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Luc Besson: Films
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In The Professional, Besson continues his psychological study of marginalized, on-the-edge individuals: this time, a hitman, Leon, played by Jean Reno. Leon is the "Cleaner," New York's top hitman. He is never emotional; or better yet, as a professional, he never allows himself to be emotional. Through some inopportune circumstances he meets the twelve-year-old Mathilda (played convincingly by Natalie Portman). In her attempt to be trained as a hitperson in order to avenge her parents' murder, the process of Mathilda's makeover is in fact a vehicle for exploring the relationship between this odd couple. Walking the thin line between the innocent affection of a man and a child bonding (as in Paper Moon) and a portrayal of a potentially pedophilic liaison, Besson's incisive direction turns the film from a cliched story into an almost lyrical character study.
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"One day he came to me with the drawing of a Minimoy and I fell in love with it," said Besson. "He wanted to do a short film for TV, and I said are you nuts. You can do a big, long story with that. You can do everything with this character."
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A character-driven film, focusing on the evolving relationship of a couple, “Angel-A” is the closest thing to a traditional French film that Mr. Besson has made. Mr. Besson, who refers to his print adversaries as “de-press,” has often spoken of retiring after directing 10 films. And beyond its sense of self-searching, “Angel-A” has a genuine valedictory quality. Mr. Besson admits that the film’s dialogue, by turns inarticulate, comic and poetic, is his attempt to dramatize his own inner dialogue and arrive at some measure of self-acceptance.
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"I found this course on Luc Besson an excellent way to integrate further knowledge in French culture and ... acquire a background in film studies. Besson has a very distinct style in his film production making him an excellent
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Besson said he was focused on the film, so he didn't interact with the videogame team except for when he might see them at lunch. He left them free to create the game, which he saw from time to time during its creation.
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[T]hough, the book, which started, confusingly, with an idea for a series of short five-minute films brought to Besson by friends, Patrice and Céline Garcia. "I fell in love with the drawings of the central characters, these minuscule little beings with freckles, fluffy hair, pointed ears and eyes like buttons," he says.
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