La Femme Nikita (1990)

Grade: 52

I had high expectations when I saw this movie.  And it started
well enough, only increasing the anticipation.  But it quickly
became unbelievable, full of the implausible events that only
occur in action-adventure movies.  All in all, it was something 
of a letdown.  An okay film, but not the great film that I had
been hoping for.

Our anti-heroine is first seen as part of a team of addicted 
punks breaking into a pharmacy to steal drugs.  This robbery
is a failure when the owner and, later, cops arrive.  In a flood
of bullets, nearly every dies except Nikita (aka Marie,
Josephine, cutie).

In the aftermath of the raid, Nikita kills a cop for the 
pleasure of it.  This, plus several violent fits of temper,
gets her a death sentence which is commuted so that she can
become a government-paid assassin.  This is the premise of the
film, but is not credible.  Perhaps the French government does
have assassins on the payroll, but they wouldn't recruit feral
killers for the job.

Nikita has three years of training.  This includes makeup
and femininity lessons that supposedly transform her from
bitch to beauty.  She also has martial arts classes.  At one
point she bites her instructor and then jubiliantly dances
afterwards.  Her mentor is delighted with this.  Only in a
film would this happen. In real life he would be furious.

Released in the world to wait for an assignment, Nikita
immediately obtains a boyfriend.  Gender roles are reversed
in this relationship.  She is the aggressor and sets the plans,
while he constantly wants to talk and probe for info about
her past.

Nikita's first assignment is to kill several people who
just happen to be together in the same restaurant with her
when she gets the assignment.  Lots of people die in the
ensuing shootout, but not Nikita.  She is told of an
escape route that is shown to be sealed up.  This is supposed
to be another test for her.  Instead of being angry at her
mentor for this treachery, she kisses him.  Huh?

A later assignment has Nikita busting a hotel window, pointing
a rifle into the streets for several minutes, eventually shooting
someone in front of several others, and making no effort to leave
the scene.  Huh?

A third assignment again has bodies falling all around
Nikita, but her charmed existence continues unharmed.
An elaborate scheme is set up over six months to obtain the
papers in a diplomat's safe.  Would this really be worth the
body count to the French government?  Well...

http://members.tripod.com/~Brian_Koller/movies.html