Léon, the top hit man in New York, has earned a rep as an effective “cleaner”. But when his next-door neighbors are wiped out by a loose-cannon DEA agent, he becomes the unwilling custodian of 12-year-old Mathilda. Before long, Mathilda’s thoughts turn to revenge, and she considers following in Léon’s footsteps.
Credits: TheMovieDb.
Léon, the top hit man in New York, has earned a rep as an effective “cleaner”. But when his next-door neighbors are wiped out by a loose-cannon DEA agent, he becomes the unwilling custodian of 12-year-old Mathilda. Before long, Mathilda’s thoughts turn to revenge, and she considers following in Léon’s footsteps.
Cast:
- Léon Montana: Jean Reno
- Mathilda Lando: Natalie Portman
- Norman Stansfield: Gary Oldman
- Tony: Danny Aiello
- Malky: Peter Appel
- Mathilda’s Father: Michael Badalucco
- Mathilda’s Mother: Ellen Greene
- Mathilda’s Sister: Elizabeth Regen
- Mathilda’s Brother: Carl J. Matusovich
- Bodyguard Chief: Eric Challier
- 1st Stansfield Man: Willi One Blood
- 2nd Stansfield man: Don Creech
- 3rd Stansfield man (Benny): Keith A. Glascoe
- Stansfield man: Jernard Burks
- Stansfield man: Matt De Matt
- Fatman: Frank Senger
- Leon’s Taxi driver: Stuart Rudin
- Tonto: Lucius Wyatt Cherokee
- Blond Babe: Maïwenn
- Mickey: Luc Bernard
- Stairway Swat: Joseph Malerba
- Manolo: Adam Busch
- Old Lady: Jessie Keosian
- Receptionist: George Martin
- Ball Kid: Alex Dezen
- Cigarette Kid: Michael Mundra
- 1st Policeman: Kent Broadhurst
- 2nd Policeman: Tommy Hollis
- 1st Security man: Peter Linari
- Orphanage Headmistress: Betty Miller
- Swat Hostage: Arsène Jiroyan
- Swat Chief: Geoffrey Bateman
- Doctor: Peter Vizard
- Important Jogger: David W. Butler
- Client #1: Robert LaSardo
- 3rd Security Guard: Steve Gonnelo
- Subway Rapper: William James Stiggers Jr.
- DEA Security Guard: Sonny Zito
- Security Guard: Randy Pearlstein
- Bodyguard: Jeff McBride
- Newspaperman: Fred Fischer
- Girl: Crystal Blake
- Chinatown Boss’ sidekick: Cary Wong
- Tony’s Barber: Mario Todisco
- Swat 1: Samy Naceri
- Swat 2: Christophe Gautier
- Swat 3: Junior Almeida
- Swat 4: David Gregg
- Swat 5: Michel Montanary
- Swat 6: Hervé Husson
- Swat 7: Didier Legros
- Swat 8: Marc Andréoni
- Swat 9: Gilles Kleber
- Extra (uncredited): Jean-Hugues Anglade
- Jimmy, SWAT Team Member (uncredited): Michael Wehrhahn
Crew:
- Director: Luc Besson
- Producer: Patrice Ledoux
- Editor: Sylvie Landra
- Set Decoration: Françoise Benoît-Fresco
- Director of Photography: Thierry Arbogast
- Art Direction: Gerard Drolon
- Casting: Todd M. Thaler
- Costume Design: Magali Guidasci
- Original Music Composer: Éric Serra
- Production Design: Dan Weil
- Makeup Artist: Geneviève Peyralade
- Special Effects: Nick Allder
- Hairstylist: Peggy Nicholson
- Production Manager: Cecilia Kate Roque
- Line Producer: Bernard Grenet
- First Assistant Director: Eric McGinty
- Executive Producer: Claude Besson
- Post Production Supervisor: Miguel Ángel Poveda
- Unit Manager: Thierry Guilmard
- Line Producer: John Garland
- Second Assistant Director: Camille Lipmann
- Special Effects Assistant: Neil Corbould
- Assistant Unit Manager: Sylvie Menard
- Special Effects: Al Griswold
- Makeup Artist: Gigi Williams
- Sound Editor: Patrice Grisolet
- Art Direction: Carol Nast
- Assistant Art Director: Wing Lee
- Set Decoration: Carolyn Cartwright
- Script Supervisor: Sylvette Baudrot
- Still Photographer: Patrick Camboulive
- Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Bruno Tarrière
- Stunt Coordinator: Peter Bucossi
- First Assistant Director: Pascal Chaumeil
- Executive Music Producer: Claude Serra
- Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Gérard Lamps
- Sound Re-Recording Mixer: François Groult
- Stunts: Frank Ferrara
- Stunts: Norman Douglass
- Stunts: Don Picard
- Stunts: Gino Lucci
- Stunts: Roy Farfel
- Stunts: Gregg Smrz
- Stunts: Manny Siverio
- Stunt Coordinator: Patrick Cauderlier
- Stunts: Garry Pastore
- Stunts: Michael Russo
- Post Production Consulting: Michael E. Phillips
Catogories:
Crime,Drama,Action
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Language:
English,Français,Italiano
Production:
United States of America,France
Company:
Gaumont,Les Films du Dauphin,Columbia Pictures
Popularity:
97.767
Date:
1994-09-14
Year:
1994
- 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 THIS MOVIE.
- 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 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.
