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Léon the professional (Patreon)

Published:
2022-11-22 20:04:32
Imported:
2026-06
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Content

Full link: https://youtu.be/CFK_pw7J7-w

So as you'll see, I recorded this right after the wedding! Haha, it seems so long ago already. This is one that I had seen around and the crime element really drew me in. But I have to admit that this movie was so unique and not at all what I would've expected from this genre :D How did you like it?! 

Files

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Comments

Odd Thomas

Luc Besson made two classic movies in the 90s, both starring Gary Oldman: Leon and The Fifth Element. I hope you watch both!

Odd Thomas

Mary is watching the longer international version by the way

Anonymous

Oh my word... it's about time! This is one of my all-time favorites. The way I interpreted Mathilda's "love" for Léon was that the only love she received from her family was in the form of abuse, so when Léon shows Mathilda some actual kindness, Mathilda mistakes it for romantic affection, combined with the fact that she's 12 when many girls start to discover love for the first time.

Em McG

Wow I didn't realize there was a longer cut but it makes sense. Long ago deep in my memory I sort-of thought I watched this movie in another language, my older brother had it. Since there is an international cut it makes sense that it could be dubbed in another language (but I don't really know). So I thought it was a foreign film and in a way it's Luc Besson (and Jean Reno). And the film I remember was just called "Léon."

Em McG
>>96151936

The other Luc Besson movie I know is The Big Blue (1988) also with Jean Reno. Oh wait... a review also says to watch the long version...

Tyler Foster

As others have discussed, when the movie was released in America, the American studio chopped out 20 minutes of material -- basically anything in which Mathilda talked about her attraction to Leon, because there were concerns (I think maybe even from some sort of screenings?) that the audience would be too uncomfortable for all the same reasons that you were uncomfortable. It was only much later on DVD and subsequent releases that both cuts have been made available. One unfortunate aspect of this subplot is that writer/director Luc Besson has said it was inspired by his own relationship with actress Maiwenn, which began when he was 32 and she was 15 (France's age of consent). This was Natalie Portman's debut film; she was 13 at the time of filming. I was surprised that you never seemed to recognize Gary Oldman playing the villainous Stansfield from the Harry Potter series, where he plays Sirius Black. I have heard from a few people that they think Tony is ripping Leon off. I personally take their relationship at face value as presented in the film: Tony watches out for Leon because Leon is essentially like a grown child, even though he is a deadly assassin. I personally believe Tony has an accurate account of Leon's money and will pay it out fairly, even if it is probably more convenient for him that there is no real need to give it all out at once. Many people will recommend The Fifth Element after this because of Besson, and I agree with that recommendation (and it even features Gary Oldman again as the villain), but I would definitely also add that it is almost *nothing* like Leon even though both films are very good.

Anonymous
>>96164114

Mari would also know Gary Oldman as Commissioner Gordon from "The Dark Knight" Trilogy. Natalie Portman actually turned 12 during the filming of "Léon: The Professional". And I agree, even though most reactors think Tony is ripping Léon off, I never felt that way either and that he was actually just looking out for him. Cuz if there's a set up to Tony ripping him off, then there's no real payoff for that theory either. So, what'd be the point of setting it up in the film with no closure?

David Bennett

Hey Mari, another wonderful, nuanced reaction to YET ANOTHER one of MY favorite movies. I very much agree that Natalie Portman knocked it out of the park in the role of Matilda. A few bits of lore stuff: 1. The drug that Stansfield takes at the beginning is called Librium. It is a sedative and hypnotic medication normally used to treat things like anxiety and insomnia. That creep-as-fuck way that he contorts his head while biting into the pill? NO idea....that's just a super-weird character trait. 2. the 'paint bullet' is actually a representation of a real training round marketed by a company called simunitions. In the real world, you most often see such rounds used by military and police in CQB training environments. I really don't think that you could actually utilize such a round in a sniper type of situation. 3. While I LOVE this movie, there are things in the law enforcement depiction which grind my gears something awful. The way that they basically act like soldiers instead of police, with a "spray and pray" attitude rustles my jimmies every time I watch it. I know there are bad cops, corrupt cops and all that. But it's brooooaaaaddd DAYLIGHT in the middle of NYC. The way that the swat guys just hose down whatever they shoot at is a little ridiculous. which brings me to my last little tidbit: 4. the so-called explosive round (fired from a BELT FED LIGHT MACHINE GUN??!?!!?!.....STUPID....) is actually an ILLUMINATION round (non-explosive), a parachute flare, for a 60 mm MORTAR.....absolutely re-god-dammn-diculous. If you look closely enough, the stupid mortar round isn't even attached TO THE MUZZLE OF THE WEAPON SUPPOSEDLY FIRING IT!! I don't know what in the hell they were thinking on that one.....

Robert da Spruce

Great reaction Mary! I’m glad you enjoyed the movie. Some people get uncomfortable with Leon and Matilda’s relationship. But I think you saw it for what it was. Beautiful and innocent. Not creepy as some try to make it. I did notice the movie was playing slightly fast. I had to pause the reaction every 5 minutes to let my copy sync up again. Not sure if a setting was off when you encoded the reaction.

John Courtright

Great reaction Mary!! Isn't it amazing how quickly you can be pulled into the story (even as unlikely a story as this one)? Jean Reno and Natalie Portman BECOME their characters so thoroughly you forget that Leon and Mathilda are actually being portrayed by actors. Equally fascinating is that both characters are growing up as a result of their interaction with the other. Leon learns to read. Mathilda stops smoking, and is learning a trade. :) Loved it! Now it's time for a romance movie or two, you should react to "Meet Joe Black" (with Brad Pitt, Claire Forlani, and Anthony Hopkins), and/or "The Lake House" (with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock) and/or "About Time" (with Domhnall Gleeson and Rachel McAdams). All well-acted and interesting love stories with a twist.

Odd Thomas
>>96231718

I'm in the UK and it was fine for me, but I have had this experience, particularly with streaming, or an old DVD. NTSC & PAL run at slightly different speeds.

Robert da Spruce
>>96231718

I think you might be onto something with the NTSC vs. PAL. That would explain the slightly different playback speeds.

Richard Maurer
>>96231718

I've always wondered if the people who have a problem with their relationship might be projecting, either in the sad way of having an adult in their childhood pay unhealthy attention to them, or in the creepy way of feeling an attraction to Natalie Portman's character themselves.

Armchair Wizard
>>96231718

Rochard Mayrer: No. its because Luc Besson has an uncomfortable tendency to like very young girls. Here's an excerpt from his wikipedia article: "Besson's second wife was actress and director Maïwenn Le Besco, whom he started dating when he was 31 and she was 15. They married in late 1992 when Le Besco, 16, was pregnant with their daughter Shanna, who was born on 3 January 1993. Le Besco later claimed that their relationship inspired Besson's film Léon (1994), where the plot involved the emotional relationship between an adult man and a 12-year-old girl. Their marriage ended in 1997, after Besson became involved with actress Milla Jovovich during the filming of The Fifth Element (1997)."

Em McG

Wow I just finished watching. That was a great reaction Mary, wonderful insight. Also I watched 2 reactions to Leon simultaneously and the other one was the edited version. The original longer version is much better, the story made more sense I think. I had both reactions playing and I had to keep pausing the other reaction because it kept getting ahead in the story and getting out of sync because it was so heavily edited. (I'm watching the blurred image and looking for camera cuts and identifying scenes from the colors mostly, not easy but possible). Someone described the longer cut as the international version and luckily that's the one Mary was watching. Once again a fantastic and insightful reaction! I've seen 5 reactions now to this movie and Mary's is the best. Of the recent 4 that I remember, 2 were the edited version and 2 were the longer version. Over the years I've seen the movie a few times and I don't remember under what circumstances but I do remember some of the cut scenes so this was not the first time I've seen the longer cut it seems. It's always a surprise when you see scenes that wasn't there the last time you saw it. Anyway doing a search it returned several runtime lengths not just 2.

Bryan Tuck

Just a note about the two different versions: Contrary to popular belief, the shorter cut was in fact the original theatrical version everywhere, including in Europe. Only the title varied (LEON in some countries, THE PROFESSIONAL in others). The longer version is based on a pre-release test screening cut, but it was not released to the general public until 1996, nearly two years after the initial release of the movie. The longer version took a few more years to come out in the US (as LEON: THE PROFESSIONAL), and I guess because it had already been available in other countries, this led some to assume that it was the original European theatrical cut. But again, that's not true. US theaters got the same cut in 1994 that played elsewhere (about 1 hour, 50 minutes).