Nikita

The beginning was pretty rough, but then the movie calmed down a bit. Victor the Cleaner portrayed by Jean Reno, however, caused quite a change of plans. La Femme Nikita is a legendary movie. It seems to me that Luc Besson started his career with this movie and never really managed to exceed it. I mean even Leon is inspired by this film. Anne Parillaud quickly turns from a messy junkie into a beautiful chick. I’d never seen such a brutal transformation in a movie before. The only reason I can’t give this movie the full five-star review is that at times, the movie is pretty wacky. It’s a proper French crime movie, but sometimes it’s laced with a wacky scene intended to make the movie dynamic. Sometimes it’s a bit too much. (18/10/2014)

Typical Besson in his strongest period. He deals with the strong and attractive theme without an excessive emphasis on gloss and shallowness, and vice versa: he concentrates on the undercurrents and the psychology of the characters. The action and the spy gloriola are tactfully set to the side, meaning that the human dimension of the story of the woman who was given a second chance gets more room. The action is minimal, but it is very inventive and contains a considerable portion of cynicism, not unlike Tarantino's later poetics. Anne Parillaud acts with incredible commitment and plays the drastic rebirth of her character with an extraordinary degree of persuasion. Besson's form is also evidenced by the "cleansing" episode, which, thanks to the performance of Jean Reno, is amongst the classics of film. Personally, I'm quite bothered by the synthetic soundtrack and the somewhat wobbly step of the storytelling; however, La Femme Nikita is still an absolute classic, which is a fact that will not be changed even by a traditionally stupid American remake. (26/06/2006)

Of Besson's "Holy Trinity", I like La Femme Nikita the least, but it is still an undeniably brilliant film that has the misfortune of being a class below Leon in every respect. (20/03/2005)

In the 80s, a wave of action movies emerged in America, which surpassed the more artistic productions of the 70s and successfully filled cinemas in Europe as well. It was a period when European national cinematographies were able to produce their own films, but they did not reach distribution and only filled the drawers of production companies. Luc Besson came up with the concept of a European action thriller, which, although it did not meet with enthusiasm from critics, restored fans' trust in the ability of European filmmakers to bring gratifying entertainment to the cinemas. The film has a strong story, highly interesting characters, and tension that is present throughout. Anne Parillaud became a respected actress, who Hollywood offered several opportunities in overseas markets, and in America, a less quality remake was made. Overall impression: 80%. The fact that the original name did not satisfy the distribution company is indicative of the state of our distribution and they had to add the adjective "brutal". (14/06/2006)

An authentic action flick with the toughest main character who leaves the likes of Lara Croft biting the dust. A zany film with an existential overlay and a well-written main character. A legend. (12/11/2004)

Perhaps the greatest acknowledgement for this film in general is to admit that Eric Serra's music was perhaps fitting in some of its scenes at times. Nikita is arguably Besson's creative peak and his most sensitive film. Watch the seamless transitions between the mood of the characters and the mood of the film. When Nikita sits in an upscale restaurant for the first time in three years at her birthday party, all naughty, only to end up with a huge gun she has to use to shoot several people, all of which turns into a inimitable kitchen massacre, the film has the same soundtrack and focal length throughout. Nikita presents us with a strangely disjointed world where agents sweat in hotel blinds with recording devices, spy contacts pass information in front of display windows, and Victor the Cleaner could be sitting in any car ready to cover up an entire botched operation. Behind these acts is a country represented in such cases not by Bond agents in the light of national ideals but by a kidnapped social underclass with no choice in the matter. After all, the film suggests several times that almost all the agents in it have a past similar to Nikita’s. And in all of this is a girl who never had the opportunity to be, only to "become". Hopefully only good things await her on her future journeys. "We’ll miss her." (24/07/2021)

Even after thirty years, La Femme Nikita still has great atmosphere and the same effect on me as it did years ago when I first saw it. I enjoyed every moment of the film again, because even the slower parts had their charm, and I could look forward to Victor's arrival. It's beyond me how Luc Besson could have gotten so significantly worse over the years and started making films that don't even come close to this. (04/05/2020)