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Léon (1994)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
18 November 1994 (USA) moreTagline:
If you want a job done well hire a professional. morePlot:
Professional assassin Leon reluctantly takes care of 12-year-old Mathilda, a neighbor whose parents are killed, and teaches her his trade. full summary | add synopsisAwards:
2 wins & 8 nominations moreNewsDesk:
(36 articles)
Cool Stuff: Jeff Boyes’s The Professional Art (From /Film. 3 July 2009, 11:27 AM, PDT)
'In Their Sleep' (Dans ton sommeil) - new French horror from folks who gave us 'Inside' and 'Frontiers'
(From pretty-scary. 28 May 2009, 1:18 PM, PDT)
User Comments:
"I take no pleasure in taking life..." moreUS TV Schedule:
| Sat. July 4 | 5:30 PM | OXYGEN |
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Jean Reno | ... | Léon | |
| Gary Oldman | ... | Stansfield | |
| Natalie Portman | ... | Mathilda | |
| Danny Aiello | ... | Tony | |
| Peter Appel | ... | Malky | |
| Willi One Blood | ... | 1st Stansfield man | |
| Don Creech | ... | 2nd Stansfield man | |
| Keith A. Glascoe | ... | 3 rd Stansfield man | |
| Randolph Scott | ... | 4 th Stansfield man | |
| Michael Badalucco | ... | Mathilda's Father | |
| Ellen Greene | ... | Mathilda's Mother | |
| Elizabeth Regen | ... | Mathilda's Sister | |
| Carl J. Matusovich | ... | Mathilda's Brother | |
| Frank Senger | ... | Fatman | |
| Lucius Wyatt Cherokee | ... | Tonto (as Lucius Wyatt 'Cherokee') |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Leon: The Professional (UK) (USA) (longer version)The Professional (USA)
El perfecto asesino (Argentina) (South America: Spanish title) (Uruguay) [es]
Leon - Der Profi (Austria) (Germany) [de]
O Profissional (Brazil) (Portugal) [pt]
El profesional (Léon) (Spain) [es]
Le professionnel (Canada: French title) [fr]
Leon (Finland) [fi]
Leon (Czech Republic) [cs]
Leon (Slovakia) [sk]
Leon (Greece) [el]
Leon zawodowiec (Poland) [pl]
Leon, a profi (Hungary) [hu]
Sevginin gücü (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
more
MPAA:
Rated R for scenes of strong graphic violence, and for language.Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parentsRuntime:
110 min | France:136 min (uncut version) | 133 min (International version) | Turkey:100 min (TV version)Country:
FranceLanguage:
EnglishColor:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 moreCertification:
South Korea:18 (original rating) | Brazil:14 | Iceland:16 | Australia:M (tv rating) | Singapore:PG (cut) | Philippines:R-18 | Italy:T | Finland:K-15 (DVD rating) | Finland:K-15 (director's cut) | South Korea:15 (DVD rating) (2002) | South Korea:18 (director's cut) | Argentina:16 | Australia:R | Canada:18 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Ontario) | Chile:18 | France:-12 (original version) | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB (director's cut) | Israel:PG | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Portugal:M/16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R (original rating) | USA:Unrated (director's cut) | Canada:16+ (Quebec)Fun Stuff
Trivia:
When the film was first tested in LA, the version that was screened was what is today called 'The International Cut'. However, during the scene when Mathilda puts on the pink dress and tells Léon that she wants him to be her first lover, the audience became extremely uncomfortable and began to laugh nervously, completely destroying the tone of the film. The film received terrible test scores at the screening, and as such, producer Patrice Ledoux and writer/director Luc Besson decided to cut the scene for subsequent American theatrical release. moreGoofs:
Crew or equipment visible: When Leon tells Mathilda, at the very end, to "grab the ax off the wall", when she opens the glass door, you can see the director Luc Besson's reflection in the glass, behind the camera filming her. moreQuotes:
[first lines]Tony: Allora, come stai, Leone?
Léon: Bene.
[Tony puts out his cigarette in an ashtray]
Tony: OK. OK. Let's talk business.
more
Soundtrack:
Shape Of My Heart moreFAQ
What special features are on the DVD?What was the problem with the drugs Mathilda's father was holding for Stansfield?
Why didn't Mathilda like the pink dress that Léon bought her?
more
more
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"...if it's from a person who doesn't care about it."
What really stands out for me (aside from the really excellent direction of the action sequences) is the too-brilliant for its own good script. Oldman,Reno, and Portman deliver lines that would seem goofy if spoken by lesser performers. Oldman especially chews the scenery in a way that's both amusing and utterly menacing. I wonder if his Beethoven obsession is a nod to the ultra-violent Alex from A Clockwork Orange?
The American version ("The Professional") was the first version I saw. I'd originally had no real intention of seeing it because I'd read a pretty savage review of it likening it to child pornography. Clearly this particular reviewer had his head firmly planted in his rear. I'm surprised he could find room what with that tremendous stick in the way. Anyway, once I finally saw "Leon" for myself - thanks to my cinemaphile grandfather - I observed no such thing. This wasn't smut, it was love. Leon has no interest in Matilda sexually, but loves her as a father would love a daughter.
If you have a choice then go for the longer director's cut. You get about 15 minutes more film - and not just filler. These are scenes that truly expand upon the story.
My only complaints are about the almost complete under use of the completely underrated Danny Aiello, and Oldman's single dimensional evilness.