Nikita (1990)

Convicted felon Nikita, instead of going to jail, is given a new identity and trained, stylishly, as a top secret spy/assassin.

Director:

Luc Besson

Writer:

Luc Besson

Stars:

Anne Parillaud, Marc Duret, Patrick Fontana

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 6 wins & 16 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Anne Parillaud	...	Nikita / Marie Clément
Marc Duret	...	Rico
Patrick Fontana	...	Coyotte
Alain Lathière	...	Zap
Laura Chéron	...	La punk
Jacques Boudet	...	Le pharmacien
Helene Aligier	...	La pharmacienne
Pierre-Alain de Garrigues	...	Flic pharmacie
Patrick Pérez	...	Flic pharmacie (as Patrick Perez)
Bruno Randon	...	Flic pharmacie
Vincent Skimenti	...	Flic pharmacie
Roland Blanche	...	Flic interrogatoire
Joseph Teruel	...	Stagiaire flic
Jacques Disses	...	Avocat
Stéphane Fey	...	Président tribunal (as Stephane Fey)

Storyline

An urgent life-or-death dilemma befalls Nikita--the feral street girl and violent drug addict--after killing a police officer at point blank. Hopeless, Nikita is given a new lease of life, when she reluctantly exchanges her doomed fate for a secret government program that promises to mould her into a cold-blooded assassin under the wing of her sadistic mentor, Bob. Now--with a new set of skills, a new identity, and lethally sophisticated looks--Nikita is the ultimate weapon and the perfect puppet for doing the government's dirty work; however, what happens if this trained killer chooses love over death?

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Plot Keywords:

female assassin | france | shotgun | girls with guns | hidden door | 

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Taglines:

A new kind of lethal weapon

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Genres:

Action | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film's onscreen title is simply "Nikita". It is titled in the United States as "La Femme Nikita" ("The Woman, Nikita"). Nikita is a man's name in languages such as Russian.

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Goofs

While firing the weapon in the kitchen, Nikita clearly finishes the clip (the slide locks open), but in the next shot the slide is forward again. Also the number of rounds she fires with the second clip (before she checks and finds it empty) is less than the number of rounds she fires with the first clip. It is unlikely that Bob (or anyone else) would give her less than a full clip of bullets.

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Quotes

Bob: You died Saturday at 5:00 p.m. The prison doctor confirmed suicide after an overdose of tranquillizers. You're buried in Maisons-Alfort, row 8, plot 30.
Nikita: [looking at pictures of her funeral] Titi... That's Titi!
Bob: I work, let's say, for the government. We've decided to give you another chance.
Nikita: What do I do?
Bob: Learn. Learn to read, walk, talk, smile and even fight. Learn to do everything.
Nikita: What for?
Bob: To serve your country.
Nikita: What if I don't want to?
Bob: Row 8, Plot 30.

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Alternate Versions

The 2008 US Blu-ray does not provide subtitles for the nursery rhyme Nikita sings half an hour in when she presents her computer instructor with a mouse. (The French subtitle track merely says that she sings obnoxiously.) Other editions, for example the original US laserdisc, however, provide a translation: "One white mouse / Ran into my house / I grabbed its tail / And made it wail".

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Connections

Featured in HBO First Look: The Best Man for the Job: The Making of 'The Professional' (1994)

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Soundtracks

LA PETITE MUSIQUE DE NUIT
Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (as MOZART)
Performed by Scottish Chamber Orchestra
Conducted by Raymond Leppard
Courtesy of Erato

User Reviews

Brilliant, tense and artful

Anne Parillaud is phenomenal as a terrifyingly vulnerable, beautiful and human young anti-hero with an incredible talent for violence. A drug-addict murderous teen is given a second chance by a government agency looking to exploit her penchant for conscience-less killing. Mentored by a man whose compassion for her is only matched by his ambition and Machiavellian sadism, Nikita ventures on a roller-coaster ride leading a double-life as assassin and clean-living young woman in love. Her passionate affair with Marco and the clarity of her un-drugged consciousness, combine to promote the development of a conscience - a dangerous thing in her line of work. Nikita is, nevertheless, a victim of her circumstances, and like the rest of the characters on both sides, seems stuck in a very bad situation. In addition to the artistry with which this story is told, this film has a very nihilistic sense of justice and not-so-subtly points out the fact that state authorized murder is still murder.

Jean Reno fans will enjoy his brief typecast cameo as "the cleaner".

This is one of the best, if not the best, of Besson's films. It is extremely well paced, starkly and beautifully shot, and features some of the best acting and writing of the entire action genre. The script is just a little better in French than English. Nikita does not have the feel of an action film, but rather, feels like a fatalistic drama riddled with almost continuous tragedy and heartbreak, and spiced with just a tad of hope. Parillaud's multi-layered and complex construction of her character is so mesmerizing that it is frankly difficult to think of anything else while attempting to reflect on this film.

Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French Italian English

Release Date:

April 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

La Femme Nikita

Filming Locations:

Rue Louis Codet, Paris 7, Paris, France

Box Office

Budget:

FRF50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$44,047, 10 March 1991

Gross USA:

$5,017,971

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$5,017,971

Company Credits

Production Co:

Gaumont, Les Films du Loup, Cecchi Gori Group Tiger Cinematografica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1