The French version.
In some instances the original is the best, the American remake wasn't in the same league, and the TV series not even close to the American version. This version manages to combine all the elements including action, style and a decent story line.
There seem to be too few movies with a strong female lead role, this thankfully isn't one of them. The movie starts with Nikita involved in a very violent hold up of a local store. The owner is killed and she ends up on death row.
A government agency appears to have a program whereby they "recruit" female prisoners on death row and offer them a choice. Be trained by us and become our assassin or be executed as per your sentence. Step out of line or disobey and your sentence will be carried out.
Nikita of course accepts the offer, and becomes an assassin for the government but all she wants is to be a second chance which will never happen while she is under government control. This presents the question of will she fail in a mission and be killed either during the mission or afterwards, or can she find a way out?
This movie is worthwhile the price of a DVD if you don't have it or haven't seen it. This is the way a good action movie with a plot should be.