Luc Besson

See also: Besson

Luc Besson is a realizer, producer and French scenario writer, born the March 18th 1959 with Paris (France).

As a realizer, he dissociated himself with the films Great Blue , Nikita and the Fifth Element . As a producer, it is especially known for the series of the films Taxi .

Biography

Luc Besson passes his childhood near his parents, instructors of diving to the Club the Mediterranean, between the Greece and the Ex-Yugoslavia. An accident prevents it from continuing the diving with high level.

It starts in the cinema by multiplying the stations of Assistant realizer before carrying out his first Feature-length film of science fiction, the Last Combat in 1983, which enables him to sign a contract with Gaumont to carry out Subway in 1985. Extremely of this success, he undertakes the realization of a film which is due to him in heart, Great Blue . Film badly received with the Cannes festival 1988, it becomes a social phenomenon and is the subject of many analyzes which try to explain its success near the young people. Its style close to the universe of publicity installs a gap between him and the world of criticism. It was sometimes called Bulles Box (Contrepèterie of its name).

The public is with return for its following films; Nikita in 1991, Leon in 1995. In 1997, it launches out with Gaumont in an ambitious project of science fiction, which it prepares very carefully; the Fifth Element . It settles in Los Angeles with the young actress Maïwenn Besco - which divided the poster of Gamine with Johnny Halliday - and their Shanna daughter. Aiming the US market explicitly, it places at the head poster Bruce Willis, Milla Jovovich and Maïwenn Besco (as a diva). The film becomes one of largest business successes of a French film to the the United States (beaten since by the Walk of the emperor of Luc Jacquet) and Luc Besson sees himself allotting the César of the best realizer 1998.

In 2000, Luc Besson founds his production company and of distribution, EuropaCorp, whose objective is to develop a new current of cinema general public while being pressed on successful films like Taxi , Taxi 2 , Taxi 3 or Yamakasi . It is often Scénariste films which it produces, privileging the distraction and the action. This orientation is worth to him a disaffection, even a contempt, criticism and of part of the press.

Seeking to take a lead in the international market, it takes care nevertheless to preserve the control and the French nationality of its films from a legal and tax point of view. At the beginning of the Years 2000, he is the initiator and the engine of the creation of the Cité of the cinema to Saint-Denis, in the northern suburbs of Paris.

Often producing and from now on with the head of a very profitable studio, it does not continue any less to make its own films; Jeanne d' Arc , in 1999, with Milla Jovovich (the couple divorces this year), then Angel-A in 2005, film in black and white interpreted by Jamel Debbouze and Rie Rasmussen whose critical reception is mitigated and who does not have the success of his predecessors near the public.

The September 11th 2006, it announces that Arthur and the minimoys will be its 10th and last film. It decides despite everything within sight of the success of this last to turn itself the continuation.

The September 20th 2006, it announces that it stops the cinema and wants to be devoted to the Action citizen. It thus tries to assemble a foundation to help the young people of the suburbs.

It has four girls and a son of three different unions: Juliette, girl of Anne Parillaud, Shanna, girl of Maïwenn Besco, Thalia, Sateen and Mao, children of Virginia Silla.

Catalog of films

Realizer

Scenario writer

Producer

To come

Writer

Advertizing films

Promotional film

Boxoffice realization

Musical clips

The lawsuit of Jeanne d' Arc

In 1996, Kathryn Bigelow, film producer like Strange Days and Not Station-wagon , concludes an agreement with Luc Besson to develop a project of film which is entitled Compagny Of Angels . It was a question of telling the adventures of… Jeanne d' Arc. Besson would be only the executive producer.

After a large writing and research task, Bigelow is laid off. She would have been opposed at the time of recruitment of Milla Jovovich (partner of the scenario writer) to interpret the main role. Consequently, Luc Besson develops only the project whose title becomes The Messenger: The Story Off Joan Off Arc .

The director clamp her indignation; “Luc Besson had access to script and all research, ideas and preparations, in addition to logistics” and will carry felt sorry for. The date of the lawsuit between Kathryn Bigelow and Luc Besson will be fixed at August 16th 2000. this one will never take place, according to the involved parts an agreement by amicable agreement will be found.

Brazil-Besson business

In 2003, the magazine independent of cinema BRAZIL publishes a sour diatribe against Luc Besson.

Criticisms violent cause the fury of the interested party. Besson will require 50  000  € of damages, which threatens survival of the magazine. The made indignant reactions of criticisms of Cinéma result in a support campaign towards the small magazine. Certain great names of the critical medium (as Gerard Lenne) take part in the company as well as the actor-realizer Albert Dupontel. The editor association of the magazine, Christophe Goffette, will declare; “Luc Besson is initially a producer, a standard which sells film with the kilo, adopts receipts. He adapted the system of Spielberg and Lucas which already massacred creation in Hollywood. It is of that our article spoke, the Americanization of the Besson system. Logic with itself, it pushed Americanization until its term, a lawsuit. I make a point of specifying that it asked forever of right of reply. In addition, why ask 50  000  euros of damages, if isn't to kill our independent review, knowing that one could never belong oneself some? ”

The Plainte will be déboutée.

Recurrent themes and gimmicks

In an article on the Fifth Element (1997), the Cahiers of the Cinema define the cinema of Besson like a cinema of the gimmick and image-shock. For some critical, indeed, one of the features of works of Luc Besson, is their construction, founded on a coherent vision of a topic (except, perhaps, of Leon ), that on the articulation of image-shock, outstanding counterparts, situations picturesque, etc, independent from/to each other, stressing its films. Commentators see in the work of Besson a kind of catalog of lucky finds.

Certain typical images, certain “strong” plans tend to reappear from one film to another:

The girl with the gun

The image is recurring of an young girl (or of an young woman) whose frail appearance creates a picturesque contrast with the weapon that it holds:

Dolly of opening

Great Blue , Nikita , Leon , the Fifth Element start with the same plan: the camera flies over (in diving) a regular extent, then the axis of the Caméra is rectified. The title appears at the time when the axis of the camera merges with the direction of the dolly.

  • Great Blue : the camera flies over the Mer, and the title appears when the horizon appears.

  • Nikita : the camera flies over the wet roadway, and the title appears when the camera is rectified and let appear the band of breakers.
  • Leon : the camera flies over the Atlantic Ocean, then a park (Central Park), and the title appears with the horizon of New York. Turned on board a helicopter, Besson voluntarily omits to give the signal to the pilot so that they leave the close-cropped-mound (and to avoid striking a skyscraper) in order to be able to turn more the possible for a long time. The pilot will finally decide to make a vertical at the last time after having hopelessly awaited the signal of Besson.
  • the Fifth Element : the camera flies over a field of Astéroïde S, the axis is raised, the title appears with an celestial object at the horizon.

Recurring counterpart

In Leon , and Angel-A , one finds (almost) the same counterpart (between Leon and Mathilda, between André and Angela):
- “… and stops answering me OK without stop, OK? ”
- “OK”

Influence Taxi Driver

It seems that Taxi Driver exerted on Luc Besson a certain influence. This remark is founded on the consecutive exits of Leon and the Fifth Element , which, with them two, take again good number of the strong topics of film of Scorsese:
  • Leon : a solitary character in a dirty and popular New York collects a young teenager in distress. There exists moreover a similarity between the scenes of physical drive of Leon and those of Taxi Driver .
  • the Fifth Element : the character of Korben Dallas, driver of Taxi in New York.

Private life

In 1986, it is caught passion for Anne Parillaud with which it had a girl, Juliette. It offers a role to him to measure in Nikita in 1990 which will have a world success and for which she had César of the best actress in 1991. It is at the time of this ceremony that it meets the young person Maïwenn Besco fifteen years old.

In 1992, it marries Maïwenn Besco which gives him his/her second daughter, Shanna. Luc Besson gave to Maïwenn a small role in Leon (1994), then that of the diva in the Fifth element (1997). It is at the time of the realization of this film that it falls under the charm from Milla Jovovich, of Ukrainian origin, singer and signal-model.

In 1997, literally “bewitched”, it gives up Maïwenn to marry Milla Jovovich. In 1998, it offers the role of Jeanne to him d' Arc in the film éponyme. But the naturally rebellious character of the actress makes that their love does not resist a long time and they divorce on June 12th, 1999.

It would have had also a connection with Marion Cotillard, the mannequin Swedish Emma Sjöberg and with the mannequin, photographer, dessinatrice and Danish director Rie Rasmussen.

He is married today with producing the Virginia Silla which gave him three children.

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