Mathilda, a 12-year-old girl, is reluctantly taken in by Léon, a professional assassin, after her family is murdered. An unusual relationship forms as she becomes his protégée and learns the assassin's trade.
After her father, step-mother, step-sister and little brother are killed by her father's employers, the 12-year-old daughter of an abject drug dealer manages to take refuge in the apartment of a professional hitman who at her request teaches her the methods of his job so she can take her revenge on the corrupt DEA agent who ruined her life by killing her beloved brother.Written by
J. S. Golden
According to Jean Reno, he decided to play Léon as if he were "a little mentally slow" and emotionally repressed. He felt that this would make audiences relax and realize that he wasn't someone who would take advantage of a vulnerable young girl. Reno claims that for Léon, the possibility of a physical relationship with Mathilda is not even conceivable, and as such, during the scenes when such a relationship is discussed, Reno very much allowed Portman to be emotionally in control of the scenes. See more »
Goofs
When Leon tells Mathilda, at the very end, to "grab the ax off the wall", when she opens the glass door, you can see 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 »
Alternate Versions
An extended cut, retitled 'Leon: version integrale' was released in French cinemas on June 26, 1996. This version is 26 minutes longer than the previously released version and includes, amongst others, one sequence that was removed from the film after the disastrous tests with L.A. preview audiences. This version of the film is available on various DVDs, and is usually called the 'International Cut'. New scenes found in the International Cut include:
Mathilda asking Leon to have sex with her and Leon refusing;
Leon explaining why he had to leave Italy and go to New York when he was 19 years old;
Mathilda and Leon sleeping together in a bed;
Mathilda threatening to shoot herself playing Russian roulette.
Leon and Mathilda hitting the home of a tattooed drug dealer, and setting fire to his supply of drugs;
New training missions where Mathilda learns the ropes of becoming an assassin.
Leon and Matilda going to a restaurant to celebrate her first hit
The Perfect Couple. This is it.
I love them. They go against the grain. They show the middle finger to convention and busy bodies and the law and the closed-minded.
They are lovers unspoken and true.
And like every great film there is violence too.