Mathilda

This was one of my favorite movies in the 90's and I was amazed by how this edit improved the movie! The casting is fantastic and I think Gary Oldman was never given the credit he deserves and an actor.

This edit just does so many things right that I can't name them all. Taking out the air of creepiness that this film has associated with it (Portman is only 12 here) was probably the best thing the editors could have done. The flashbacks, and the music.... Ohhhh the music! As someone who has played with music myself I can't begin to describe the feeling I was getting as basically every single song choice was perfect in my eyes. I won't name them all but a couple of my favorites came from Tori Amos and Edie Brickell.

I should point out that the replacement music is only obvious because I know the source material really well. The editors blended everything in seamlessly and no one would even know if this was the first time watching the film and that is the goal of a good fanedit.

I love the early Luc Besson films! In my opinion "Nikita" is his best film.
With "Leon" there was something wrong and it always felt a little cartoonish for me to fully enjoy it.
especially the charade game that thankfully now is gone.

I almost forgot how great Gary Oldman is in this film.
He owns every scene!

Love the added music!
Never expected a "Real life" song but it was spot on here.
The black/white shots from "Nikita" was a great touch too!

Great job!
A lot of great ideas and care have been added to this edit!

Highly recommended!

Well, Well, Well....

What a revelation! I recall little of what I thought about this in theatres other than being left with a sirta "Meh" feeling.

Despite that, I picked up a Blu Ray in a $5 bin a few years ago at WalMart, and there it remained in its shrink wrap...UNTIL AFTER I watched Mathilda...

Wow!...I really enjoyed this version...certainly I more than the original. It was now more enigmatic, mysterious and oddly compelling. I was certainly conviced that the music was original and by the time I concluded viewing I knew I HAD to watch the original. And now I recall why I had that @MEH" feeling.

Not only is this not overblown it feels grounded and anchored in a reality we are familar with and not dystopian.

It still hard to believe the level of effort and dedication required to pull off the audio work and I for one shall definitely be re-vising THIS verion in future.

High recommended.

Best in class work here from futon88. Audio quality is perfect. Video is excellent with only very minor color banding a few times. At first I thought removing any of the international cut scenes would be blasphemy. This is actually a stronger story by keeping exactly what the editor retained from the international cut and removing what he did. The hitman, Leon, is now a more mysterious individual and the newly created dreams he has are so beautifully done. The added music for Mathilda is of professional quality with the hand audio ducking and EQ work; the changes work well, improving the scenes, especially the Mathilda hitgirl in training montage. The subtle cuts to the ending make it just right without the odd narratives Luc Besson gets stuck inside. Now that there is an improved, more subtle version of Leon: The Professional I've come to realize how cartoonish and unrealistic the original was. I do highly recommend this edit.