10 January Is For Videos: The Fifth Element – The Diva Plavalaguna

I’m not an opera guy. I don’t know what the problem is; maybe it’s the language barrier. Most opera songs are in Italian, so I can’t understand it. (Funny how death metal and screamo have this in common with opera.) Or maybe it’s the long drawn out arias that seem to go nowhere but up and down the scales. Regardless, along came The Fifth Element, written and directed by Luc Besson, and changed my mind about opera. This movie is a futuristic, sci-fi masterpiece featuring interwoven stories, bright colors, quirky characters, and funny aliens. There are numerous quotable lines like “Aziz, light!” and “Mool-ti-pass”, among others. But the thing that always stands out to me the most is the scene in the theater on Fhloston Paradise, a ritsy, flying resort. Our hero, Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis), attends a performance by the Diva Plavalaguna, played by Maïwenn Le Besco. The voice is that of Inva Mula-Tchako, singing a medley of the “Lucia di Lammermoor” and “The Diva Dance Song.” There is some debate, but from what I can gather, she sang all, or nearly all, the notes you hear in this video, which is quite outstanding. I don’t know what it is that connected with me on this song, but I enjoy it. In fact, I prefer the first operatic part more than the last bit, which is more electro-pop. The aria is an extremely beautiful piece and done very well. I have to applaud Luc Besson for setting it in the middle of a high energy, mainstream movie, thus exposing the general populous to good opera.