Leon: The Professional (1994)

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110 min - Crime | Drama | Thriller - 18 November 1994 (USA)

8.6

Ratings: 8.6/10 from 318,474 users Metascore: 64/100
Reviews: 698 user | 119 critic | 12 from Metacritic.com

A professional assassin rescues a teenage girl whose parents were killed in a police raid.

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
	Jean Reno	...	Léon
	Gary Oldman	...	Stansfield
	Natalie Portman	...	Mathilda
	Danny Aiello	...	Tony
	Peter Appel	...	Malky
	Willi One Blood	...	1St Stansfield Man (as Willie One Blood)
	Don Creech	...	2nd Stansfield man
	Keith A. Glascoe	...	3rd Stansfield man (Benny)
	Randolph Scott	...	4th Stansfield man
	Michael Badalucco	...	Mathilda's Father
	Ellen Greene	...	Mathilda's Mother
	Elizabeth Regen	...	Mathilda's Sister
	Carl J. Matusovich	...	Mathilda's Brother
	Frank Senger	...	Fatman
	Lucius Wyatt Cherokee	...	Tonto (as Lucius Wyatt 'Cherokee')

Full cast and crew »

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Storyline

Mathilda, a twelve-year old New York girl, is living an undesirable life among her half-family. Her father stores drugs for two-faced cop Norman Stansfield. Only her little brother keeps Mathilda from breaking apart. One day, Stansfield and his team take cruel revenge on her father for stretching the drugs a little, thus killing the whole family. Only Mathilda, who was out shopping, survives by finding shelter in Léon's apartment in the moment of highest need. Soon, she finds out about the strange neighbour's unusual profession - killing - and desperately seeks his help in taking revenge for her little brother. Léon, who is completely unexperienced in fatherly tasks, and in friendships, does his best to keep Mathilda out of trouble - unsuccessfully. Now, the conflict between a killer, who slowly discovers his abilities to live, to feel, to love and a corrupt police officer... Written by Julian Reischl <julianreischl@mac.com>

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

Taglines:

A perfect assassin. An innocent girl. They have nothing left to lose except each other. He moves without sound. Kills without emotion. Disappears without trace. Only a 12 year old girl... knows his weakness. See more »

Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for scenes of strong graphic violence, and for language (original rating) See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »

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Details

Country:

France

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 November 1994 (USA) See more »

Also Known As:

Léon: The Professional See more »

Filming Locations:

1 Centre Street, New York City, New York, USA See more »

Box Office

Budget:

FRF 115,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$5,306,558 (USA) (20 November 1994) (1 Screen)

Gross:

$19,251,002 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Gaumont, Les Films du Dauphin See more »

Show detailed company contact information on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min | France: 136 min (uncut version) | 133 min (International version) | Turkey: 100 min (TV version)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS (8 channels)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

See full technical specs »

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Did You Know?

Trivia

According to Patrice Ledoux, Luc Besson planned Léon as filler. At the time, he had already started working on The Fifth Element, but production was delayed due to Bruce Willis's schedule. Rather than dismiss the production team and lose his creative momentum, Besson wrote Léon. It took him only 30 days to write the script, and the shoot lasted only 90 days. Ironically, Léon is now generally considered to be a far superior film to The Fifth Element. See more »

Goofs

Crew or equipment visible: When Leon tells Mathilda, at the very end, to "grab the ax off the wall", when she opens the glass door, you can see the director Luc Besson's reflection in the glass, behind the camera filming her. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Tony: Allora, come stai, Leone?
Léon: Bene.
[Tony puts out his cigarette in an ashtray]
Tony: OK. OK. Let's talk business.
See more »

Crazy Credits

Under the "SPECIAL THANKS" heading you will find:
Chevalier KAMEN (Prince of the Mash Potatoes)
Byblos Bill (King of Saint Tropez)
Princess Trudy (Queen of Hearts) See more »

Connections

Referenced in "Top Gear: Episode #8.6" (2006) See more »

Soundtracks

"I Like Myself"
from It's Always Fair Weather
Music by André Previn
Lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green
Performed by Gene Kelly (uncredited) See more »

Leon: The Professional (1994) Léon (original title)

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Parents Guide:

Details

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

Also Known As:

Filming Locations:

Box Office

Budget:

Opening Weekend:

Gross:

Company Credits

Production Co:

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

Did You Know?

Trivia

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Crazy Credits

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Soundtracks

Leon: The Professional (1994)
Léon (original title)