Léon: The Professional (1994)

Léon: The Professional rating: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic

IMDb8.5/10· 1.3M votes

Rotten Tomatoes76%

Metacritic64%

TMDb8.295/10· 16K votes

With 76% on Rotten Tomatoes, backed by 8.5/10 on IMDb and 64/100 on Metacritic, critical reception of this film has been positive.

About Léon: The Professional

Léon, the top hit man in New York, has earned a rep as an effective "cleaner". But when his next-door neighbors are wiped out by a loose-cannon DEA agent, he becomes the unwilling custodian of 12-year-old Mathilda. Before long, Mathilda's thoughts turn to revenge, and she considers following in Léon's footsteps.

Cast of Léon: The Professional

• 

  Jean Reno

  as Léon Montana

• 

  Natalie Portman

  as Mathilda Lando

• 

  Gary Oldman

  as Norman Stansfield

• 

  Danny Aiello

  as Old Tony

• 

  Peter Appel

  as Agent Malky

• 

  Michael Badalucco

  as Mathilda's Father

• 

  Ellen Greene

  as Mathilda's Mother

• 

  Frank Senger

  as Fatman

• 

  Elizabeth Regen

  as Mathilda's Sister

• 

  Carl J. Matusovich

  as Mathilda's Brother

• 

  Eric Challier

  as Bodyguard Chief

• 

  Willi One Blood

  as 1st Stansfield Man

Léon: The Professional facts

Original title

Léon

Budget

$16M

Box office

$45.3M

Our take on Léon: The Professional

Luc Besson's 1994 thriller centers on Léon, a solitary New York hitman prized for his cold efficiency, whose insulated life collapses when a corrupt DEA agent slaughters the family next door. He reluctantly takes in Mathilda, the twelve-year-old survivor, and as she absorbs the trade she turns her thoughts toward revenge. Working across action, crime and drama, the film draws its charge from an unlikely bond between a childlike killer and a hardened child. It's stylish and violent but grounded in tenderness and unease rather than spectacle, so it suits viewers who like their crime films character-driven and morally uncomfortable. Not for those seeking a straightforward or comfortable watch.