DieselsDen

It ain't art...just pulp cinema.

I agree with the naysayers on this thread who claim it's overrated.

chanster

I enjoy the movie...its got some great acting all around in it.

Its one of those movies, where you wish you could go in and tell
but alas you cant.

The ending scene with

jpcamb

Just came across this movie on Netflix and watched it for the first time in many years. Just astonished at how good it was and how well it holds up. My god, a 36-year-old Gary Oldman and a 12-year-old Natalie Portman. It boggles my mind this was her first role in a movie. If you have not watched this in a while it's time to dust this disc off and give it a rewatch. It would be amazing if Portman reprised this role now as an adult but I'm not sure she could ever top this role. I can't believe this is only an 8.5 on IMDB as this should be higher, I did notice it's the #34 movie of all time. I honestly feel this should be in the top 25, personally, it would be top 10 for me.

Count Dooku

The film's reputation and ranking is actually pretty fucking great considering it came out at the same time as Pulp Fiction and Natural Born Killers, starred a French guy and an unknown little girl, and also that there are two versions.

Throwing Copper

I saw it as The Professional in theaters and again on video when it was released. Really good film.

I bought the Leon cut of the movie as well later on and still haven’t watched it to compare the differences

GoldenJCJ

This is one of those movies that everyone fellates themselves over every time it’s mentioned but I could never get into. I’ve tried watching it several times and could never get through it.

rocket1312

Only 8.5? That's a higher score than 2001, Vertigo and Singin' in the Rain, just to name 3. It's a good movie that I have owned on multiple formats, but let's not go crazy here. If anything, whatever reputation it has overestimates it's quality.

stingermck

One of the best movies, one of my favorites and of course this thread exist on DVD talk asking such a question

E Unit

Leon has some pretty big differences, including the controversial scene where Portman’s character tries to seduce him. It’s pretty uncomfortable to watch. There’s also some other interesting parts including one that has her doing extended training in practicing to become an assassin. Overall, the Leon cut is pretty damn good, but you can clearly see what was cut and why.

bunkaroo

The “Leon cut” is the movie. I refer to it as Leon because that’s what Besson intended. How sad and typical it had to be cut down for US audiences because reasons and as a result we have to use this hybrid title.

E Unit

The “Leon version” vs “cut” or whatever it is you want to call it. Either way, there’s two very distinct versions of this movie.

jpcamb

And at the same time, the Matrix and at least two animated movies are listed ahead of it. When I first mention it was 'only an 8.5' I did not realize it put it up at the #34 movie but I honestly feel like it should be a little higher than it is. It's fairly rare for me to see a movie several times and then a decade or more later re-watch it and fall in love again without feeling like it's somehow dated but Reno, Portman, and Oldman all put in stellar performances in this film and it feels fresh and watchable today with a hint of nostalgia for the era as opposed to Star Wars or the Matrix which don't hold up quite as well and look hokey by comparison. Maybe it's not fair to compare this to sci-fi but I have to wonder how much I would enjoy Silence of the Lamb today vs ten years back compared to Leon.

andicus

Silence of the Lambs holds up very well, IMHO. It's never the same as it was in the first viewing, for obvious reasons, but it is still fantastic.

And, yeah, Leon holds up just as well.

Jay G.

Keep in mind that the IMDB ratings are not an objective measurement of quality. The only thing it objectively measures is the average rating its users give these films.
https://www.imdb.com/chart/top/?ref_=nv_mv_250

For any film, there's going to be some that like it a lot, some that like it a bit, some think it's ok, some don't like it, and some that hate it. Even for Leon, 6,312 users gave it only 1 star:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110413...?ref_=tt_ov_rt

So don't get hung up on average ratings. If you personally think it's the best movie ever, or in your 10 best, then that's what matters to you. All an average rating shows is a "consensus" of what other people think of the film, but that doesn't invalidate your personal opinion, any more than your personal opinion means the average rating is wrong.

OldBoy

this is one of my favorite movies ever. i saw the theatrical cut in theaters (The Professional), but prefer the extended cut (Leon) for home viewing.

Hazel Motes

More uncomfortable knowing it was autobiographical.

TGM

A young Natalie Portman knocked it out of the park in this and in Beautiful Girls, the latter perhaps being the best acting of her entire career.

Ash Ketchum

19-year thread bump. Is that some kind of record?

Oh, and 8.5 is very high for IMDB. That's like a 10 anywhere else.

Daytripper

I didn't get a chance to see this in the theater, but rented it from Blockbuster (on VHS!). It was the first movie I ever watched at home and immediately watched again. I thought it was riveting and still one of my top 10 favorites of all-time. Time magazine ran article that year on both Portman and Kirsten Dunst on their debut star making roles calling them two to watch. Were they ever right.

jpcamb

yes but was it Pan and Scan? LOL

OK, I guess maybe I'm off the mark feeling that the IMDB is low for this movie, I do feel it is one of the best movies out there though so for me it's easily a nine. Yes, it's subjective and people were put off by the flirty relationship between Matilda towards Leon and that surely resulted in some of the 6K 1.0 ratings but it's hard for me to think of any movie I had not seen in so long that holds up as well as this.

Daytripper

More than likely. I was thinking about this movie the other day. I have bought this move on VHS and every DVD release ever. Including Suberbit!

E Unit

I remember when the VHS came out at Blockbuster. They actually had 2 versions on the shelves marked as "Full TV" and "Widescreen". Of course everyone went after "Full TV" back then, never knowing how much picture was cut off.

Daytripper

If widescreen was available of any movie, I always rented that. All of the DVD's I bought were widescreen though.

devilshalo

I was actually surprised the Cameron signed off on offering both for Titanic (and it was on 2 VHS tapes) and not forcing Fox to released it in widescreen only. But then again, I remember working at a video store and people complaining about the black bars on their tv screen like they were missing something.

cultshock

I remember renting it on VHS when it first came out and instantly loved it. I haven't watched it in at least five years, time to dig out my Blu-ray of the Leon cut, great film!