Review of Nikita (1990) by Drew S — 21 Apr 2010

Devastatingly flawed, lazily written and open to sexist interpretation, La Femme Nikita is nonetheless a film worth seeing for any action fan, if only for its unflappable originality. Nikita's transformation over the course of the movie is perhaps the most remarkable thing, though it may require a scoop of openmindedness from its viewer. It's really hard to accept that the cop-killing dimwitted crackhead we see in the beginning of the film is capable of pulling off complex espionage missions. Logic is by no means the movie's strong point, and it's clearly fast-forwarding through its own plot to get to the good stuff, asking us to accept Nikita's three years training as a government operative in the span of five minutes. (To be fair, there are some really neat touches that sharply delineate the passage of time, but it just doesn't feel like enough.) La Femme Nikita was obviously concocted as fantasy fodder for Luc Besson. How many men get to put their wives in slinky dresses, hand them an enormous pistol, and have them shoot down waves of baddies on camera, creating an international box-office success? The man is to be envied, but it's fortunate that his interest in self-gratification at least produces a watchable result. The same cannot be said for all auteurs.

Anne Parillaud is a fun presence, and it's obvious that she really poured herself into this role. The character really makes you work to like her, and I don't think Nikita will win over everyone, but if the bittersweet ending doesn't win you over then nothing will. She makes a strange centerpiece for the action sequences, as she's lanky and sort of awkward, almost like a prototypical Angelina Jolie. I'm not really sure if I swallow her as a trained assassin; the fact that she even survived her first gunfight in the restaurant is a serious stretching of credibility, even if she's meant to be inexperienced and out of her depth. Still, Besson's sensible direction and creativity make the ridiculousness palatable.