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A Deadly Gesture?

posted 8 years ago by bowilly-88704
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There is one scene in this film, that has always puzzled me. Why does Leon nearly kill Mathilda? It doesn't seem this was planned when he let Mathilda into his apartment. At what point does he decide to do this?

When Mathilda offers to be his apprentice, does this set his plan into motion? I don't think so, at least not entirely.

The following scene, when Leon puts her to bed, she reaches out and takes his hand while thanking him for being kind to her. Leon jerks his hand away with a look of confusion on his face, or was this a look of Fear?

Does he now feel threatened by Mathilda, and his only solution is to kill her? I believe this is the moment, that ultimately triggers his decision, but what causes him to change his mind?

Did this simple gesture, nearly cost Mathilda her life, or did her display of affection, save her from a deadly fate? I believe a little of both.

[–] DFC-2 8 years ago

In the context of Besson's previous work and his script for Jet Li (Danny the Dog/Unleashed), I think it was a beautiful reminder that the kind human in Leon trumped what he had been taught to believe.

Besson's lead characters were all consummate loners to this point in his career. Nikita was so low at the beginning in her isolation and dysfunction that she coldly shot a young cop at point-blank range for no reason. Leon had been raised and indoctrinated by Tony, in a less extreme but similar manner to the young fighter in Unleashed, that he was nothing but a killer and must keep private from everyone but Tony for his safety.

His indoctrinated logic told him that Mathilda needed to be avoided and he was still warring with his inborn nature to be kind to her. Though his kindness won out in allowing her in his apartment, his brain was still telling him that he had to get rid of her and concocted the idea of killing her in her sleep. He was a step ahead of Mathilda in telling her to go to sleep. He already knew he planned to kill her and how he would do it. He could rationalize that it was an act of mercy, since she had no relatives or money, she would quickly die or be exploited on the street. Leon's profession demanded that he outthink his opponents. In his passive way, he constantly used his superior thinking ability to get Mathilda to accept what he wanted her to do (e.g. leaving her behind in the apartment for weeks, side-tracking her offer of sex, getting her to agree to leave him at the end). It wasn't that he never lied, his whole manner as a killer (e.g. the fat man contract) was leading people to believe something and then doing the unexpected. it was just that those who knew him mistook his passivity for stupidity, that he was too dumb/honest to fool them.

He knew as well as she did, after he was unable to pull the trigger, that she owned his life, that he would never hurt her to save himself.

[–] bowilly-88704 8 years ago

There Goes My Theory! I have wrestled with this scene for years, and I have never really thought about it this way. I have always tried to pinpoint the exact moment, that he decides to kill her. Now I have something new to think about. Your Post (as usual) is Amazing!!! Thank You!

[–] bowilly-88704 8 years ago

DFC!

I watched the film again last night, and I still can't grasp the moment that Leon decides to kill Mathilda. After studying your post, Last Vestige of Indoctrination, I tried to watch this sequence of scenes from your viewpoint and I believe that I have picked up on a couple of things that have escaped me in the past. First though I have a question. When Mathilda is at Leon's door ringing the doorbell, she is drawing attention to herself and Leon's apartment. We can see that Leon is hesitant in making a decision to let her in. Does he finally let her into his apartment due to his kindness or was he trying to avoid a confrontation with Stansfield's men? It would seem, avoiding a confrontation would have been his initial thought, and deciding what to do with Mathilda came shortly after.

While watching these scenes, I have always tried to pinpoint the moment that he decides to kill her. I guess I have been so fixated on this moment that I have missed subtle things within these scenes. For instance, when Leon puts Mathilda to bed, the following scene Leon is sitting in his chair, and I have never thought about this before, he is waiting and giving her time to fall asleep and I guess on some level this could be considered an act of kindness in the mind of an assassin. This is the moment that I have always felt, he made his decision to kill her. My way of thinking, he was flustered by the emotions that he was experiencing, and killing her was the easiest solution for him.

The time he gave her to fall asleep, was also time for him to ponder and feel pity for her. When he walked into the room and put the gun to her head, he turns away and shows exasperation and I believe this is the moment that his feelings for her come to life. Allowing her this time set everything into motion and the one thing that stands out to me throughout this sequence of scenes is Mathilda's show of affection. I believe this had an emotional impact on his final decision. Just a few thoughts!!

[–] DFC-2 8 years ago

Does he finally let her into his apartment due to his kindness or was he trying to avoid a confrontation with Stansfield's men? It would seem, avoiding a confrontation would have been his initial thought, and deciding what to do with Mathilda came shortly after.

Wouldn't his clearest path to avoiding confrontation have been to ignore her entreaties, let Stansfield's goon collect her, and forget about it? One key aspect of many "hits" would be the silent complicity of all potential witnesses. Much of life in neighborhoods like that is being streetwise enough to know who is in control of your area and to stay out of their way.

The whole situation was played for laughs in The Fifth Element with Korben Dallas surrounded by cops arguing with himself that he should ignore Leeloo's pleas for help. Otherwise, I agree with most of your analysis. I agree that he was waiting for her to fall asleep as an act of kindness, but it was also a way not to have to face her when he betrayed her trust by killing her.

He knew better than Mathilda at that point that his heart would melt if she was begging him for help. His one chance to save himself from that vulnerability, something likely to cost his life if he didn't get rid of her, was to focus his resolve to murder her in her sleep. When he finally rose from the chair -- moving very quickly and mechanically towards his objective, he appeared to be at that cold state of resolve, not wasting his time with any other thought. However, he was still too much of a caring human being to go through with it.

This film owes a lot to This Gun for Hire (1942) and Le Samourai (1967). In both, the title character was a cool and remorseless killer. The former has being kind to a small girl on the steps immediately after a killing, and evading a massive police presence behind a gas mask disguise. The latter has an isolated killer in a spare apartment except for one small pet. Both men end up dying because of this emotional weak-point in their armor, something that also makes them noble. Mathilda had awoken something basic to Leon's nature that Tony had been unable to destroy, a basic nobility of character that makes it and the other two films great medieval fantasies. They would not have been nearly as great if the main characters did not have to climb out of a well of darkness.

[–] bowilly-88704 8 years ago

I see your point absolutely! Avoiding the situation all together occurred to me also, then I started thinking what if he never opened the door, and Stansfield's men apprehended Mathilda shortly after. They might be curious as to why she was at Leon's door, possibly mistaking him as a friend or relative, that might be a potential threat to them later. Leon might have anticipated this scenario or one similar during his hesitation to make a decision. As it turns out, allowing her in provided Mathilda with immediate safety and avoided any confrontation at that time. If indeed it was kindness that prevailed in his decision (then later being unable to pull the trigger) going against his instincts ultimately saved Mathilda's life in the end.

Anyway I just wanted to get your thoughts and opinions on some ideas that came to mind. This has always been a very interesting part of the film to me, Thanks for sharing your thoughts!!!

[–] DFC-2 8 years ago

One of the best scenes in the film for sure! It certainly made an impression on Besson.

[–] clem-27 8 years ago

I think you both have a good handle on the psychology of the whole scene.

Consider that Leon is the consummate assassin, and he survives by being invisible. No roots, like his plant. Don't be noticed, don't get involved.

We only know that he is in New York and working for Tony because Leon got into some trouble over a "girl" some time ago, presumably in Italy or somewhere else in Europe.

So when he lets her in, he broke that cardinal rule of not getting involved. As soon as he realizes that he made a fatal error, his best course of action (as he was taught) would be to eliminate her and "clean up".

It only goes to prove that his first instinct was correct, but Mathilda's influence helps him to regain his humanity and free himself.

[–] bowilly-88704 8 years ago

This sequence of scenes has always been very interesting, kind of a mystery, for me at least.

>>> It only goes to prove that his first instinct was correct, but Mathilda's influence helps him to regain his humanity and free himself <<<

I agree, while Mathilda's influence helped free Leon from the Dungeon he built for himself, his Love for Mathilda allowed her to escape a World of pain and loneliness created for her, by others.