★ 10 / 10
HOW TO MAKE A FEMALE ASSASSIN. TRAUMA, TRAINING
rozmiarek
HOW TO MAKE A FEMALE ASSASSIN. TRAUMA, TRAINING THEN GET HER EXTRA ANGRY. NATILIE PORTMANS FIRST ASSASSIN ROLE AND HOPEFULLY NOT HER LAST. WE NEED A PART 2 TO…
HOW TO MAKE A FEMALE ASSASSIN. TRAUMA, TRAINING THEN GET HER EXTRA ANGRY. NATILIE PORTMANS FIRST ASSASSIN ROLE AND HOPEFULLY NOT HER LAST. WE NEED A PART 2 TO THIS MOVIE.
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This films stars a 12-year old Natalie Portman
Niemand
This films stars a 12-year old Natalie Portman as Mathilda, a girl living with her abusive stepfather, a step-sister, mother, and four-year old brother. She…
This films stars a 12-year old Natalie Portman as Mathilda, a girl living with her abusive stepfather, a step-sister, mother, and four-year old brother. She doesn’t care for any of these people except her brother. One day, she returns home from getting the groceries to find corrupt DEA agents have killed her entire family. Key amongst those agents is Stansfield, played by Gary Oldman. Seeking refuge in the flat of a neighbour she had befriended earlier, Léon (Jean Reno), she learns that he is a hitman. She makes a deal with him: she will look after the flat by doing the domestic chores if he will teach her how to get revenge on the men who killed her brother.
Strange though the synopsis may be, the relationship between Léon and Mathilda is kept innocent, and the scenes between the two are believable. Mathilda’s sexual awareness is at a nascent stage and her exposure to the sordid side of life with her recently deceased family (her step-father worked for drug-dealers) means she is perhaps not as innocent as most 12-year old girls; however, Léon is unwilling to take advantage of the situation. This means the story can focus on the platonic relationship between the two, the bond that develops between them, and how each affects the other’s life.
Although it may seem a little far-fetched that a young girl would accompany a hitman during his work, Léon ensures that her assistance is required only on fairly routine hits that follow a well-defined pattern. For the more complex hits he leaves her behind.
There is a thread of humour running through the film, but you must bear in mind the film is framed in the world of corruption and greed and all is not sweet and light, and graphic violence is depicted.
Jean Reno is wonderful as the extremely good but placid hitman, whose whole outlook on life is changed by the young Mathilda, played wonderfully by Natalie Portman in her first film. I’ve not read it, but I understand that Eppie has a similar effect on Silas Marner, as described in the book of the same name. I found Gary Oldman’s performance histrionic, the only let-down in the film, albeit not something that spoilt the film as a whole.
Recommended.
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★ 9 / 10
"I like these calm little moments before the storm..."
ConkerBFD91
Many movies have characters in them who are hired assassins, or "hit men". They're the standard "badass" character that kills people in order to collect a…
Many movies have characters in them who are hired assassins, or "hit men". They're the standard "badass" character that kills people in order to collect a reward. Most hit men in films have been portrayed as cold, heartless villains (Boba Fett of Star Wars, Vincent of Collateral). Léon, however, flips this cliché on its end, as the hit-man is the kind-hearted protagonist who learns how to love, thanks to a little girl who shows up on his doorstep.Léon begins in a restaurant, with the assassin himself (Jean Reno) taking a contract from his boss Tony (Danny Aiello) to kill a man who's moving in on Tony's territory. The next 10 minutes become an enthralling cat and mouse game where Leon shows the viewers just why he is known as the cleaner: he is extremely good at this job. We also see Leon's human side, shown by his passion for milk, his affection for his plant (whom he calls his best friend) and when he becomes engrossed watching Singin' in the Rain. Leon seems quite content with this life, not seeming to want anything more. That is, until he is forced to take custody of a twelve-year-old girl (Natalie Portman) whose entire family was cruelly massacred by a corrupt DEA agent (Gary Oldman). This is where Leon is forced to change his lifestyle for the little girl, and when she wishes to get into contract killing to avenge her brother, Leon becomes her mentor and protector.Luc Besson was both the director and screenwriter for Léon, and he proves with his sophomore effort that he is no one-hit wonder. Léon is a very fast paced movie, chronicling Leon's training of Mathilda, Mathilda's growing affection for contract killing (and for Leon himself), and the final standoff with Norman Stansfield. Despite all this, Léon also has time to throw in some slower scenes that develop Leon's and Mathilda's characters, expanding on their growing relationship and partnership.Jean Reno does a very good job as Leon, portraying him both as an effective and frightening killing machine, and as a loving and caring father figure. There is almost a childlike innocence to Leon, with him being unable to read and not familiar with most American culture. Reno allows the audience to both sympathize with this character and respect him, an extremely challenging feat.Natalie Portman's breakout role as Mathilda is one of the greatest acted child roles in a film, period. Portman is able to portray childlike innocence combined with an above average intelligence and awareness of the world around her. Although she is young, she becomes extremely interested in Leon and his job, wanting revenge for the gross acts committed upon her. Make no mistake, Mathilda is the true star of this film, and Portman completely shines in the role.In comparison to Jean Reno's fairly subdued performance as Leon, apparently Luc Besson wanted a more exciting and over-the-top antagonist for the film: enter Gary Oldman. Gary Oldman completely overacts his character of the crooked DEA cop, and he does it so wonderfully that he steals every scene he is in. This is without a doubt the greatest performance of this underrated actor's career, as the fun Oldman has with this role practically oozes out of the screen and infects anyone who watches him. While some critics criticized Oldman for his performance, it was actually spot on considering that the character of Stansfield is a drug-addicted psychotic cop who has no problem with murdering an innocent family to get what he desires. The only nitpick I have with Stansfield is his screen time is fairly small compared with Leon and Mathilda; nevertheless he completely steals the show when he does appear.The plot of Léon is fairly straightforward compared to most action flicks, as there are no particular plot twists or double crossings. However, the simple plot works because this is not a plot driven movie, it is a character driven one. That's not to say there is no action in this movie, there are a few great action sequences (especially the spectacular police shootout in the film's climax), but the film mainly revolves around the growing affection between Leon and Mathilda, and how they change each others' lives. Overall, Léon is an extremely well-made action/drama, and one of the best films of 1994.
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Desde principio a fin ... atrapante.