Customer Reviews

The Professional

5 star:		(139)
4 star:		(29)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Leon: The Professional (1994)
Crime, Drama, Thriller, 133 minutes (extended version)
Directed by Luc Besson
Starring Jean Reno, Natalie Portman and Gary Oldman

Leon (Reno) is good at one thing: killing people. In other matters he's almost like a child. He can't read or write and he barely has enough skills to look after himself. He lives in an apartment building and hides away when he's not on a job.

Leon's neighbors include 12-year-old Mathilda (Portman), who lives with her drug-dealing father. When a corrupt cop (Oldman) murders her father and the rest of the family, Mathilda turns to Leon for help. This is where things start to get interesting. Although she's 12, Mathilda has more of an idea of how to survive in the real world than Leon. She offers to take care of him in return for protection and shelter. She also wants to learn how to kill people.

The premise is so unlikely, but it works. Leon teaches Mathilda the tricks of his trade. Some might find it inappropriate to watch a 12-year-old girl dealing with material of this nature, but Portman is superb in her first full-length feature. The two develop believable chemistry and love each other in some ways. The only other thing that Leon cares about is his beloved potted plant. The two are continually on the move to stay safe, so it's not much of a life for a young girl.

The movie works because of the strong relationship between Leon and Mathilda. It's interesting to watch her train and see the bond deepening between the two. Revenge is always on her mind and she tries to persuade Leon to kill the men responsible for murdering her family. The final showdown is intense and contains a lot of action for fans of that genre. But, unlike many action movies, we feel as if we know the main characters and we genuinely care what happens to them.

The Blu-ray contains the original 109-minute theatrical version and the extended 133-minute version. I recommend the latter to see the full extent of the relationship between Leon and Mathilda.

I'm not talking about the gunshots. This movie is so great with the characters, sometimes it doesn't need dialogue, but then again, the dialogue is so well scripted, this film should be studied and highly regarded among others. Luc Bresson did a fantastic job with this film, I notice and feel the emotions of it, throught the characters and the images, every time I watch it. If you haven't seen it, check it, and look deep into the story that is so carefully crafted, it's contains all the things that EXCELLENT movies are made out of. I'd watch it over many times, as I feel each and every time I reach the end of this film. Bravo to Luc Bresson for this wonderful film.

Sure, this could be called an action film, but it's oh so much more than that!

The characters of Leon and Matilda draw you into the film and keep you there as the complex relationship between two develops.

Gary Oldman plays the perfect bad guy that we love to hate, keeping the tension going in the movie.

We also get to see Natalie Portman before Star Wars ruined her career (let's hope she can make a come back) - her acting in this film is dead on superb!

This movie makes the viewer part of it on many levels, which makes this a classic in my book!

When I first saw The Professional, it was on TV, and even though I only saw a commercial for it, I was instantly drawn to it. After Mathilda's whole family is killed, there is no one in the world for her except Leon, a hit man. Together they work to avenge her brother's death, and through it all they form a bond that is both questionable and endearing. Though there are people who find the relationship "sick", I just don't see it. Mathilda needs someone to care for her and that person is Leon. Though she does act like a modern day Lolita in some cases, Leon is firm in his decision not to let anything happen. Jean Reno and Natalie Portman do an amazing job in this film. I cannot believe that this is Natalie Portman's first film. She has such talent, and she portrays Mathilda's attitude well. I give this film five stars for great talent, great direction, and a great storyline.

Leon (Jean Reno) drinks only milk -- it is healthy and good for his stomach. Leon needs his strength. Leon is a 'cleaner' -- a professional hit man.

Leon's twelve-year-old neighbor Mathilda (Natalie Portman) purchases milk for Leon. One afternoon Mathilda hides at Leon's apartment after returning from the grocer's. Mathilda's parents' apartment has been raided by a DEA squad led by popper-energized Special Agent Stansfield (Gary Oldman). Mathilda's father has been holding narcotics for Stansfield and the narcotics that Mathilda's father returned are cut with milk sugar. Stanfield's squad demolishes Mathilda's parents' apartment and murders everybody in the apartment including Mathilda's four-year-old brother. Stansfield's squad finds the missing narcotics, but they miss finding Mathilda. With misgivings Leon harbors Mathilda.

Mathilda wants revenge for her four-year-old brother's murder. Mathilda learns that Leon is a cleaner and convinces Leon to teach her 'cleaning skills'. Too early Mathilda borrows several handguns and goes after Stansfield at the Federal Building. Mathilda gets caught ...

French writer/director Luc Besson ("La Femme Nikita") has produced *a masterpiece* set in New York City. The film's only flaw is a long range sniper's rifle that also shoots paintballs. Character development for Leon and Mathilda is superb -- Leon is a professional killer but a naive man, while Mathilda is both childish and streetwise. The cast provide great performances and Eric Serra's score reinforces the film's drama. Luc Besson and Jean Reno set the standard for this genre with "The Professional".

I caught this film on cable the other night and decided to watch it because it featured a terrific cast. How can one resist a movie featuring sexy Frenchman Jean Reno, the beautiful Natalie Portman in one of her earliest roles, Gary Oldman, and Danny Aiello?

The film centers around the relationship that develops between a beautiful and precocious twelve year old girl, Mathilda (Natalie Portman), and an Italian hit man named Leon (Jean Reno). Mathilda and her family live in the same run down building as Leon and are, in fact, neighbors.

It seems that Mathilda's dad (Michael Badalucco) has run into a problem with rogue Federal Drug Enforcement Agent Stansfield (Gary Oldman) over some missing cocaine. When Stansfield and his crew gets into a shootout with dear old Dad in the family apartment, wiping out her family, Mathilda alone survives. When Stansfield realizes, however, that there were three children in the family and only two are accounted for among the dead, he knows that he has to hunt her down before she denounces him for what he is, a cold blooded, killer cop.

Mathilda turns to Leon for help in her rather precarious situation. Of the two, Leon and Mathilda, it is hard to decide who is the more innocent. Leon gets his hit contracts through an intermediary, a wise guy named Tony (Danny Aiello). Tony always assures Leon that he is holding all his earnings for him, as Leon cannot read and write. Leon is your quintessential killer with a heart of gold. Mathilda, on the other hand, though still a child, is a pretty wily little miss with nerves of steel. It would be difficult to pull the wool over her eyes. Together, however, Leon and Mathilda go on a voyage of discovery, as each finds in the other something that captures the heart.

Notwithstanding this, the film is very much an action film. It is a rip roaring journey, as Leon and Mathilda try to evade Stansfield, the killer cop with no heart and a drug habit that would kill off lesser humans. Some of the situations are absolutely ingenious and a total trip. There is enough action in this film to satisfy even the most jaded of thrill seekers. Luc Besson, the director, has turned out a top notch, first class thriller.

Natalie Portman is luminous as Mathilda, a kid from the school of hard knocks. Her beauty, as well as her acting talent, is evident even at this early stage of her development, and there are a few almost uncomfortable Lolita-like moments in the film. There is even a scene somewhat reminiscent of the rose petal scene in the film "American Beauty", sans the rose petals.

Oldman is positively chilling with his almost over the top, edgy, manic performance. Danny Aiello is terrific as Tony, the smooth talking mob guy whom the viewer knows is taking advantage of Leon's simplicity and trust, enriching himself in the process.

Jean Reno, however, will melt your heart, becoming an almost mythic, romantic hero. I have to wonder why this amazing, sexy actor never made it really big in the United States. He is sensational as the killer with a heart. He also has some high voltage action scenes in this highly stylized film that will take your breath away.

An uncut international version of this film with an additional twenty four minutes of footage has recently been released on DVD. It is listed on my Amazon[.com] wish list where I hope my children will find it and take a hint. It is definitely a film worth adding to one's personal collection. Bravo!

I was unlucky enough to buy the lobotomized DVD version. Make sure to get the international version/director's cut.

This movie is a phenomenal piece of work. The acting is extraordinary and the plot and suspense superb. It is dramatic, suspenseful, intriguing, and deeply touching. It is a movie you won't soon forget. The young Natalie Portman is masterful and will win you over.

The Name of the movie is his job, He's a professional. It's a good flick for the ages.

The Name of the movie is his job, He's a professional. It's a good flick for the ages.