Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
Josselin Beaumont, a French secret agent, is tasked with assassinating Njala, the president for life of Malawi in Africa. A shift in French policy means that assassinating Njala is no longer an option. But instead of recalling their agent, high-ranking officials deliberately sacrifice Beaumont by handing him over to the Malawian authorities. Arrested, tried, and imprisoned, he nevertheless manages to escape. Back in Paris after a two-year absence, he informs his superiors through Colonel Martin that he will fulfill his contract during Njala’s upcoming official visit to Paris between the 12th and 15th of this month, and that he has a few scores to settle with the D.G.S.E. The question is, should Beaumont be stopped or not?
The Professional (1981) is a French thriller elevated almost entirely by Jean-Paul Belmondo's commanding, charismatic performance as Beaumont — a world-weary, sardonic agent betrayed by his own government. Belmondo brings physicality and wry cool that few could match, earning a genuinely exceptional Acting score. The plot is a solid but not particularly original espionage-revenge framework; the betrayal-by-handlers premise was already familiar territory, though it's executed with efficiency and cynicism. Cinematography is competent and Parisian location work adds texture, but Georges Lautner's direction is functional rather than visually distinctive. Novelty is modest — the film doesn't reinvent the thriller genre but benefits from a distinctly French fatalistic tone and Ennio Morricone's iconic score ('Chi Mai'), which lends it a singular atmosphere. The ending, however, is genuinely memorable and tonally brave — melancholic, morally ambiguous, and refusing easy resolution, which elevates the film above its genre peers and lingers with the viewer.