![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
iariaIt wasn't as bad as I was expecting (I had low expectations) but, while there was a bunch I liked, it never came together. The writing especially felt very slap-dashed.
+ I still think the main two actors were miscast though I didn't hate them like I thought I would based on the trailers. They did fine but not great.
+ There was no chemistry between the leads. They had a couple good moments but overall the writing for their relationship was poor. I never bought the romance.
+ My biggest issue by far was how Lorelai wanted to give up the Mül and Valerian didn't, until she convinced him via relationship drama, a character twist that made no sense to me. Laureline is the one who wants to throw away the book while Valerian wants to stick to their orders? I find that not really in tune with their characterisation up to that point but even beyond that the fact that Valerian who carries Lihö-Minaa's soul in him is not the one emotionally advocating to give up the Mül is such a confusing choice. And also dumb. What even was the point of him carrying her soul than?
+ The whole dance sequence with Bubble was 100% unnecessary and her subsequent random death annoyed me. We don't even see her hurt, she's just suddenly gravely injured? Meh.
+ In fact death in this movie was very cavalier. I mean in that first heist sequence they have a support team that is basically murdered while they get away and neither of them show any reaction to it. Laureline who even has a friendly moment with one only complains about her dress being torn, and no mention is mad of their deaths again. ... :! Okay than.
+ I was annoyed by Valerian fighting outside the shield while Laureline stayed inside doing basically nothing helpful. This would have been an excellent opportunity to showcase their partnership.
+ I hated when Valerian was chasing after kidnapped Commander Filitt and ended up going through a bunch of different biomes. It may have looked cool but all I could think about was the significant damage he was causing. I mean he goes from an underwater biome into freefall over a city - is there no worry about all the water draining out? Perhaps there is tech in place that immediately seal any breach, it'd make sense, but we never see any hint of anything like that so I was left thinking about how many problems this was causing instead of enjoying the chase.
+ I loved the Pearls. Everything about them worked for me. Their whole look was excellent. I loved that the Emperor was voiced by a woman. Also, while a less advanced species, the speed at which they learned after the destruction of their planet - from knowing nothing of the universe or complex science to teaching themselves to recreate their planet on a ship within 30 years - was remarkable. It reminded me of the alien species in Remnant Population.
+ In general I liked the aliens, and world-building and look of the movie. Bubble was great! The inter-dimensional bazaar and how that sequence played out looked very cool and was a neat idea.
+ The end felt rushed. Filitt makes a big deal about how this will ruin things for humanity but that's never again addressed. Was he simply saying that to excuse his actions or was he right?
+ Mül being destroyed because of a battle being fought in space over them was an intriguing idea.
+ I still think the main two actors were miscast though I didn't hate them like I thought I would based on the trailers. They did fine but not great.
+ There was no chemistry between the leads. They had a couple good moments but overall the writing for their relationship was poor. I never bought the romance.
+ My biggest issue by far was how Lorelai wanted to give up the Mül and Valerian didn't, until she convinced him via relationship drama, a character twist that made no sense to me. Laureline is the one who wants to throw away the book while Valerian wants to stick to their orders? I find that not really in tune with their characterisation up to that point but even beyond that the fact that Valerian who carries Lihö-Minaa's soul in him is not the one emotionally advocating to give up the Mül is such a confusing choice. And also dumb. What even was the point of him carrying her soul than?
+ The whole dance sequence with Bubble was 100% unnecessary and her subsequent random death annoyed me. We don't even see her hurt, she's just suddenly gravely injured? Meh.
+ In fact death in this movie was very cavalier. I mean in that first heist sequence they have a support team that is basically murdered while they get away and neither of them show any reaction to it. Laureline who even has a friendly moment with one only complains about her dress being torn, and no mention is mad of their deaths again. ... :! Okay than.
+ I was annoyed by Valerian fighting outside the shield while Laureline stayed inside doing basically nothing helpful. This would have been an excellent opportunity to showcase their partnership.
+ I hated when Valerian was chasing after kidnapped Commander Filitt and ended up going through a bunch of different biomes. It may have looked cool but all I could think about was the significant damage he was causing. I mean he goes from an underwater biome into freefall over a city - is there no worry about all the water draining out? Perhaps there is tech in place that immediately seal any breach, it'd make sense, but we never see any hint of anything like that so I was left thinking about how many problems this was causing instead of enjoying the chase.
+ I loved the Pearls. Everything about them worked for me. Their whole look was excellent. I loved that the Emperor was voiced by a woman. Also, while a less advanced species, the speed at which they learned after the destruction of their planet - from knowing nothing of the universe or complex science to teaching themselves to recreate their planet on a ship within 30 years - was remarkable. It reminded me of the alien species in Remnant Population.
+ In general I liked the aliens, and world-building and look of the movie. Bubble was great! The inter-dimensional bazaar and how that sequence played out looked very cool and was a neat idea.
+ The end felt rushed. Filitt makes a big deal about how this will ruin things for humanity but that's never again addressed. Was he simply saying that to excuse his actions or was he right?
+ Mül being destroyed because of a battle being fought in space over them was an intriguing idea.
