Description
The Fifth Element is one of Besson’s films, which have been described as “intrinsically musical”; some kind of music is playing during about 90% of the film. The score was composed by Éric Serra. He relies heavily on the use of orchestral textures, such as the oboe and strings heard as the surgeons prepare to regenerate Leeloo, and the pizzicato as she is reconstructed. Serra also used many exotic influences, such as the Stalinist fanfare heard before the spaceport sequence, the reggae piece played in preparation for the flight, and the hula music that greets the passengers as they arrive in Fhloston. More conventional scoring techniques are present in the leitmotifthat first appears when professor Pacoli mentions the fifth element, the militaristic snares as the warship prepares to attack the dark planet, and the Mahlerian funereal piece heard when Leeloo learns about war. The music used for the taxicab chase scene, titled “Alech Taadi” by Algerian performer Khaled, is excluded from the film soundtrack but is available on Khaled’s album N’ssi N’ssi.
The Diva Dance opera performance used music from Gaetano Donizetti‘s Lucia di Lammermoor: “Il dolce suono“, the mad scene of Act III, Scene 2. It is one of the few pieces of music in the film that is diegetic. It was sung by Albanian soprano Inva Mula, while the role of Plavalaguna was played by French actress Maïwenn Le Besco. Part One (titled “Lucia di Lammermoor”) and Part Two (titled “The Diva Dance”) of this piece are included as separate tracks on The Fifth Element soundtrack but are sequenced to create the effect of the entire performance seen in the film. The end of Part One blends into the beginning of Part Two, creating a smooth transition between the two tracks.
Éric Serra; (born 9 September 1959) is a French musician and composer. He is a frequent collaborator of film director Luc Besson. Serra is also a songwriter, notably having written “It’s Only Mystery” for the film Subway, “My Lady Blue” for Le Grand Bleu and “Little Light of Love” for The Fifth Element. In 1998 he released an album of rock music titled RXRA which resembles the artist’s name when pronounced as initial letters in French.
Tracklist:
1. Little Light Of Love (4:50)
2. Mondoshawan (4:01)
3. Timecrash (1:49)
4. Korben Dallas (1:43)
5. Koolen (0:55)
6. Akta (1:51)
7. Leeloo (4:56)
8. Five Millenia Later (3:13)
9. Plavalaguna (1:47)
10. Ruby Rap (1:55)
11. Heat (2:54)
12. Badaboom (1:12)
13. Mangalores (1:06)
14. Lucia Di Lammermoor (3:10)
15. The Diva Dance (1:31)
16. Leeloominai (1:41)
17. A Bomb In The Hotel (2:14)
18. Mina Hinoo (0:54)
19. No Cash No Trash (1:04)
20. Radiowaves (2:32)
21. Human Nature (2:03)
22. Pictures of War (1:19)
23. Lakta Ligunai (4:14)
24. Protect Life (2:33)
25. Little Light Of Love (3:29)
26. Aknot! Wot? (bonus track) (3:35)
All tracks composed by Eric Serra, except:Tracks 10 & 26: words by Luc Besson and Robert KamenTracks 11 & 24: music by Eric Serra and Sebastien CortellaTrack 14: words by S. Cammarano, music by G. Donizetti
Video: The Fifth Elemen (Trailer) 1997
