Ronin

Rating:
Summary: One of the greatest action films of all time
Review: If you like action, this movie has it all. Great car chases, nice action sequences, and an intelligent plot. The details are purposefully vague (what is in the suitcase?? why do the Russians want it?? why do the Irish want it??), but certain points are left unexplained to convey the mercenary feeling. The movie is definitely classy, with a pleasant European atmosphere to it. John Frankenhemier did a great job of making a smart movie. It is heavy on action, but smart enough that it cannot be categorized with braincell-lite action movies. Top-notch acting, especially from De Niro and Jean Reno. They were both very likable and intelligent characters, but were not afraid to get their hands dirty (especially De Niro). Sean Bean also was very good as the clueless chump. And if you like car chases, this is the movie for you. Where else can you see fast European cars speeding down the opposite side of the highway (or whatever they call it in Europe)? Also, the action was very believable. I especially enjoyed how they used a wide variety of modern-day weapons and gadgets to achieve their objectives (where can I get a traffic light changer?). All in all, one of my favorite movies. Even if you don't like action movies, you'll find yourself rooting for Robert De Niro in this great flick.

Rating:
Summary: Even if Ronin did not have a plot....
Review: which it definitely does, it would be a great action film worthy of your time. I saw this movie in the theater when it was released five years ago, and it hasn't lost any of it's zing!

Ronin has classic DeNiro, a sterling international cast, great scenery, two absolutely astonishing chase scenes through the narrow busy streets, over the winding roads, into the tunnels, and in the wrong-direction on a multi-lane highway of several French cities where the actors were actually in the cars traveling in excess of 100+ mph being driven from the passenger-side controls (if you think American-made cars) by top race drivers and talented stunt men, but filmed to look as if the stars were driving. In fact, some of the driving was done by Skipp Sudduth (Sully in TV's 'Third Watch'). Add explicit blow-by-blow commentary by director John Frankenheimer including a description of exactly how these real-life, no film-magic, chase scenes where filmed in intricate detail and you've got yourself a breath-taking tour of France from a vantage point most of us could never hope to experience.

Get a copy and go along for a great adventure and two thrill rides of a lifetime!

Rating:
Summary: Life at the Red Line
Review: Forget about deep philosophical elaborations: this movie is mostly about car chases. This is not a criticism, because these are the best car chases in any movie. I also enjoyed the engine noises. The cars are not American cars, with big engines, but European cars, with small, fast revving engines. The drivers really need to run close to the red line to get any power at all out of the engines. Any real BMW (or Renault, Citroen, Peugeot, Alfa) fan will understand.

Rating:
Summary: Improves with multiple viewings
Review: It's a homage to the existential thriller films of the '60s and '70's - we don't know much about the characters, the central objective remains a mystery, and the entire movie feels like it's spinning madly around a void. Yet, the movie is fantastic in ways that many thrillers aren't - it promotes cool-headed professionalism and preparation over histronic mayhem and it grounds the viewer with a definite sense of place and locale rather than in inpersonal, corporate settings. The story between the big action set pieces doesn't seem like padding and Frankenheimer sees clearly the loneliness and viciousness of people who can't have any kind of human contact beyond the merely professional. The film didn't grab me on first viewing - the whole MacGuffin about what's inside the case seemed too outdated and affected in my view (it still does). But the atmosphere that Frankenheimer, and Robert de Niro and Jean Reno (as two ex-spies working with a team to retrieve a case for a mysterious client) create is uniquely somber as well as exciting. It's a great action picture, all right - the chase through the Paris traffic tunnels is an instant classic - but its an action picture that doesn't sacrifice details or tone for thrills.

Rating:
Summary: No Arguing Please - Classiest Hollywood Action Film. Ever.
Review: If you didn't see it at the movies, then off to the shops you go. You have to buy a projector for your home. This is because, amongst other things, Ronin boasts what are quite simply the best car chase sequences ever. After seeing this movie I rented Bullit in order to compare them. Audi S8 vs Ford Mustang GT? The Audi cannot beat the GT V8's scream, but Bullit lost on all other fronts. For instance, whilst watching Bullit I didn't find my hands gripping the arms of my chair. Watching Ronin, however, induced an irremovable smile on my face and the wish that I, too, had an Audi S8.

In addition to the cameras following the cars, De Niro and Reno post excellent performances and Pryce also portrays his character perfectly. All characters are totally believable, and the plot structure overall is holeproof.

Ronin is one of the few Hollywood films that have a strong British feel to them, and this lack of garish colour and misplaced testosterone gives it the rare professional ambience of a movie that knows precisely where it is going. In other words, the directing is impressively taut.

These points all accumulate, making Ronin the most intelligent action movie to come from Hollywood for a long time - perhaps ever. JM

Rating:
Summary: On solitude, camaraderie, and good moviemaking.
Review: A mystery man summons a group of mercenaries, mostly has-beens of the grand spy game. What follows? Naturally: lead is flying, the tires are burned by former Formula 1 drivers, and the cast proves to be an ensemble that could light up more than one firmament. A recipe for cashing-in -- one could say -- but rarely a recipe for an instant classic. Ronin, however, just clicks. Clicks as Rubik's cube would and pulls us into a ninety-degree spin and onward to enchantment and an immense adrenaline rush. Why? Because it treads on irresistible subjects of solitude, camaraderie, love and betrayal -- here all served on the palette of the post-cold-war games -- and does so with a seductive flair. From the first group scene in a decrepit Montmartre bar, we are reminded that people often need to be distrustful in order to survive and that the sinister in life might be only an inch away. John Frenkenheimer (The Manchurian Candidate) captures that exceptionally well and leaves little to chance: the careful selection of actors, locations and camera movements solidifies this movie. The story never falters, even though the main price and the stated opposition are both rather enigmatic. The dialogues between Sam (Robert De Niro) and Vincent (Jean Reno) are lean and unforgettable: "whenever there is doubt, there is no doubt...that's the first thing they teach you." A propos teaching, watching the movie with the director's commentary is an eye-opener and it should be a treat for those who make or aspire to make motion pictures. The slick soundtrack, the use of blue lens and the novel fonts used in the credits frame it well. Ronin is a delight. This film will leave begging for more even after several screenings, no doubt.

Rating:
Summary: Ronin is an Instant Classic De Niro and Jean Reno movie.
Review: This movie is an instant classic for Robert De Niro and Jean Reno fans. Natascha McElhone is a lovely dazzler combining a sensuous understated beauty with a journeyman actor's presence. With a simple look or a roll of her eyes she speaks volumes. De Niro has never been tougher or more compelling as the everyman, Sam. He reminds me of Bogart in his grittier roles. Jean Reno is quickly becomming one of my favorite actors. He is a man's man with a sincere delivery and deep sad eyes. He also adds the aura of the world weary but stoic Frenchman to the mix. I love French and the bits of French dialogue interspersed in the movie resonate with wryness. The interplay and rapport between the Jean Reno and Robert DeNiro characters plays true and is one of my favorite things about this relatively realistic action film. Frankenheimer has a superb eye for detail and the cutters have done a marvelous job. This story will keep you on edge for most of its running length. The action scenes are cut in broad swaths that leave you wanting more. Get this film and an Audi S8 while you're at it. You wont be sorry.

Rating:
Summary: Gorilla of a Thrilla'
Review: Spy flick, GREAT CAR CHASE... I think Car and Driver rated the chase scene as an all time best.

Rating:
Summary: The Warrior Code.
Review: There's a centuries-old unwritten code shared by all members of the "warrior" class; soldiers, policemen, intelligence operatives and other members of security forces old and new - a code of professionalism, of unwritten rules of conduct and moral attitudes allowing them to interact on a level outside verbal communication, and beyond the social and political mandates of the day setting the outer parameters of their job. Not all take the tenets of that code as far as the 47 masterless samurai ("ronin"), whose 18th century story, known in Japan as "Chushingura" and still one of its most famous kabuki plays, inspired this movie's title, and who committed seppuku - ritual suicide by disembowelment - after revenging their master's death; the honor-mandated punishment for having failed to protect him in the first place, and for bringing weapons to Edo [Tokyo] to kill the shogun's master of ceremonies, responsible for their liege lord's demise. But all members of this class recognize each other instinctively, and can infer more from small gestures and attitudes than others can from long conversations.

We learn little about the ronin who are the protagonists of this movie, and one of director John Frankenheimer's greatest coups is the understated way in which he uses that very mystery to keep the viewer's interest: not hyping it up, making us want to find out more, but downplaying it: What matters is not who precisely they are but their interaction as such. So, we only learn that there is Sam (Robert de Niro) who, although initially keeping his cards close to his chest, is eventually cornered by Vincent (Jean Reno) into implicitly revealing his CIA past (even though later he still refuses to directly own up, responding "I don't remember" to Vincent's question who trained him: "That's the second thing they teach you;" the first lesson being how to spot an ambush) Vincent himself - hired mainly for his local expertise as a Frenchman and soon striking up a friendship of sorts with Sam - manages to keep mum about his past throughout; as does Larry (Skip Sudduth), the team's car expert. Gregor (Stellan Skarsgard) specializes in electronic surveillance and has obviously learned his craft in the KGB ... and Spence (Sean Bean) tries hard to convince them that he is ex-22SAS. But he merely talks the talk (and way too loudly at that), and after having jeopardized a weapons deal preceding the team's main operation he is effortlessly exposed as a fraud by Sam, and dumped with a stern warning to forget them. - The operation is headed by Deirdre (Natascha McElhone) on the behest of renegade IRA terrorist Seamus O'Rourke (Jonathan Pryce), with the aim of commandeering a certain case, whose content - again, in one of Frankenheimer's little ploys - remains unknown throughout the movie. At some point, the overall objective shifts when Gregor takes off with the case alone, trying to sell it to the Russians; although from a revelation by Sam to Deirdre towards the end (and by a close look at his final exit) we can infer that his true purpose never really changed at all.

There are several things that make "Ronin" compelling even to someone who, like me, doesn't generally count action movies among her favorites. First, and obviously, the stellar cast: Robert de Niro in one of his last truly good recent performances (even sporting a virtually accent-free French), Jean Reno his match in acting skill, mysterious aura and veiled menace paired with straightforwardness, Stellan Skarsgard as the chillingly ruthless Gregor, Michael Lonsdale in a brief but crucial appearance as Vincent's mentor Jean-Pierre (likewise without any English accent whatsoever), Jonathan Pryce as the coldblooded IRA renegade, Natascha McElhone looking and sounding as if she had no problem at all standing up to a group of alpha male stars such as these (even managing to keep her cool after a brief fling with de Niro's Sam) - and last but not least double Olympic and quadruple world ice-skating champion Katarina Witt as Russian skating princess Natacha Kirilova, during whose performance the action's climax is set.

Moreover, this is the masterpiece in editing and camerawork we came to expect from director Frankenheimer ever since "The Manchurian Candidate," "The Birdman of Alcatraz" and, for that matter, "French Connection II" (I am also glad the DVD was produced in time to ensure a directorial commentary track before Frankenheimer's 2002 death); complete with his excellent sense of authenticity, making France come to life even in shots not done on location, and paying attention to a myriad details as much as the big picture. And then, of course, there are the car chases: If you've ever been to Vieux Nice, driven along the Corniche outside Nice, in downtown Paris or on the "Peripherique" (freeway circle around the city), you know that you need to be on your toes there even under normal circumstances - now imagine creating car chases in these settings, one of them even against the oncoming traffic from La Defense outside Paris! This takes both an immense amount of precise planning and highly skilled, thoroughly unafraid stunt drivers; not surprisingly, some stunts were performed by race-car drivers - although Skip Sudduth even did some of his scenes himself; and all sequences were filmed with the actors actually in the cars. Kudos to everyone who participated in these scenes and came out physically and mentally intact!

"Ronin" does have a conclusion of sorts, but leaves both Sam's relationships with Vincent and Deirdre partly unresolved. Yet, the warrior code doesn't always require an express resolution. Even the last dialogue between Vincent and Sam feels more like a translation added for the viewer's benefit, expressing things they ordinarily would not have to say in words. And Vincent's last lines provide a perfect closing summary: "No questions, no answers. That's the business we're in. You accept it and move on. Maybe that's lesson number three ..."

Rating:
Summary: Scenic intelligent action movie--very underrated
Review: This is one of the smartest, most exciting action movies I've seen in years. The car chases are amazing, the plot is very interesting, and the acting is first-rate. I must say however that Deniro (one of my favorite actors) actually seems to be phoning it in little bit here compared with the other actors. They actually seem to be more "present" in the situation than he is. I'd highly recommend this movie and I'm surprised that it's not better known.