This is Luc Besson’s first film as director since THE MESSENGER: JOAN OF ARC in 1999. But he hasn’t been missing in action. No, he’s been producing a massive amount of films since then, including the TAXI series, THE TRANSPORTER franchise, Jet Li vehicles, ONG-BAK: THE THAI WARRIOR and CRIMSON RIVERS 2, to name a few. But now he breaks his silence and put on the director’s cap for the first time in almost 15 years.

The result is a film filled with Besson elements, but isn’t as romantic as one can wish for.

The story is simple. It’s Besson’s favorite: a boy-meets-girl story. Andre (Jamel Debbouze) is an incompetent crook who owes a large amount of money to a local kingpin (Gilbert Melki), and Angela (Rie Rasmussen) is an extremely hot prostitute whom he saves from a suicidal act. Or did he?

The film is much talkier than his others. They spend much of the time discussing inner beauty, self-esteem and other issues, but the conversations are cute and it actually charms you rather than bores you. The rest of the film is typical of Besson. Just as they were in Besson’s other works (THE FIFTH ELEMENT, THE PROFESSIONAL and LA FEMME NIKITA), our female lead is young and dynamite-hot with strong physical attributes (meaning she can kick ***censored***).

But the lead performances aren’t as crackling as Besson’s previous screen couplings (Leon/Matilda and Leeloo/Dallas), because they lack the chemistry. Debbouze isn’t quite as comical as he wants to be and Rasmussen isn’t as angelic as she wants to be. It feels like they are trying so hard to play what they are not and to keep their contrast onscreen together, but their performances don’t convey what they are feeling or saying much. The romance between them is established and builds up, but you just can’t ever quite believe their emotions start making a connection; it is very forced.

So is romance dead in this romantic film? No, because what does work is another main character of the film, that of Paris, the city of lights. The images photographed by Besson’s usual DP, Thierry Arbogast, are very striking. The black-and-white images of Paris certainly capture and provide that feeling of romance.

ANGEL-A could have been magnificently romantic if it weren’t for the two leads, who almost destroy the romance. It is a major miscast by Besson. One can only suspect he cast them to keep the film’s profile small, but it sure backfired. It isn’t a failure, but from such an established director, it is weak. –Shogo