The film that discovered and first introduced us all to Natalie Portman.
It would be easy to dismiss Luc Besson’s modern day classic as just another revenge flick. That’s merely a side note.
It would be easy to call it another buddy action movie. That’s selling the film way short.
No, the true genius of Leon (AKA The Professional) is how it takes a subject matter that could be pretty disturbing (or pretty lame) and make it plausible. Not only that, but near the end of the film, you begin to hope that Leon and Mathilda behave well enough to maybe see her 18th birthday.
Then after a couple of hours since the end of the movie, it suddenly dawns on you: “Did… did I just silently root for statutory rape to occur on film?”
Then you realize some French guy made Leon and instead of dealing with your own obvious psychological issues, you begin to project your misguided anger towards the French. Screw them and their baguettes. Freedom fries forever! Hey, didn’t their president recently dump his second wife soon after taking office and married some former supermodel-turned-singer who used to sleep with half the Stones? I mean, would you really not mind if say Barack took office next year and quickly divorced Michelle to marry Hannah Montana? Is that really how you want our country to be run after the last eight years? This is why you should vote for Hillary. Because, if nothing else, none of us want our country’s first lady to be Billy Ray’s daughter. Am I right?
(beat; clears throat)
She just wanted to avenge her brother’s murder. He never hurt anybody.
Okay, so this movie also introduced the American audience to not only Natalie Portman but also the fantastic Jean Reno as well as an incredible scene stealing performance by Gary Oldman.
This movie is really about two people who find each other under some unique circumstances. It’s a true unrequited love story that could never be realized. Cause if it did, people would go to jail. The same jail guarded by the villains of the same movie. Then people would die. In an uninteresting way. Then the movie would suck. And we don’t want that.
Shape of my Heart by Sting to capture the film’s bittersweet tone.
I feel like it’s about time Portman and Besson take an afternoon together to discuss a possible sequel to this flick. Yes, there’s no Reno or Oldman but there is something there left in Mathilda’s future as a young lady. La Femme Mathilda, perhaps?
Check it out, homes.
By the way, make sure you check out the Director’s Cut which contains a great restaurant scene with Mathilda and Leon that Sony deemed too risque to include in the American Theatrical release.
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