"Leon", the 1994 international version of Luc Besson's "The Professional" release stateside, is what the Motion Picture Association of America was afraid to release stateside: a darker, more sinister look at a great hit-man thriller that is a little sicker, too.

You don't want to meet Leon (Jean Reno). Thing is, you probably won't be able to, as he is hard to find when he is at work. He "cleans" up a problem when there is one, and only does so to male adults that are corrupt. "No women, no children," he swears. A child shows up to him one day, a young 12 year old named Mathilda (Natalie Portman) whose family has just been executed by a corrupt DEA agent (Gary Oldman) due to her father being caught up in dealing drugs. Mathilda is taken in by Leon; she is a forever changed person who wants revenge against whoever killed her family, especially her little brother.

The domestic version still remains as an incredibly entertaining, visually strong and well acted film, with so many outstanding sequences and originality, even if exactly the opposite is true of the revenge plot. It goes even furtherly wrong however, in placing a 12 year old girl in the middle of some dastardly twisted scenes involving sexual undertones between her and Leon, and some hints of violent rage.

The international version, however, expands on Mathilda's relationship with Leon. She wants to learn how to be a "cleaner" to get revenge, he lets her on for work related purposes. And we get to see even more hints of sexuality in Mathilda that is discomforting and out of place with the rest of the film. (Still, one can't deny this was the reason she was offered the role of Lolita in Adrien Lyne's remake)

Still, this longer version is superior, thanks to director Luc Besson. This is a beautifully shot film that actaully brings his French style of filmmaking right into the streets of New York, that Woody Allen would never imagine to shoot. Besson's incredible use of slow motion, wide angle lenses in the anamorphic frame, overbearing character antics (how else can you see Gary Oldman scream so well and so over the top that it would be out of place in another movie but right at home here?), the use of Eric Serra's moody, atmospheric score, and Besson's great way of flowing scene to scene.

Jean Reno is an absolute standout as Leon. He is so commanding and strong in any shot in this film, it's a shame he hasn't been more popular over in North America (to date, he's had small roles in "Ronin" and 98's "Godzilla"). Natalie Portman, whilst having odd character antics, is equally amazing as Mathilda. It's rare to see this much strength and heart come out of a 12 year old. Too bad her future films didn't live up to her talent. Danny Aiello has a great few scenes as Leon's boss, Tony. Look closely and you'll spot The Practice's Michael Badalucco as Mathilda's father. And last but not least, Gary Oldman is still one of the cinema's most underrated actors, and this film is proof of that. This man can do anything.

I loved this extended cut of "Leon," even if there are problems with some of the tones and revenge story, it is still a captivating and unique movie. Director Luc Besson has moved on from this, to make a good but lacking movie ("The Fifth Element") to a horrible one ("The Messenger"). Even though he still gets funding for his films through the France company Gaumount, his films are getting more American and thusly, less enjoyable. Let's hope in the future Besson gets back to what he knows best: Jean Reno.

Gary Oldman (born March 21, 1958) is an Emmy Award-nominated, Saturn and BAFTA Award-winning English actor, writer and director. He is renowned for his portrayals of many memorable Hollywood villians and for his mastery of world accents. His 1997 foray into writing and directing, Nil By Mouth, won the 1998 BAFTA for Best Film.

Biography:

Early life:

Oldman was born Leonard Gary Oldman in New Cross, London, England to Len Oldman, a former sailor who worked as a welder and was an "abusive alcoholic", and Kathleen, an Irish-born homemaker. His sister, Laila Morse, is also an actor.


Career:

Oldman applied for enrolment into Britian's prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, but was refused entry and told to "find something else to do for a living.". Often quizzed about it in retrospect, his hugely successful career condsiered, he has stated that "the work speaks for itself". Following this, he won a scholarship to the Rose Bruford College, where he received a BA in Drama in 1979. He later studied with the Greenwich Young People's Theatre and went on to appear in a number of stage plays including The Pope's Wedding, for which he received Time Out's Fringe Award for Best Newcomer of 1985 - 1986 and the British Theatre Association's Drama Magazine Award as Best Actor of 1985.

Oldman first appeared on screen in the film Remembrance in 1982, going on to win his first starring role in Sid and Nancy (1986), in which he played the Sex Pistols' ill-fated bassist Sid Vicious. He has become known for playing eccentrics and for his mastery of accents. He has played a variety of famous characters including Dracula, Ludwig van Beethoven, Joe Orton, Lee Harvey Oswald, James Gordon, Dr. Zachary Smith, Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz, Pontius Pilate, and the Devil. He has played many villains, including a vampire (Bram Stoker's Dracula), a pimp (True Romance), a disfigured paedophile (Hannibal), a futuristic megacorp tyrant (The Fifth Element), a corrupt DEA officer (Léon), a sadistic prison warden (Murder in the First), the Russian terrorist leader Ivan Korshunov (Air Force One), a presidential assassin (JFK), and a violent football hooligan (The Firm).

He was even cast as convicted murderer Sirius Black in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, who appears to be a villain until a surprise ending reveals his innocence. Due to frequently playing villains, and people struck by tragedy, his characters often die in his films. He overdoses in Sid and Nancy, is killed with a hammer in Prick Up Your Ears, blown up in Léon and The Fifth Element, hanged in Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead and Air Force One, stabbed in Bram Stoker's Dracula, and shot in The Firm, JFK, State of Grace, and True Romance. In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, his character dies when he falls through a mysterious veil. Oldman has received more recent acclaim in his recent films, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), as well as the extremely successful Batman Begins (2005) and the upcoming The Dark Knight (2008).

In 1997, he directed, produced, and wrote Nil by Mouth, partially based on his life, which went on to win the Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film, a BAFTA Award (shared with Douglas Urbanski) and also the British Academy Award for Best Screenplay, the Channel 4 Director's Award, and the Empire Award, and was declared by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts as one of the one hundred best films of all time. Recently Nil By Mouth was listed by Time Out as number two of the top fifty best British films ever.

Oldman and producing partner Douglas Urbanski formed the SE8 GROUP to produce Nil By Mouth. The company also produced The Contender, which also starred Oldman. Oldman has finished his latest screenplay, Chang & Eng, based on the novel by Darin Strauss, which SE8 Group will produce. In September 2006 Nokia, Nseries Studio released the Oldman directed short "[Donut]" (MPEG-4, 320x240 pixel, 23 MB) with music by Tor Hyams. The film was shot with an N93 in order to promote the phone.


Personal life:

Oldman has been married three times: to Lesley Manville (1988 - 1990), Uma Thurman (1990 - 1992), and Donya Fiorentino (1997 - 2001). He also has three sons, Alfred (b. 1988) by Manville, and Gulliver Flynn (b. 1997) and Charlie John (b. 1999) by Fiorentino.


Filmography:

Remembrance (1982), Daniel
Meantime (TV, 1984), Coxy the Skinhead
Morgan's Boy (TV, 1984), Colin
Honest, Decent & True (TV, 1985), Derek Bates
Sid and Nancy (1986), Sid Vicious
Prick Up Your Ears (1987), Joe Orton
Track 29 (1988), Martin
Criminal Law (1988), Ben Chase
We Think the World of You (1988), Johnny
The Firm (TV, 1988), Bex Bissell
Chattahoochee (1989), Emmett Foley
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead (1990), Rosencrantz
State of Grace (1990), Jackie Flannery
Henry & June (1990), Pop (as Maurice Escargot)
JFK (1991), Lee Harvey Oswald
Heading Home (TV, 1991), Ian Tyson
Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), Dracula
True Romance (1993), Drexl Spivey
Romeo Is Bleeding (1993), Jack Grimaldi
Léon (1994), Norman Stansfield
Immortal Beloved (1994), Ludwig van Beethoven
Murder in the First (1995), Milton Glenn
The Scarlet Letter (1995), Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale
Basquiat (1996), Albert Milo
The Fifth Element (1997), Jean-Baptiste Emmanuel Zorg
Air Force One (1997), Ivan Korshunov
Lost in Space (1998), Dr. Zachary Smith
Quest for Camelot (1998), Baron Ruber (voice and vocal)
Jesus (TV, 1999), Pontius Pilate
The Contender (2000), Rep. Sheldon Runyon
Nobody's Baby (2001), Buford Hill
Friends, "The One with Monica and Chandler's Wedding", Parts 1 & 2 (TV, 2001), Richard Crosby
Hannibal (2001), Mason R. Verger
Greg The Bunny (TV, 2002), himself as a theatre producer
Interstate 60 (2002), O.W. Grant
The Hire: Beat The Devil (2002), Devil
Medal of Honor: Allied Assault Spearhead (2002), Sgt. Jack Barnes
True Crime: Streets of LA (2003), Rasputin "Rocky" Kuznetskov, Agent Masterson
Tiptoes (2003), Rolfe
Sin (2003), Charlie Strom
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Sirius Black
Dead Fish (2004), Lynch
Who's Kyle? (2004), Scouse
Batman Begins (2005), Sgt. James Gordon (Promoted to Lt. at end of the movie)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), Sirius Black (voice)
The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning (2006), Ignitus (voice)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), Sirius Black
The Dark Knight (2008), Lt. James Gordon