Poster details
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- Title
- Leon
- AKA
- Léon (France - original title) | The Professional (USA)
- Year of Film
- 1994
- Director
- Luc Besson
- Starring
- Jean Reno, Gary Oldman, Natalie Portman, Danny Aiello, Michael Badalucco, Ellen Greene, Willi One Blood, Don Creech
- Origin of Film
- France
- Type of Poster
- B2
- Style of Poster
- --
- Origin of Poster
- Japan
- Year of Poster
- 1995
- Designer
- Unknown
- Artist
- --
- Size (inches)
- 20 6/16" x 28 13/16"
- SS or DS
- SS
- Tagline
- --
Unique artwork on this poster for the Japanese release of French director Luc Besson‘s classic ‘hitman with a heart’ film, Leon (AKA The Professional in the US). The film reunited Besson with his regular collaborator Jean Reno (he was one of the leads in Besson’s The Big Blue, amongst other roles), who’s superb as the titular assassin wrestling with his strict code of ethics after he witnesses the massacre of a family that leaves one survivor, a twelve-year-old girl called Mathilda (Natalie Portman in a breakout role). The perpetrator is the psychotic, corrupt policeman Stansfield, played brilliantly by Gary Oldman, and Leon decides to take Mathilda under his wing to protect her, but Mathilda wants revenge and Stansfield will stop at nothing to track down the witness to his heinous crime.
This Japanese B2 actually features a still from the director’s cut of the film. Japan was one of the only countries in the world (including France) to see a theatrical release of the so-called ‘Version Integrale’, or International cut, of the film that adds 26 minutes of extra footage – the poster for that release can be seen here. I also have the UK quad and the American one sheet.
Hey Eddie, how are you?
Regarding your info above, the scene is actually from the Directors Cut dude, but used for the main campaign, it formed part of the ‘Ring Trick’ sequence when they go out on hits together.
The Director’s Cut was shown in France, Germany and Japan. In France, a lot of people cannot go away for the summer, this would be the reason Luc Besson released the film, for those who cannot get away, or so give this as the reason in the making of Leon book.
Cheers
Rosebud 🙂
Aha, thanks buddy! I haven’t watched the film in a couple of years and I’d thought it was from the siege scene but it’s good to get clarification. I’ll update the article now. I hope all’s well?