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Aldis Hodge recommended Léon: The Professional (1994) in Movies (curated)

Léon: The Professional (1994)

1994 | Action, Drama, Mystery

8.9

(38 Ratings)

Movie Favorite Watch

"The first film would be The Professional. I think in France it’s called Léon. Natalie Portman, Gary Oldman; it was one of the first films I saw with Jean Reno and man, it just had this cool vibe and assurance. It was about this assassin with a heart of gold trying to take care of young girl he doesn’t even know – and Gary Oldman is giving this insane performance [as the villain]. [It was] the first time I discovered Gary Oldman, and I was like, “Damn, he’s like a dope actor. I’d like to be on that level one day.” Plus, it was shot in New York, and I was raised in New York and in Jersey as a young boy, up until I was 10, so that’s an element of familiarity to it. I grew up fighting, and both my parents were Marines, so I’ve always been into this element of super-spying and assassins stuff; and there were so many just cool, chilled-out moments in there where Reno was just so cool, man. He was the man. I just loved what he brought to it. I loved the whole film, and again, I loved the way Gary Oldman played this role, because he was the villain, yes, but he wasn’t any typical villain; you believe that he thought what he was doing was absolutely right. That performance was great."

Source

Kudos

Merissa (12674 KP) rated Axion (Red Rock Alien Mail Order Brides #2) in Books

May 8, 2021

Axion (Red Rock Alien Mail Order Brides #2)

Erin Kellison | 2016 | Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Axion is the second novella in the Red Rock series, and it is Nina and Leif's turn for a story. Nina made her first appearance in Quantum where she proved that she can be a menace with a curling iron. Leif also appeared there, when we find out that he was an assassin, although he is trying for a more 'proper' appearance these days.

Nina is about to have a meeting with Cindy when a Leif appears that seems to have no bearing on the Leif she knows. She finds out that he is from the future... and that they are mates. However, he is here on a mission which will have future repercussions. Let the games commence.

With time paradoxes, bizarre rituals, language implants (which I could really do with!), plus trying to figure out the butterfly effect and how not to kill your friends, there is something in this novella for everyone. Although short, it packs a punch, giving you everything you would expect from an Erin Kellison book.

Very well written, with no editing or grammatical errors to disrupt the reading flow, this is a brilliant addition to the series; thoroughly enjoyed and definitely recommended by me.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!

Kudos

Zoe Nock (13 KP) rated Codename Villanelle (Killing Eve #1) in Books

Jun 26, 2019

Whilst binge-watching the BBC’s excellent Killing Eve I kept promising myself that I would hunt down a copy of the source material to learn more about the fascinating female protagonists.

It was certainly intriguing to hear the inner workings of Eve’s & Villanelle’s minds and to discover more about their backstory. I particularly enjoyed learning how Villanelle was moulded into the cold-bloodedly efficient assassin that fans of the show have come to love and fear.

“Black, white and red. Darkness, snow and blood. Perhaps it takes as Russian to understand the world in those terms.”

The novel is well written and clips along nicely. There are some well-executed (pun intended) set pieces in exotic or glamourous locations, it easy to see why it was targeted for adaptation. I’m glad that they resisted the temptation to give it the big screen treatment, turning it into what would probably been a beautifully shot but ultimately forgettable ‘sexy spy’ film.

It was an inspired decision to inject humour into the TV show; Phoebe Waller-Bridge brought this book to life in a darkly, deliciously, delightful way. Because of that I was a little disappointed with the book itself. Eve’s kookiness and Villanelle’s bat-s**t craziness are absent and sorely missed by anyone who has seen the series. It is still a good read but Waller-Bridge has shown us what the characters are truly capable of.

Kudos

DC's Legends Of Tomorrow

7.6 (31 Ratings) Rate It

TV Show Watch

As the world crumbles, the Time Master Rip Hunter (Arthur Darvill) takes matters into his own hands;...

Lowri Catryn (229 KP) rated Killing Eve - Season 1 in TV

May 7, 2020

Thrilling (4 more)

Acting

Characters

Storyline

Filming locations

Gripping!

Contains spoilers, click to show

An absolutely gripping series, with Jodie Comer's superb acting and her ability to change into different accents, characters and the fluidity of her character is excellent. We get to know the devastation that Villanelle can create and her gruesome ways of killing. Jodie Comer is able to portray the evil of the assassin, but also delve deep into the character to unveil the psychology behind her, as well as the soft side of the character.

I do love Sandra Oh as I had previously seen her work in Grey's Anatomy, so I was very excited to watch her in this. Again, to see her character become obsessed with her career (as in Grey's) gave her some continuation as an actress. However she surprised me when she was able to show a loving side towards Villanelle, emotions and affections that she did not perhaps show towards her husband.

As weird as it was I found myself wishing that the Good would fall in love with the evil vice versa and that the evil would be transformed into good because of the influence.

We were able to view amazing scenery in which different scenes and episodes were filmed.

What is also fascinating and exciting that some of the kills in the series are based of real life assassinations and murders, which I read up on today! They were able to capture these brilliantly.