The graphic novels are some of my absolute favorites.
The movie fails on a few levels, but mostly it's the fact that Valerian himself should really be Archer, in space, with a time machine, and Laureline should be Lana Kane, but kinder and smarter... And while Cara Delevigne generally worked for me, Dane DeHaan couldn't have possibly been a worse choice.
The source material is insanely fun, surprisingly libertarian, and has so many inventive ideas.
But in the end, Luc Besson actually isn't that great a director.