A bona-fide cult classic, Leon (sometimes titled Leon: The Professional) is far and away divisive director Luc Besson's finest film. Starring Jean Reno (the only time he's ever been great), a young Natalie Portman (in her first film role), and a mad Gary Oldman (in one of his most scene-chewing, scene-stealing performances), the film sees Reno play the eponymous assassin who reluctantly takes in a twelve-year-old girl (Portman) after her family is murdered. The two form a strong bond, with some critics noticing and suggesting that there is a sexual element to their relationship. Indeed, the director's cut of Leon expands on this, showing the pair sharing a bed. Those issues aside - it really is too ambiguous to speculate on and it's best to just instead enjoy the film as a straight thriller - Leon is a riotous crime picture, one that showcases the very best of Besson's original eye for action before the director became too self-indulgent. Bookended by a pair of virtuoso opening and closing shots, Leon is one of the most constantly enjoyable films on this list, and in Gary Oldman's manic performance as the villainous Stansfield, it has an over-the-top antagonist for the ages.
