Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2024)

in:Film, Spatiotemporal Index

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Summary[]

In the 28th century, the former International Space Station reached critical mass, making it too dangerous to keep in low Earth orbit. Relocated to deep space, it became Alpha, a space-traveling city inhabited by millions of creatures from thousands of planets. A special police division was created to preserve peace through the galaxy, including happy-go-lucky Major Valerian and his partner, no-nonsense Sergeant Laureline.

En route to a mission, Valerian dreams of a planet where a low-tech humanoid race lives peacefully. They fish for pearls containing enormous amounts of energy, and use small animals to replicate them. Wreckage begins plummeting from the sky, triggering an apocalypse. Before the explosion reaches the surface, a young princess manages to send out a telepathic signal.

Shaken, Valerian wakes. After an analysis reveals he might have received a signal from across time and space, he learns that his mission is to retrieve a "Mül converter", so-called for being able to replicate anything it eats. It is the last of its kind, and currently in the hands of black market dealer Igon Siruss. Before setting out, Valerian asks Laureline to marry him, but she brushes him off, due to his many affairs with female colleagues and his aversion to commitment.

Travelling to a massive extra-dimensional bazaar called Big Market, Valerian disrupts a meeting between Igon and two hooded figures who look like the humanoids from his vision. They also seek the converter, which is one of the small animals he saw in his vision. Valerian and Laureline recover the converter, and he surreptitiously steals one of the pearls. Aboard their ship, he learns that Mül was destroyed thirty years earlier, and all information about it is classified.

They return to Alpha, where their superior, frosty Commander Arün Filitt, tells them the center of the station has been infected by an unknown force, rendering it highly toxic. Troops sent into the area have not returned, and the infection is growing. Laureline and Valerian are assigned to protect the commander during an interstation summit to discuss the crisis. Against the Commander's wishes, Laureline retains possession of the converter.

During the summit, the humanoids suddenly attack, incapacitating everyone before kidnapping Filitt. Valerian chases the kidnappers to the infected area and crashes his vehicle. Evading arrest for insubordination, Laureline enlists the help of some aliens to track Valerian, and finds him unconscious at the edge of the infected zone. She wakes him, but is kidnapped by a primitive imperial tribe called "Boulan Bathors" that emigrated from planet Goara and lives nearby. Valerian infiltrates the tribe's territory with the help of a shape-shifting dancer, Bubble. They save Laureline and escape, but Bubble is mortally wounded. As she dies, she convinces Valerian to never give up on his feelings for Laureline.

Valerian and Laureline venture further into the infected area, realizing it is not actually toxic and contains some wrecks of antique spacecraft. They reach a large shielded hall where they find the humanoids, known as Pearls, with an unconscious Filitt. Their leader, Emperor Haban Limaï, explains that his people lived peacefully on Mül until a battle broke out in orbit between the human government's fleet and another species. The human commander, Filitt, ordered the use of a doomsday weapon that annihilated both the enemy and the planet. Upon dying, Princess Lihö-Minaa transferred her soul into Valerian's body. A small group of survivors took shelter in a crashed human spaceship. They managed to repair it, and learned of the humans' technology and history. They eventually came to Alpha, where they assimilated more knowledge and built a ship that could recreate their former home. They needed only the converter and the pearl to launch the ship. Filitt admits his role in the genocide, but argues that it was necessary to end the war, and the cover-up to prevent the humans from being expelled from Alpha. Valerian and Laureline disagree, stating that the commander has only been trying to save himself from the consequences for his actions, before Valerian knocks him out again.

Valerian hands over the pearl he stole, and Laureline convinces him to return the converter too, ignoring procedures. While the Pearls' spacecraft prepares for takeoff to no more bother the other species in Alpha, Filitt's pre-programmed robot K-Tron soldiers attack the Pearls, the government soldiers who were sent to assist Valerian, and their support staff, but are ultimately defeated. The spacecraft departs and Filitt is arrested. Valerian and Laureline are left adrift onboard a still working Apollo Command/Service Module, which is identified by radio technicians as "Destiny 2005", and Laureline finally accepts Valerian's marriage proposal as they wait for rescue.

Cast[]

Dane DeHaan as Major Valerian
Cara Delevingne as Sergeant Laureline
Clive Owen as Commander Arun Filitt
Rihanna as Bubble
Ethan Hawke as Jolly the Pimp
Herbie Hanco*ck as Defence Minister
Kris Wu as Sergeant Neza
Sam Spruell as General Okto Bar
Alain Chabat as Bob the Pirate
Rutger Hauer as President of the World State Federation
John Goodman as the voice of Igon Siruss, a Kodar'Khan pirate captain and the galaxy's most-wanted criminal
Aymeline Valade as Emperor Haban-Limaï
Elizabeth Debicki as the voice of Emperor Haban Limaï
Peter Hudson as Captain Crowford
Xavier Giannoli as Captain Norton
Louis Leterrier as Captain Welcoming Mercurys
Mathieu Kassovitz as Camelot on Big Market
Jonas Bloquet as K-Tron Warrior/Control Room Soldier
Sand Van Roy as Jessica Rabbit Creature
Sasha Luss as Princess Lihö-Minaa, Creature 'Candy Dress'
Olivier Megaton as Captain Welcoming KCO2
Eric Rochant as Captain Welcoming Palm Müret
Benoît Jacquot as Captain Welcoming Arysum
Gérard Krawczyk as Captain Welcoming Martapuraïs
Pierre Cachia as Kortan Dahük
David Saada as Kortan Dahük
Hippolyte Burkhart-Uhlen as Kortan Dahük
Florian Guichard as Mercury
Stéphane Mir as Mercury
Thierry Barthe as Mercury
Pier Ewudu as Palm Müret
Andrew Tisba as Palm Müret
Yannick Lorté as Palm Müret
Charly Akakpo as Arysum-Kormn
Clément Beauruelle as Arysum-Kormn
Audrey Kamp as Arysum-Kormn
Anthony Hornez as Martapuraï
Julien Bleitrach as Martapuraï
Maxime Babara Touré as Martapuraï
Pauline Hoarau as Empress Aloï, Creature 'Swing Angel'
Barbare Weber Scaff as Empress Aloï (voice)
Marilhéa Peillard as Tsûuri
Lee Delong as Tsûuri / Tourist (voice)
Diva Cam as Mâatri (Tsûuri's Friend)
Judith Brunett as Mâatri (Tsûuri's Friend) (voice)
Marie Barrouillet as Tsûuri Child
Cindy Bruna as Guard
Sija Titko as Guard
Daphnée Kbidi as Tortured Pearl
Nick Marzock as Tortured Pearl (voice)
Ola Rapace as Major Gibson
Stefan Konarske as Captain Zito
Mahamadou Coulibaly as Major Gibson's Soldier, Igon Junior
Julien Marlin as Major Gibson's Soldier
Yvan Lucker as Major Gibson's Soldier
Tom Hygreck as Major Gibson's Soldier
Gavin Drea as Sergeant Cooper
Abel Jafri as Bus Driver
Eric Lampaert as Guide Thaziit
Paul Lefevre as Siirt Guard / Siirt Salesman
Guillaume Maison as Siirt Salesman
Jean-Christophe Brizard as Siirt Salesman
Patrick Cottet-Moine as Siirt Cop (as Patrick Cottet Moine)
Irene Palko as Female Tourist
Sam Douglas as Male Tourist
Laurent Ferraro as Igon Siruss, Doghan-Dagui
John Goodman as Igon Siruss (voice)
Jean-Robert Lombard as Igon Sirus Guard
Leonid Glushchenko as Igon Sirus Guard
Peter Eberst as Igon Sirus Guard
Akim Chir as Igon Sirus Guard
Laminé Ba as Igon Sirus Guard
Aurelien Gaya as Igon Sirus Guard
Jean-François Lenogue as Igon Sirus Guard
Tonio Descanvelle as Da, Doghan-Dagui
Velvet D'Amour as Tourist
James Flynn as Guide
Doug Rand as Doghan-Dagui
Grant Moninger as Doghan-Dagui (voice)
Robbie Rist as Doghan-Dagui (voice)
Christopher Swindel as Doghan-Dagui (voice)
Emilie Goldblum as Bubble Dancer
Claire Tran as Bubble Glamopod, Control Room Sergeant
Anders Heinrichsen as Police Officer
Alain Etoundi as Club Bouncer
Fayet Nsomoto as Club Bouncer
Kristina Kachinskaya as Creature 'Twin'
Veronika Khayla as Creature 'Twin'
Sissi Duparc as Creature 'Louis XVI'
Noam Frost as Creature 'Bird Woman'
Pauline Serreau as Creature 'Tattoo'
Tristan Robin as Roper
Philippe Rigot as Hero Merchant
Alexandre Willaume as Captain Kris
Chloe Hollings as Alex-Intruder's Voice
Réginal Kudiwu as Major Samk
Étienne Ménard as Red Zone Captain
Peter Lamarque as Warship Captain
Maximilien Seweryn as K-Tron Captain
Zouheir Zerhouni as K-Tron Warrior
Tristan Zerbib as K-Tron Warrior
Elliot Jenicot as Interrogation Room Captain
Staiv Gentis as Control Room Soldier
Aguendia Fotabong as Emperor
Tania Dessources as Emperor's Wife
Gaëtan Cotigny as Fisherman
François Bredon as Fisherman
Cédric Chevalme as Bubble Boulan-Bathor
Roman Blomme as Boulan Bathor (uncredited)
Mikael Buxton as Paradise Alley Soldier (uncredited)
David Clark as Astronaut (uncredited)
Yun-Ping He as Controller of the Technical Chamber (uncredited)
Maxence Huet as Controller of the technicial chamber (uncredited)
Ben Mauro as Commander Arün Filitt Guard (uncredited)
Alexandre Nguyen as Japanese Delegate (uncredited)
Emilie Pommelet as Pearl (uncredited)
Marion Roussignol as Pearl (uncredited)
Thomas Simonin as Male Tourist

Home Media[]

It was released digitally 7 November 2017, and was released on Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray and DVD 21 November 2017.