Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

CanineAnaconda t1_je27c7q wrote

The Professional (1994) is probably the only film I know where I actually preferred the version re-edited for the American market. It was less plodding, and it kept the symbiotic relationship of two very lonely people who had been violently let down and abandoned by humanity while minimizing the creepier aspects of Leon (1994). I saw the original version, Leon, years after The Professional and I felt the more overt sexualizing of these two paradoxical innocents was creepy and stomach turning. Some may accuse me of American puritanism, but I'll stand my ground that in Leon, it went too far. I also felt a little bewildered that while Portman had received a lot of sexualized harassment when she was still a child, much of it likely in response to this role, she then came to the defense of Roman Polanksy's facing his rape charges involving a very young girl. Though looking this up, I've just found that Portman has since publicly apologized and regretted signing the petition in his defense.

EDIT: I haven't seen either version in decades, seeing the OP's title "Leon: The Professional", I'm realizing there may be other versions I'm not aware of.

6

liquid_at t1_je28utk wrote

Imho, there is no issue with finding it off-putting, but there is an issue with the expectation that no film should cause you to feel any negative emotions ever.

Entertainment is just a niche in filming. A highly profitable one, but not all that the artform itself offers.

I'm in no way condoning the actions of Polansky, but censorship of art is a slippery slope and the expectation of not wanting to be offended is very dangerous.

I think it is better to have a conversation, even if it is uncomfortable, than to follow the practice of ignoring it.

Watching old Movie awards where jokes are being made how R Kelly can't be trusted to sit next to minors, with everyone laughing, are a lot worse, imho.

Same with Polansky and others. Everyone knew. Not talking about it made it worse.

5

CanineAnaconda t1_je2e2wk wrote

Well, I'm in this conversation, so I'm not clear on what you mean. Sure, discomfort is a natural, acceptable reaction to all kinds of artistic expression. My objection is that I feel a line was crossed from storytelling to exploitation. For me, The Professional passed muster because it still had those moments of discomfort about an uncomfortable subject matter, but the handling of it in Leon, IMO, was gratuitous and salacious. My original point was that The Professional succeeded in telling the same story without having to sexually objectify a child the way Leon did (I can't give exact examples, I haven't seen them since the 90s, so I'm relying on the memory of how I originally reacted to it as a viewer just a few years older than Portman). Though I know little about Luc Bisson as a person and haven't seen more than a few of his movies, other commenters' remarks of him being a certified creep is not surprising.

4

liquid_at t1_je2fw34 wrote

Given the future revelations, the criticism is definitely valid in this specific case. He clearly did not use it in any way that was intended to spark a critical conversation. He was likely in favor of it, which makes it a lot worse.

But it is still important to remember that movies can make us feel all types of emotions. Some make us laugh, some make us cry, some make us scared, some make us uncomfortable. All of that is ok, except for specific cases in which it isn't.

I just hope the future diverts some of that attention from fictional movie creeps to real life creeps, who are the much bigger problem.

1

HS_13_ OP t1_je2n442 wrote

I completely agree, just wanted to know if i was the only one who found it unsettling but thankfully not.

2

HS_13_ OP t1_je2mu1u wrote

That’s just what it is called in my country i’m not sure elsewhere but yeah it’s definitely strange. I had no idea about Polansky petition so thanks!

2

skibidido t1_je2ni2w wrote

She only stopped supporting Polanski to avoid criticism.

1