happened and like when they like find out that he literally just breathed on it to activate it you know and then uh was it the priest like uses his sweat on the water well and then uh and then they throw some dirt on the other one right like to activate it and then Ruby's like I he's like I don't I don't have any I like how he becomes like part of that whole thing.
SPEAKER_00Like we get him well it like later on into the movie and then like he becomes like a part of like saving the universe.
SPEAKER_01Like his like ridiculous Yeah I think the first time I watched it like I was kind of like when is this guy gonna leave? Right? Like I didn't think he was going to stick around but it was definitely weird. He sticks around to help save the world you know but the solutions did give me Nathan Drake vibes you know like uh I can't remember the name of the series right now. Uncharted you know like just the kind of these weird puzzles where you have to do these literal things and you're like you don't understand it and then when it happens you're like oh because she is saying stuff like you know she's like I can't remember exactly what she's saying but she's like you know w water, rain, like she's she's trying to give them hints in her like homatose state that don't make sense but like I watch it a second time and then like she's literally telling them like you know you gotta do this for that you gotta do this for that. You know like she's giving them the clues but it's making no sense to them in the moment.
SPEAKER_00The funny thing is is that like you know when you're in that moment you're not you know you wouldn't think that it's like literal right you you you you're thinking that like you know these stones are representing these elements metaphorically right that like oh wind is really gonna activate this oh all I have to do is throw a little sweat a little water on this to activate this oh I just gotta drop a match on this to activate it you know so I it's funny because it it's almost like a like a lot of us actually do that in in in like real life where we take something that's super super like simple and we overcomplicate it because that's what we expect it to be overcomplicated and that's what's happening here.
SPEAKER_01Yeah no I really like that and like watching it the second time made it that much better. The uh we gotta talk about those aliens guy what in the world are they supposed to be comically like ugly and terrible looking because they are right it's like and and and then like toxic events.
SPEAKER_00And then like then you had like that one that was trying to be uh Corbin you know like he and he was like struggling with his like disguise.
SPEAKER_01Yeah no I really like that. Gary Oldman is uh Zorg is it?
SPEAKER_00It was like oh yeah yeah it's like John Baptiste like Zorg.
SPEAKER_01Yeah he's amazing.
SPEAKER_00I'm just yeah he plays a really good bad guy. What's up with that like plastic cover on his head though?
SPEAKER_01I think it's it's just he always does something to make himself like weirder you know like it look it makes him look more obnoxious like it's some sort of vanity thing maybe like he has it on to protect his be you know his good looks quote unquote. It may it it does make him look more poindexterous and obnoxious. I I think it he's great. I mean it's so weird to see him and like in this role I've I don't like anything about the character really, you know but then this is also the man that I I love as Jim Gordon you know and I adore as Serious Black but he's just so good at doing that, you know where look I uh Bruce Willis is awesome, you know I I love diehard movies, but he didn't really try, you know he didn't really go he wasn't stepping outside of himself for this role, you know like he was dying hard in space pretty much it really was. I'm surprised he didn't say like Yippy Kaye but you know like Melon Farmer.
SPEAKER_00Like and and all honesty like he was that character but no I agree with uh Gary Oldman. I find it funny when it comes to movies like this, especially like you know futuristic kind of cyberpunk movies that the evil villain always has like the most ridiculous haircut.
SPEAKER_01Yeah I don't know why it is like I'm thinking of like also uh what's his Michael Serra in the comic book movie Scott Pilgrim.
SPEAKER_00Oh yeah uh his oh and like are you talking about like how the ex-boyfriends like have like obnoxious haircuts. Yes oh my gosh uh I forgot what I think the first guy had like a crazy uh haircut in that but yeah it is funny that that like villains having weird haircuts is like it's a thing like I I I don't even know where that started but it's funny but like this movie definitely it has like you know it it's a sci-fi movie that is serious sometimes but there's a lot of comedy to it also the moment that they realized like how to activate the stones you know like to me that was a bit comical yeah no I think there was it was a good balance of comedy and you know I like the first time it's it feels like a roller coaster. I feel like the second time you kind of see where the beats are going a little bit more but it does feel a little crazy chaotic I think the first time through yeah yeah no definitely it is especially if you're coming back to it for the first time in a long time or like even like well the thing is is that like coming to the to this movie it was the first time I had seen it in a long time but if you come into this movie for the first time like just in general there's a lot that seems to be going on it might be a little confusing. So this is definitely something that you would need to go come back to a couple times just to like kind of understand a little bit more. This is one of those those ones that like the more you watch it the more you notice like outside of like the main story like you might pick up a little bit here and there.
SPEAKER_01Yeah it's uh this guy Ian he just has to be in these movies where you have to watch him like two or three times.
SPEAKER_00Yeah we got we we got your boy Bilbo the priest yeah I didn't trust him for a while I I because because of I guess the alien experience I was like oh this guy's gonna be evil I don't know I don't trust him and then I was like oh he ended up being a good guy alright so I guess he was like moving away from his alien his alien badness and moving towards the light with Bilbo I I like it when uh Corbin like came up with Lelu and he's like marriages are downstairs or weddings are downstairs and then like the the like group of like lackeys for uh Zork he they go up to him and he's like weddings are downstairs there there there are some uh really good comedic moments in this movie I think uh overall it was a really uh it was a really fun watch I agree it's the fifth element is it's definitely one of those interesting movies that a lot of people have heard about it and like probably you know have seen it but it's not something that a lot of people
Why This Movie Rewards Rewatches
SPEAKER_00talk about. I mean obviously it's nearly thirty years old right which is insane to say because like I'm thinking 30 years ago was something that came out of the 70s. But the thing is is that this generation has been going back to a lot of like older media I mean you never know like who knows why watch like we cover this podcast and then next year all of a sudden people in this generation are are talking about the fifth element. Not necessarily because we covered it but just because media just kind of comes and goes like you know there's a lot of you know fashion and trends and media just kind of recycle all the time and you know you just don't know. So that this it would be cool to if this got a a bit more current day exposure because I mean it is a fun movie. It there's a lot of action to it there's a lot of comedy to it it's in space it's essentially die hard in space with this insane force that's there to destroy everything. You know Zorg essentially there to help it. But uh yeah no it's it's a rip roaring good time as you would say.
SPEAKER_01Yeah I definitely I I definitely recommend it. It's definitely a a product of its time but I uh I don't think it's such a product of time as inaccessible and like you said things circle back. My students are always randomly telling me they watched something that I didn't expect them to be watching. So yeah this could be something that a couple of more people are talking about so I uh I recommend go get out in front of the zeitgeist and go watch it. So you can be like oh yeah well I've known about that for years.
Juicy Five-Star Review And Next Week
SPEAKER_01And you know while you're at it because you're just feeling so juicy. What do you think they can go do for us Anthony?
SPEAKER_00There was that moment where Corbin was on a high speed chase with uh with some cops while he was driving his cab and you know he passes by some cops and this cop spills coke all over the place. And one would say that that Coke was you know it's juicy obviously it went everywhere. So so with that being said, you know that kind of juice that's what we want our reviews to be like we want a juicy five star review. If your podcast out application allows you to leave a comment leave us a comment and you know we we would like to hear from you all but yeah don't forget that juicy five star review. Speaking of five stars you know five stars is what I would give uh voodoo ranger juice force the official unofficial beer of the podcast unofficially unofficially yes here hear this voodoo ranger it is unofficial if you uh take an issue with that you know his name is uh Rich and we'll we'll send you his way you know he has no association if you get upset with him he has no association uh if not then it's all I really hope imagine we get sued and it's because like they didn't like my opinion on the podcast like listen we don't care that you keep talking about the beer but what you said about Kong was way too much. Don't be putting that on us Rich. Don't be doing that you're gonna have to take all that on your shoulders but yeah man so do you any uh anything else you want to add for the fifth element any aspects that you enjoyed you know parts of the story characters I mean we talked about you know I mean it had a good a pretty good cast.
SPEAKER_01Yeah no I thought the cast was good and I thought that um everyone played their role really well I thought there was a good balance of sci-fi and like not taking itself too seriously at the same time which I think is important. So I think it's a really well balanced movie with a surprisingly good cast and uh you know I think that maybe it's something that at the at first glance I wouldn't have really taken a look at as like aga again but looking back on it I can see the quality now.
SPEAKER_00No yeah I agree definitely with the casting the thing that I really do enjoy about this is that yeah it's a futuristic movie but it feels very much so like the product of the decade that it came out you know it felt very much so like a 90s movie and that's not you know that's not a bad thing right like you if it's something to look back on fondly and I I definitely do. And yeah it's just not a movie that's in my regular rotation but like going back to it periodically it's I mean it's it's a good movie. It really is a good movie and I would say if anybody listening to this if you've listened to this whole entire podcast and you haven't seen the fifth element I still recommend you going to watch it you know like there are some really awesome characters you know some really funny characters Characters, like you really, really gotta see Chris Tucker as Ruby. I like I just his character is so ridiculous, but I like I love his character, it's so funny. And just you know, like all every sequence after that, after his introduction into this into like the story, it's just so funny. Like he's like the he's definitely the comic relief, but like Bruce Willis also adds that to it too, because like he can be really funny also.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and because he plays a straight man, it it comes off so much better. Yeah, it kind of reminds me of like Dennis Haskins and uh who frame Roger Rabbit that we watched not that long ago.
SPEAKER_00Oh yes, yes. Like he's got that his character is like very like you know gruff and like serious, but he also has some like comedic timing, also. Yeah, no, I agree. Bruce Willis definitely taps into that in this movie. I mean, it it's so easy to like draw parallels with this character in this with uh the character in diehard. Like, I mean it this was the era that like I like I really felt like we got a lot of Bruce Willis, right? Like not you know, I mean he had been around for a while, but like I really felt like you know, nineties, two thousand early two thousands, like we really got a lot of.
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah, I mean he was in this Armageddon, the newer diehard movies. He was even in the pulp fiction in pulp fiction. So he was making appearances left and right, you know, and just really as himself.
SPEAKER_00It's pretty funny. Mila Judge, like I mean, she goes on to be in a lot, also, like, you know, I mean we talked about Resident Evil, but there's other movies that that she's been in, and also another movie that she was in that I was just not a fan of because I love the series, uh, Monster Hunter, which was also directed by her husband, but uh she was in that Ian Holm, like he was in a lot before that. Like he was in uh he was the android in Alien, but then he goes on to be Bilbo and Lord of the Rings. So like you know, he he was stacked. Gary Oldman was the same, like you know, he had been in a bit, then he goes on to be Commissioner Gordon, he uh series black. So there's a lot of people in this movie that like I think obviously Chris Tucker, like I mean, come on. He goes on to do like uh several. I don't know if Friday was before after this. I don't remember if the first one was before after this, but you know, he you know he's in Friday, he does rush hour, you know, he does the rush hour movies, he does a lot also. So yeah, like a lot of the people in this movie they go on to do I would say like some like very successful, some like very solid, right? So yeah, the this you know in hindsight this movie had a stacked cast, at least main character-wise.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, a hundred percent. I think that um it kind of go it definitely makes it more enjoyable when you're suddenly you're on a note where you're like, oh whoa, where'd you come from? You know.
SPEAKER_00Rich, do you have any last thoughts, anything that you want to tell the good audience before we sign off?
SPEAKER_01Uh go check it out and uh then uh and then get ready for next week because we're gonna be talking about Masters of the Universe. I'm excited.
SPEAKER_00Yes. No, I agree. If you have not seen the Fifth Element and have listened to this, go and watch it. If you have seen it and you haven't seen it in a long time, go watch it again. And yeah, next week, Masters of the Universe. Thank you for listening to episode 170 of Project Geekology. You can go to the show notes to check out our socials where we will be posting our episode releases. I hope you all have a great rest of your week, and we will catch you next week with Masters of the Universe. Bye y'all.
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