Mathilda

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Faneditor Name:
Original Movie Title:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
1994
Original Running Time:
133
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
110
Time Cut:
23
Subtitles Available?
Available in HD?
Brief Synopsis:
This is Luc Besson's "Leon" re-framed to be more Mathilda-centric, with Leon's story revealed more slowly, but also in a more ambiguous way. What brought him to this moment? You decide. Featuring many songs from the 80's and 90's, and leaning heavily into female vocalists, the soundscape taps onto Mathilda's motivations and emotional states at key moments in the story.
Intention:
I enjoyed Leon immensely in my 20's, and I still have the black overcoat to prove it, but the overtly romantic moments between this man and this 12 year old girl always left me with discomfort. After learning more about the original intentions of the story, the way Jean Reno and Natalie Portman's parents pushed Besson to avoid the romance angle, and the way the actors were largely tricked into filming the scene where Leon and Mathilda discuss having sex, I wanted to create a cut of the film that removed as much of that as possible. In this edit, 12 year old Mathilda recognizes she's falling for Leon, but it goes no further than that. When they profess their love for each other in the closing moments, it's a genuine love born of shared experience and kinship.
Other Sources:
La Femme Nikita (Blu-ray)
image
Special Thanks:
This edit is perfect expression of what I wanted to create back in February, but I lost my way a bit along the way. @ArtisDead brought me back from the edge and worked very hard (and with great patience) to help me fill out the musical soundscape and hit all the right notes. He provided insight along the way, motivated me, and pointed me towards the perfect music for the trailer and some key moments in the film. As a result, I feel @ArtisDead deserves editor credit for this release.

Additional thanks go to @FrameSniffer who previewed an early copy and provided the objective ear the work needed. He deserves an award for sitting through an early cut of this movie that featured no less than 30 minutes of Bjork.
Release Information:
Digital
Cuts and Additions:
* FE warning / logo, custom credit title.
* Removed opening scene at Supreme Macaroni (moved further down the timeline).
* Removed the entire "Fat Bastard" scene. We begin to learn about the nature of Leon's work later.
* Shortened title sequence.
* New music during initial titles ("Leon's theme").
* Different music for Mathilda's introduction.
* Mystery dream/flashback...
* Leon's apartment montage removed. We primarily stay with Mathilda for this opening section, but one shot of Leon in the shower is added to the "next day" scene as we transition to Leon.
* Shortened antics with the "pig".
* Mystery dream/flashback...
* When Leon leaves the apartment, he goes to see Tony instead of seeing Singing in the Rain.
* Leon's meeting with Tony adjusted to be vague about talking "business", and whether Leon is "free on Tuesday".
* Different music while leaving home #1.
* Different music during training montage.
* Removed over-sized bras from training montage.
* Removed "the game".
* Removed all discussion around Mathilda's age. Nobody pretends she's 18.
* During discussion with hotel manager, removed "He's my lover". He draws that (false) conclusion without being told.
* Different music when Mathilda follows Stansfield in the taxi.
* When Leon returns with a present, we don't see what it is. The dress is completely removed from the movie. He's interrupted by the hotel manager.
* Different music while leaving home #2.
* Tony no longer warns Leon about being "careful with women"
* During "Russian Roulette":
* Removed "I want love or death".
* Removed "...for life" (instead she just says, "You keep me with you.")
* During meeting with Tony, fixed the actor jumping his cue.
* Different music during the first job.
* During "fine dining":
* Removed Mathilda forcefully trying to kiss Leon.
* Shortened Mathilda's laughing.
* Added music (Beethoven).
* Different music during assassination montage.
* Removed "faggot" from the dude's diatribe.
* Removed discussion around growing up and getting older, as it's only relevant in the context of a romantic relationship.
* Different music when Mathilda is alone in the apartment.
* Removed "...my love" from Mathilda's letter.
* Mathilda no longer says, 'I love you' in the letter. Just ends on, "I'll know I'll feel better after I do this".
* Different music when Mathilda goes to the DEA building.
* The scene where Mathilda and Leon discuss having sex is removed.
* Mystery dream/flashback...
* Waking up in the same bed is removed. We see Leon wake up, but Mathilda is not there (she's gone for groceries).
* Moved reminder of "the code" to an earlier scene.
* Different music during "The Assault".
* Different music when Leon is shot from behind.
* Different music during final scene with Mathilda and Tony.
* Different music on the way back to the Spencer school.
* Removed meeting with School principle at the end. We're music-only after the scene with Tony.
* Closing shot changed; we now end on tableaux of Mathilda / Pot / Plant (in the ground) instead of the skyline shot.
* Added movie title after closing shot.
* Special thanks...
* Removed blue tint from end credits.
Trailer

User reviews

28 reviews
 
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Overall rating
 
9.7
Audio/Video Quality
 
9.9(28)
Audio Editing
 
9.5(28)
Visual Editing
 
10.0(28)
Narrative
 
9.7(28)
Enjoyment
 
9.7(28)
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10.0
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10.0
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10.0
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10.0
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10.0
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10.0
Another edit that is all a buzz in the fanediting world.

Everything has already been said.
Aside from the creepy factor, the movie was already near perfect. I commend the editors for having a set big enough to try to improve it. It's not a replacement for the original but it's an awesome alternative experience.

I really liked the new music used to make the movie more Mathilda's story but I think there were a few too many sings. I didn't care for Sweet Dreams or that Bjork song. Both seemed very out of place.

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
Owner's reply February 10, 2024

Thank you for your kind review but please consider lowering your scores. If something seemed out of place to you, then this is not a perfect fanedit, and your review should not have 10s across the board.

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10.0
Thank you guys so much for taking the only thing about this movie that I didn't like out of it. Now I can allow my teenagers to watch it.

You guys performed an editing miracle!

Those songs! Every song but two were expertly chosen and matched to the perfect scenes in the movie. Especially, the Sarah McLachlan song at the end. It was so sad but perfect.

You made the movie hers and used the songs to drive that home. I don't think there is a better movie with song replacement on this site. At least, I haven't found it.

More people need to see this, especially, the director.

The angel song for the trailer was what drew me in. Great choice.

Thanks!

User Review

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Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
B
Top 500 Reviewer 12 reviews
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10.0
I recently watched "Mathilda," the fan edit of "Leon: The Professional," and very much enjoyed it. I have been a fan of this film since it came out and like many fans, I have longed for a sequel with the obvious title "Mathilda: The Professional" that would show her as an adult. The storyline with Danny Aiello was never resolved, and seeing Natalie Portman take on her first role again would have been a treat. We now know that it was never made because the rights are tied up and will probably never get back into director Luc Besson’s hands again. Danny Aiello is dead now, and Natalie Portman is getting up there in age, so I think that the time has passed. So it was cool to see a fan edit that uses the title. Telling the story from Mathilda’s point of view was an original take. I can understand why someone would want to tone down the sexualization of the 13-year-old Portman. Although it’s an impossible task to remove it completely because of her wardrobe. There is a scene where Leon and Mathilda are staying in a hotel, and she insinuates to the manager that the two are not father and daughter but lovers. The line “He's my lover” was removed, so now she just says “He's not my father.” The rest is implied. I can see why the editor did not remove this entire scene because there has to be a reason for them getting kicked out of the hotel, but he did his best to make it less creepy.

The most significant change for me was the addition of new music. This was the part I really enjoyed. The new songs are flawlessly put in, so much so that they seem like they always belonged there. The new songs are also from that era, making it even cooler and harder to remember if they were new or old. Sting’s “The Shape of My Heart” is a good song, but I never felt that it was a great track for this movie as it didn’t really describe Leon very well. The sad Sarah McLachlan track the editor used for the end works better for me, especially because this is Mathilda’s story.

Overall, this is an edit that breathes new life into an old film and lets me enjoy it in a new way. Kudos for the nice cover art as well. Recommended.

User Review

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Yes
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Digital
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Overall rating
 
9.6
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0
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10.0
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10.0
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9.0
Enjoyment
 
9.0
Finally, I can watch LEON without feeling awkward
If you want to introduce your friends to this movie this is the version for you, cutting all the sexual moments between an older man and 12 years old girl is a welcomed thing but this fan edit goes beyond that and adds great OST and makes the character of Leon more mystery although I don't get why to cut the moment leon talks on his first killing mission, sure he tells it in a scene with a sexual tone but I still think you can cut the sexual tone out of this scene.

Overall this is the best version of the film, I usually don't like fan edits for films that are high-rated (corrently number 35 on IMDb)
because you might find yourself messing with something that was already perfect or close to that, but this is an exception

User Review

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Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
J
Top 500 Reviewer 30 reviews
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10.0
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10.0
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10.0
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10.0
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10.0
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10.0
Leon: The Professional has been one of my absolute favorite movies since I was a young teen. My first real screen name was "the professional###" with my bday plugged in. So hopefully you will take my review for what it's worth when I say you have actually managed to improve one of my favorite movies!

99% of the time when someone changes the soundtrack I appreciate the effort that went in but I hate the changes because my brain can't wrap itself around how different the scene is. Here every single song was so perfect that I honestly couldn't even remember if it was in the original scene or not, except for Shape of my Heart at the end! Very impressive.

Excising as much of the creepy horny 12yo stuff was a great move, and knowing that Luc Besson wrote a sex scene where Leon simply can't resist her advances, and knowing that Besson dated his wife when she was 15 and knocked her up at 16 while he was 32 makes it even creepier. Thank you for fixing that stuff so I can enjoy the movie as guilt-free as possible.

Also I'm very impressed with the length of the movie given how much was removed. Excellent scene choices, and I really felt like this was Mathilde's movie in the end.

Hands down one of my favorite edits on this entire site.

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Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
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