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The Movie:
"The Professional", in my opinion, remains director Luc Besson's best movie yet. Where films like "The 5th Element" and "Messenger" have leaned more towards the side of style than substance, "The Professional" has a nice balance of both, as well as great characters. The film was released in the US in a shorted version that the studio wanted. The International release contains quite a bit more footage (this DVD adds 24 additional minutes to the film), and also became a bigger film overseas. The import DVD also became highly sought after. Thankfully, Tristar has decided to release the international cut on DVD for Region 1 audiences, so they don't have to pay higher prices for the import.
The film centers around the relationship between Mathilda(Natalie Portman) and Leon(Jean Reno). Mathilda's parents and family have been killed by a ruthless drug-addicted cop(Gary Oldman) and she stays with Leon, who she soon finds out is an assassin. She insists that Leon teach her what he knows in order to get revenge on those who killed her younger brother.
The film offers both thrills and strong characters. The relationship between Mathilda and Leon is an interesting one, and this expanded edition mainly adds to that element of the film. The film's few more intense action sequences are stunningly well-staged and thrilling. The performances are also quite excellent. Reno is very good as a hitman who is emotionless on the outside, but opens his heart up to the lost girl. Oldman is at his best as well, as a crooked cop who's constantly on the edge.
I actually liked this version of the film better; it adds to the story and although much of the extended moments seem like dialogue-driven moments, they never feel lengthy. "The Professional", even in the US version, was an excellent film. I think "Leon" is actually an even stronger version.
The DVD
VIDEO: The image quality is about the same as the first version. Both have some noticable problems, but in general the image quality is very good. The film is presented here in it's original 2.35:1 aspect ratio and is, as with all Tristar releases, anamorphic. Thierry Arbogast's cinematography remains stylish and makes for many cool visuals, even during some of the less intense moments.
Print flaws are the main problem noticed, and even they are pretty much few and far between. Consisting of a few minor scratches and some slight marks, they aren't distracting when they appear. A slight amount of shimmering is occasionally visible, but I didn't notice any instances of pixelation or other flaws.
Colors are nicely rendered, looking natural but pleasantly bold and well-saturated. Black level is solid, and flesh tones are accurate and natural. A very good transfer, with the few problems not really getting in the way.
SOUND: The sound for the film is not quite what one would expect from a film like this. It's not an extremely active film in terms of sound, but it is able to offer a moderately involving presentation from the front speakers. Surrounds are used pretty much just for slight or subtle use. They could be used more effectively not only in the action sequences, but in a number of quieter scenes, as well.
Eric Serra's score sounds quite good; clear and crisp throughout. There are some times when the sound could certainly have gone further and been more enveloping, but I was engaged enough so that I really wasn't looking for too much more out of it. Bass is strong, but not overpowering. Dialogue remains especially clean and clear throughout, and never seemed muffled or overpowered by anything else.
NOTE:: Many have noticed the lack of surround use on "Leon"; although many have noticed this problem, the response from the studio is that another source was used. At this time, there has not been any other news. I will update this section if there is anything new to report.
MENUS:: The menu opens with an animated clip from the movie, and although the main menu itself is non-animated, there is an animated explosion between menus.
EXTRAS: To the immense dissapointment of many of his fans, director Luc Besson has decided to not offer extra features such as a commentary with any of his films. What we do have here is a gallery of international ads, trailers for "Leon", "Messenger" and "The Big Blue"(where's the trailer for Besson's "5th Element"?) and the isolated music score in Dolby Digital 5.1
Final Thoughts: Although it's unfortunate that Besson has decided to not include any extra features, I can still recommend "Leon" as a great film that's even stronger in this longer version.
Film Grade
The Film A
DVD Grades
Video 90/A- = (360/400 possible points)
Audio: 86/B = (344/400 possible points)
Extras: 80/B- = (240/300 possible points)
Menus: 85/B = (170/200 possible points)
Value: 83/B = (249/300 possible points)
TOTAL POINTS:1363/1600
DVD GRADE:B/85%
FILM GRADE: A
DVD GRADE: B
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