LEON

Film Review
Critic Anastasiya Koval
 RECOMMENDATIONS

If you are sick of flick chicks and

flat comedies, uncomplicated
actions and cliched romance with
poor acting. If you are someone
who longs for twists and tear-
jerking moments with a
stimulating and profound plot ,
this film is cut out for you. At the
end of a movie you will be moved
by it. You are bound to catch the
film!
 LEON IS A BLEND OF ACTION
AND DRAMA. THIS IS A
SPLENDID FILM SHOT IN 1994
BECAME A SMASH HIT. IT PULLS
IN MILLION VIEWERS ALL OVER
THE WORLD. A GOOD
PROFESSIONAL ACTING OF CAST
WILL GASP YOU WITH
ADMIRATION
 THE CAST

A leading female part –

Natalie Portman as Mathilda
A leading male part - Jean
Reno as Leone "Léon"
Montana
A villain - Gary Oldman as
Norman Stansfield
+ Supporting cast
THE SHOTS FROM THE FILM
 THE PLOT

• A 12 year old girl named Matilda lives with her dysfunctional family and is
beaten by her parents and sister but is very protective of her four year old
brother. Her father stores drugs for a corrupt agent named Norman
Stransfield. Matilda has abandoned school and spends her time at home
watching cartoons. One day, Norman and his team take revenge on the father
because of a drug deal and murder the whole family. Matilda was off and
upon her arrival at home she witnesses her family killed including her four
year old brother. Her only chance for survival is to hide with her neighbor
Leon, a professional cleaner. Leon lives with his favorite plant and lives an
unhappy life. When Matilda learns of his identity she becomes infatuated and
desperately seeks his help in learning how to become a hitman in order to
take revenge on the murders responsible for her brothers death.
 THE HISTORY OF THE
FILM: THE FEMALE PART

The director Luc Besson was inspired

and it took him a month to write down a
script to the film. He was searching for a
teenage girl who was supposed to be 11
and with good acting skills. Before
Natalie was casted as a Mathilda Luc had
auditioned a scores of girls. In the first
audition Natalie was rejected for being
young. But Luc had managed to talk his
assistant into recruiting her. She threw the
scriptwriter for a loop with her cry for the
request to show her feeling if she found
her brother murdered.
 THE MALE PART

Concerning title male role the script was made up for

Jean Reno’ s part. The acting of Reno was so
gripping in Luc’s previous works as Reno appeared
in a few of them that Luc recruited Reno for the title
part without auditions. Moreover he created a
character of Leon taking into account the foreign
origin of Reno choosing the scene for filming in NY
because the story with foreign cleaner was likely to
happen only in the USA due to variety of cultures.
Moreover the scriptwriter created a character who
was supposed to be reserved, lonely and teenage by
the nature. The film abounds in symbols which
emphasize this immatureness of the grown-up. For
example, his only friend was the flower (aglaonema-
poisonous) which emphasizes his solitude, his
drinking milk hints the viewer of his immatureness
making paralysis with a toddler.
 • The Garry Oldman was casted
as villain due to taking part in
previous works playing villain
as well. The highlight of the
film is the Oldman’s delivering
lines during his acting which
were improvisation without
keeping to the script of the
movie. The director was
crossed with his improvising
but included these takes into
the whole movie.
THE VILLAIN PART
 INTERESTING
MOMENTS
 While the shootings of the film there was a burglary
but when the offender saw a lot of police from the
film he made a decision to give in taking the police
as a genuine one.
 There is an alternative version of the film which
runs 23 min longer. The alternative one is purposed
for Europian audience. Moreover the scriptwriter
cut some scenes which were sexual ones because of
the Natalie’s parents and shots not living up to the
pure version of the film.
 It took two months to shoot a film.
 According to Luc Besson Leon turns out to be
reserved and in solitude because of living in Russia.
 The venue of shootings were the streets of NY and
appartments in Paris.
 There is an alternative ending of the film.