Mona Lisa (1986) on Netflix
Fresh out of prison, George takes the only work his old boss Mortwell offers: driving and guarding Simone, a high-priced call girl. She asks him to find her friend Cathy.
- Netflix2.6/5
- IMDb7.3/1019,639 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes97%
Trailer
Plot summary
Seven years inside have left George without standing in the London underworld. His former boss, Mortwell, offers one job: drive Simone, a high-priced call girl, between wealthy clients and gather information on one of them for blackmail. Simone has cultivated polished manners and an exclusive clientele, and she dislikes the blunt, outspoken George, who thinks she puts on airs. As they talk between jobs, a friendship forms, and George falls in love with her. Simone then asks him to find Cathy, a teenage friend who has disappeared from the streets and whom she fears is being abused by Anderson, a violent former pimp. George's daughter Jeannie, grown while he was away, wants her father back in her life.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Mona Lisa (1986)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- The lead role in Mona Lisa was first offered to Sean Connery, who was interested but asked too high a price, so the part went to Bob Hoskins, and Neil Jordan rewrote the script again with Hoskins in mind.
- HandMade Films' Denis O'Brien wanted Grace Jones to play the female lead in Mona Lisa, but director Neil Jordan insisted on Cathy Tyson instead.
- Mona Lisa was inspired by a newspaper article about an ex-convict charged in court with assault, who claimed he was defending some prostitutes from their Maltese pimps.
- Michael Caine agreed to take a supporting role in Mona Lisa as a favour to his friend Bob Hoskins, who played the lead.
- Mona Lisa was going to be made by EMI Films, but the company pulled out of filmmaking and HandMade Films stepped in to make it instead.
- Bob Hoskins won the Golden Globe, BAFTA and Cannes Film Festival Best Actor awards for Mona Lisa, and his only Academy Award nomination, for Best Actor, went to Paul Newman for The Color of Money.
