Starring:	Jean Reno	106min
	Natalie Portman
	Gary Oldman	1994
Screenplay:	Luc Besson	Action
Director:	Luc Besson	Colour

Region	2 (French)	Studio:	Gaumont
Format	Single Sided, Single Layer	Subtitles	English
			French
Aspect ratio	2.35:1		Dutch
Anamorphic	Yes
Soundtracks	Dolby Digital 5.1 (?) & MPEG 2.0	Extra Features	Trailer for 5th Element
	French DD & MPEG 2.0		Biographies (English)
Case type	Amaray

The DVD * * *		The Movie * * * * *
This is a solid version of Besson's modern classic. The 2.35:1 anamorphic presentation here is a French print with French titles, but subtitles are mercifully at the discretion of the viewer. The print is superb, with excellent colour rendition and detail. A shame that there are a couple of artifacts noticeable on occasion, most obviously on thin vertical stationary lines, when the MPEG coding can't quite make up its mind what to do with them. It's not a serious flaw however - 99% of the time, things look pretty damn excellent. As for the sound, both MPEG 2.0 and Dolby Digital versions are present here in both French and English, and fine they are too (note that I was unable to positively confirm that the Dolby sound was 5.1 - although the packaging does not say, I understand that it should be). Eric "puchhhhh" Serra used the same music score as in GoldenEye (and all his other films), but it still packs a mean punch in the menacing bits. There is one tiny audio glitch somewhere around the 55 minute mark - the audio mutes for a second between scenes, almost like a layer change. But the moving picture gives the game away - this is a (microscopic) fault.. There is a music-only trailer for the 5th Element thrown in (also available from Gaumont), and biogs of the principals and French director Besson. But the biggest surprise about this French disc is that it is so English - from the on-screen opening copyright notice, to the default setting of English sound and no subtitles. Not that I'm complaining, mind - if you can live with French credits (and I think you probably can), this is a fine version of a truly excellent film. And given that if and when a UK version appears it will be from the ever-iffy Buena Vista, I reccomend you think good and hard about getting this. Buy, buy,buy.		Never mind Bruce Willis having a bad day - pity poor 12 year old Natalie Portman. Whilst out to get the groceries, her abusive father, prostitute stepmom, obnoxious older half-sister and sweet 4 year old brother are blown away by hyper-evil Oldman and his cronies after a drugs foul up. On her return, she seeks refuge with her kindly neighbour Reno. Okay, he may be a professional killer, but he is a thoughtful one - luckily for Portman, he kills no women or children. Worshipping him as a hero, she begs him to introduce him to the basics of his job and surprisingly enough, he accepts. And it's from here that the film fires into life, as their unlikely relationship develops amid the growing menace from Oldman & co. Stuff plausibility - Portman is astounding, even making the sometimes over-clever dialogue work, and Reno hits all the right notes. There are so many morally reprehensible pitfalls to fall into here you hardly know where to start, and it is real credit to Besson that he - somehow - expertly steers round them all. This is alternately tender, suspenseful and action packed, a masterful cocktail that even Eric Serra's over-literal score can't screw up. Visually, this is filled with all of Besson's usual directorial flair, and looks stunning throughout. But after the stunning ending, it's the film's heart which, coming off the back of his similarly themed but ice-cold Nikita, impresses the most.