Played by Rihanna in a extended cameo, Bubble is a shapeshifting alien performer who helps the heroes escape. In ten minutes of screen time, Rihanna goes through a dozen costume changes—a flapper, a maid, a nurse, a burlesque dancer, a military officer. Her death scene is heartbreaking not because of the plot, but because she represents the soul of Alpha: adaptable, beautiful, and ultimately disposable to the empire.
Critics were brutal. "Valerian has no charisma." "Laureline looks bored." And to a certain extent, they aren't wrong. DeHaan plays Valerian as a cocky, baby-faced rogue, but he lacks the roguish charm of a Bruce Willis or a Chris Pratt. He feels like a trust fund kid who bought a spaceship. Delevingne fares better, bringing a grounded frustration to Laureline, but the script forces her to fall for a man who sexually harasses her in the first ten minutes. valerian and the city of
The movie knows it. That is why Besson gives us Bubble. Played by Rihanna in a extended cameo, Bubble
We are bored of the MCU’s flat lighting. We are bored of Star Wars nostalgia bait. We are bored of Dune ’s beige seriousness (as good as it is). We miss color. We miss imagination. We miss a director who says, "I want a scene where two characters have a conversation while floating through a nebula, and the background is made of actual liquid light." Critics were brutal
But here we are, years later, in an era dominated by gray, desaturated superhero slogs and IP reboots that apologize for existing. I am here to make a controversial argument: Valerian is not a failure. It is a masterpiece of world-building that stumbled on its dialogue. If you can look past the awkward smirk of its protagonist, you will find the most inventive, colorful, and audacious science-fiction film of the 21st century.