Is it just me, or does it seem like Stansfield was creeping on Mathilda in the restroom scene?
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Léon: The Professional
Veveanne — 10 years ago(May 17, 2015 03:59 PM)
Is it just me, or does it seem like Stansfield was creeping on Mathilda in the restroom scene?
Like, I know it's in his character's nature to be creepy, but didn't it seem a little advanced in that scene, from his tone of voice and the fact that she's a kid? I'm also just recalling the touching, and how close his face was to hers.
Lastly, could it be a kind of like counter-metaphorical type thing pertaining to Mathilda and Leon's relationship? Just some thoughts! -
TxMike — 10 years ago(May 18, 2015 05:47 AM)
I didn't get that at all. I'll suggest maybe you are projecting what you'd like for the scene to be. His character is a crazed, drugged up cop who killed her family and in the restroom is trying to decide if he can kill her right there and get away with it. No sexual innuendo.
.... TxMike ....
Make a choice, to take a chance, to make a difference. -
SnoozeAlarm — 10 years ago(September 11, 2015 04:17 AM)
I'll suggest maybe you are projecting what you'd like for the scene to be.
I hate scumbag posters who try to make people feel like there's something seriously wrong with them for expressing an opinion or asking a question.
It should be against the law to use 'LOL'; unless you really did LOL! -
SnoozeAlarm — 9 years ago(August 31, 2016 12:18 PM)
Actually, if you're one who makes judgements like that over people's interpretations of movie scenes, then there's something seriously wrong with you.
Scariest words in English: Were from the federal government and were here to help. R. Reagan -
DFC-2 — 10 years ago(May 18, 2015 06:44 AM)
I agree with you that it is deliberately creepy, but very much along the same lines as him sniffing her Father's hair and playing with his head when the Father was trying to sell the lie that he didn't cut the drug.
Stansfield reveled in making other people uncomfortable. His own flunkies were unsure of what to expect. His invasion of Mathilda's and her Father's personal spaces and expectations was designed to scare them.
Otherwise, I also agree that Besson set up his shots to remind the audience just how vulnerable Mathilda was sexually, physically, and mentally with the games she was playing. Her dress, being in the men's bathroom, as well as Stansfield pushing her head around with his gun all contributed to that. The film works as well as it does because of the deliberate use of contrasts in size, strength, knowledge, and experience, especially how they raised the level of risk/vulnerability. -
Veveanne — 10 years ago(May 18, 2015 08:04 AM)
I adore this reply, thank you. Very well anaylzed and written. Those are all very good things to consider when viewing this film, and the last paragraph you wrote seems particularly important in my opinion. Thanks again!
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cjwright79 — 10 years ago(March 06, 2016 05:03 AM)
The cool thing about this little exchange is that after Stansfield waves his gun around a bit, Mathilda actually wins him over to her cause. Notice how he brandishes his firearm in the face of that young guy with the dreadlocks that barges in. That was the guy who killed Mathilda's brother by firing his Tec-9 around wildly. If Leon hadn't come in and shot up the office I feel like Stansfield would have sorted everything out and that he and Mathilda would have parted ways peaceably.
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micirisi — 10 years ago(May 18, 2015 02:43 PM)
I'm also just recalling the touching, and how close his face was to hers.
It was more than touching. It was pervy to say the least. Stroking her face in a men's restroom with his hand then a gun? Had Stansfield raped and killed her (or vice versa) after that bathroom scene, I would not have been surprised.
http://imgur.com/gallery/Dao55HZ/new
He killed sixteen Czechoslovakians. Guy was an interior decorator. -
Veveanne — 10 years ago(May 18, 2015 05:17 PM)
Goodness, yeah, that's the main thing I was recalling too was when he touched her lip like that, amongst other gestures. Yikes! Okay, so maybe the weird vibes I got from that scene weren't 100% unfounded after all. Thanks for the reply!
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DFC-2 — 10 years ago(May 19, 2015 05:45 AM)
About all that can be said of Stansfield's desires is that he delighted in scaring and then killing people. He was preparing to shoot Mathilda in a main floor restroom, which would have been very hard to explain. He only stopped when he heard that his partner had been killed.
Fantasizing about his desire to rape, especially in light of his similar manipulation of her Father's head when he was scaring him, and the complete lack of sexual components in his other murders, begs the question of where this idea of rape originated. It isn't in the movie.
Neither Stansfield nor Leon was afraid of dying, it was almost as though both had a contract with Death itself. The main difference between them was that Stansfield reveled in his contract and delighted in taking lives. -
micirisi — 10 years ago(May 19, 2015 08:20 AM)
I don't think anyone in this thread (including me) "fantasized" about Stansfield's desire to rape, as you put it. I merely stated that while watching that awkward scene had he killed and/or raped the girl, I would not have been surprised.
You have an armed psychopath alone with a frightened 12 year old girl in a restroom and he is caressing her face in a menacing manner. So what's the worst that could happen? I think the director wanted the audience to ponder the same question and not necessarily think, well yeah Stansfield didn't sexually assault Mathilda's father after "his similar manipulation" so Mathilda is safe in that regard.
He killed sixteen Czechoslovakians. Guy was an interior decorator. -
Veveanne — 10 years ago(May 19, 2015 03:11 PM)
Good points! Not to mention the circumstances (who else was present, what the characters are in terms of age/gender, where they were, etc) were quite different in the two respective scenes.
I think the ambiguity that you mentionedwhether deliberate on the part of the director or not (regardless of deliberation, viewer interpretation still stands)just makes it all the scarier / more suspenseful. -
DFC-2 — 10 years ago(May 20, 2015 01:34 PM)
All good points. I tend to think of Reno, Besson, and Portman's Mother who were all concerned about what was done with the film and on the set, as each had young daughters at the time. I don't think it was an accident that the only episode where an older person is shown hitting on Mathilda, it is an older kid.
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gabby_bm — 10 years ago(May 24, 2015 12:20 AM)
I never got any "sexual" vibe from any of the adults toward Mathilda. Stansfield thrived on chaos and reveled in others' vulnerability. And this is what he targeted in that bathroom scene- Mathilda's vulnerability. It was similar to how a cat plays with its prey before killing it- allowing it to live just to experience its own vulnerability- and that's exactly what Mathilda experienced in that scene.
This isn't to say that Stansfield didn't utilize Mathilda's sexual naivete and vulnerability to his advantage in intimidation. But to that end, I would say it was simply another facet of his
psychological
attack on her- and not an attack on her sexuality (mental- not sexual)
i would compare that to Jules eating poor, vulnerable Brett's Big Kahuna burger in "Pulp Fiction" and washing it down with his tasty beverage.
I dont need you to tell me how good my coffee is.
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tarigergo76 — 9 years ago(December 29, 2016 06:18 AM)
Stansfield at his sleaziest and Mathilda at her most vulnerable. Outstanding performances by Gary Oldman and Natalie Portman.
Natalie Portman said she wasn't even acting, she was genuinely scared by Gary Oldman in that scene.
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spookyrat1 — 10 years ago(March 18, 2016 07:08 PM)
In discussing the restroom scene and Stansfield's want to invade Mathilda's personal space, one should remember the earlier scene of Stansfield, thriving on getting up close and personal with Mathilda's father.
I feel the restroom scene, along with Mathilda shrewdly knocking on Leon's door, after returning from shopping and observing the massacre, are the most spellbinding of the movie. And yes, in both scenes, Mathilda is at her most vulnerable.