SBS on demand has got Leon: The Professional up for the next two weeks. If you haven't seen it, do yourself a favour. I haven't watched it in a while, but there was a time when I was absolutely crazy about this movie. I've probably seen it over a dozen times.
If you don't know, it's about a borderline autistic hitman Leon (Jean Reno (legend actor and all-around spunk)), who takes in damaged twelve-year-old Mathilda (Natlie Portman), after her family is murdered by bent copper Stansfield (Gary Oldman). Reno and Oldman are superb and Portman, whom—along with Keanu Reeves—may be one of the most over-rated actors of all time, gives what may be the only great performance of her career. There's also a pot-plant.
According to the notes on the SBS website, the running time is two hours and seven minutes. This suggests that it may be the director's cut. So, if you saw this flick years ago, watch it again for the extra scenes, including one where Mathilda threatens to shoot herself if Leon won't Love her. Look, just watch it, alright. It's really really fuckin' good.
9 comments :
Alex if you haven't watched it yet, and want to without reading my comments about it, which are strong, don't read my next comment until afterwards. Looking forward to talking about it.
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There's a WHOLE lot of stuff about this on the internet (particularly the director's cut), that I found a year or so ago, about the paedophilia of this movie:
http://arstechnica.com/civis/viewtopic.php?t=824449
http://sundersartwork.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/subtext-in-film-leon-proffessional.html
Luc Besson has form with young girls, impregnating a girl at 16:
http://www.undertheradarmag.com/interviews/maiwenn/
http://variety.com/1996/film/reviews/leon-version-integrale-1200446098/
There's more, including one great vortex rabbit hole I fell down, reading about the child stars of Hollywood, and sexual abuse by producers, directors etc etc.
So, while I first saw this movie years ago, and really liked it, when I watched the DC last year or the year before it made me so uncomfortable that I went to google, and found all this stuff that makes me think it's a piece of shit now. Unfortunately in a way, because without the paedo stuff, it would have been good, if kept pure.
Sorry for clunky links.
Cheers Melbs, a lot of stuff there that I didn't know about, but at this point, I haven't changed my position on the film. I may do, however, depending on where this discussion leads.
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Before I get started, I just want to make a quick point about Roman Polanski, just to make it clear where I'm coming from:
I have no problem separating art from the artist. I have no problem with people who say "Roman Polanski is a rapist who should have gone to gaol … but I still really like his movies". I do have a problem with people who want to defend Roman Polanski—the man—because they really like his movies.
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I don't know anything about Luc Besson, and I'm certainly no fan of the man. And I would not be surprised in the least if the film industry was full of perverts and sexual predators—why should it be any different to the rest of the world. That may sound like a dismissive thing to say, but I actually mean it in the other way. I've said before that I've lived a lot of my life in small towns where we were all acutely aware of how much rape and incest went on, we just didn't talk about it.
So, do I think it's possible that Besson is a paedo who was trying to inject his fantasies into the movie? Absolutely. In fact, if that excerpt from the script is genuine, it actually seems pretty likely. However; that part of the script wasn't in the movie, because it was never filmed. And so here's the thing …
When I look at the movie as its own thing, completely separate from the director, I don't see any of that stuff coming through. Portman's character definitely has a disturbing crush on Reno's, but I don't think there's any part of the film where it's glamourised or even normalised; we're meant to find it disturbing. And maybe this is down to Reno's acting, but I don't think there's any part of the film where he even hints at reciprocating her feelings.
Some of the examples cited in those articles are factually incorrect and some of them—I think—are projection (eg: we see both of their reflections a lot, therefore suggesting they are mirror images of each other, therefore they are sexual equals, etc). I can go through each and every example and give you my take if you want. I may do it anyway if I stew on it long enough.
One thing I am curious about though, is that you said the film made you uncomfortable before you read about Besson. I'm interested to know what you saw in it that I didn't.*
*That kind of sounds like I'm accusing you of projecting paedo stuff, but that's not my intention. I just don't know how else to word it.
Also, have you ever seen the 2002 French film Les Diables? Now there's a flick I'm conflicted on. As a movie, I think it's really good, but at the same time, there's things in it that I don't think underage actors should be doing.
I've gone back and rewatched the movie, but just the questionable scenes with Leon & Mathilda, skipping the rest. I have to say that when you're explicitly searching for a paedo's wank fantasy, it's not difficult to find.
"Mature" and sexually-aggressive twelve-year-old forces herself on an older man, who is unwilling, but ultimately too good-natured and vulnerable to fight her off.
If that's what you're looking for, I can definitely see why that's what you'd find. It may have even been what Besson was thinking when he wrote it.
But I still can't condemn the film, because I still can't find anything in Reno's performance that suggests Leon was in any way even tempted by Mathilda's advances.
Things that people seem to have the most trouble with:
1) The scene where they play dress-up.
I don't see the problem.
2) The fact that one time they sleep in a bed together, fully clothed.
Don't see the problem with this one either.
3) He gives her alcohol.
It's explicitly stated that Leon doesn't drink. He takes her out for a celebratory meal and lets her have one glass of bubbly. Firstly, as I understand it, it's not unusual in France for teens to be allowed a glass of wine with a meal. Secondly, it's not unusual for teens in Australia to have a drink on special occasions. Well, it certainly wasn't for me.
4) The "I don't think I'd be a very good lover" line.
I don't think this line is meant to be taken at face value. At that point in the movie, Leon has already tried every other avenue of dissuading Mathilda, only to have her try even harder. What's more, it actually seems to work.
I'll be back to comment properly. But I do know I agree with you about being able to separate people from their art, eg Polanski, Woody Allen and I get and agree about liking the art, condemning the person; not defending the person *because* of the art.
But there's more I want to say, no time right now.
I did really like Leon when I first saw it, and again when I saw it again. But then the third time it must have been the director's cut and it was THAT that made me squirm. Those extra scenes. I'll be back tho.
I still have to come back but in the meantime, today on facebook there was a big discussion about Leon and I spent a little more time and found this post which is what I read last time. It's pretty nutty and also has some fucked up anti semitic stuff BUT it's long and is intriguing in parts.
http://www.pseudoccultmedia.net/2009/11/natalie-portman-kabbalistic-kitten.html
Cheers Melbs, looking forward to what you've got to say on the subject.
Yes, that certainly was long and nutty.
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