The Flick

Not to be confused with the Jean Reno version of The Professional that dropped in 1994, John-Paul Belmondo’s version is less heavy on action, but more on the intrigue. Joss Beaumont (John-Paul Belmondo) has been imprisoned for the attempted murder of the African President Njala.   He’s forced into acts of slavery for his extremely long sentence before finally escaping.  Now free, he works to bring down the organization that burned him while intricately planning to complete the job he failed previously. 

He does an excellent job of manipulating the group he used to work for, making them look like fools while continuing toward his ultimate objective.  With that said, the movie never takes itself too seriously.  In one scene, Joss dresses as a bum in order to infiltrate his wife’s apartment while under surveillance.  It’s extremely silly and sets up the film for other similar situations.  Expect to hear lines like “Joss Beaumont, Espionage and Knuckles” before he subsequently punches a guy out.  In another scene, he’s interrupted mid duel by a flower delivery guy looking for the correct address.  It’s ridiculous but it's part of the charm of the movie and it really ends up being the best part of the whole release.

Audio/Video

Present in standard def with Spanish and English subtitles along with a French and English Dolby Digital audio tracks, The Professional (1981) was originally dubbed in French and watching it with English subtitles is the preferred way to go.  With that said, the English dub is terrible.  It felt like I was watching a martial arts film from the 70’s with the actor's lips moving long after they finish speaking.  On top of that, the audio quality is less than stellar throughout.  Rarely does the track veer from using the center speaker and the same song is used throughout for each scene build up.

Special Features

The Professional (1981)on DVD comes as a single disc collection with the main feature along with the original trailer for the film.  That’s it.

Overall

The Professional (1981) feels very similar to a Bond film during the same decade and that is a compliment.  There’s a lot more swagger than action here, but it makes for a fun and interesting albeit slightly dated film. 

ComicsOnline gives The Professional (1981) 2.5 out of 5 Magnums.
 

Buy The Professional (1981) on DVD at Amazon.com now.

Keep it here at ComicsOnline.com for more movie reviews and Everything Geek Pop Culture.

Like what you read?  Want to talk to me about cool stuff?  E-mail me at [email protected].  You can also follow my ComicsOnline exploits on Twitter @ElliottIsAlive