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Ronin

Ronin

List Price: $14.95
Your Price: $11.96
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Rowan Atkinson
Review: Odd film. Twenty years ago it would have been unremarkable, but nowadays it's almost unique - a straight-faced, serious, 'thick-ear' cold-war thriller, played like a cross between John Le Carre and Alistair McClean, but not quite as good as either. Everything looks grim and gritty, and despite the post-cold war setting there isn't any post-modern irony here, it's square jaws all the way.

A top-notch cast make it what it is, although it's not really a film about people - it's a film about action and intrigue, but mostly action. Despite the odd way in which the main characters can commit mayhem in public without anybody seeming to notice, the gun-fights seem realistic - brutal, confused affairs - and the two car chases (featuring an array of exotic European saloons, even a Citroen XM), and in particular the second, are stunning, draining, and exciting.

(Not many films have Robert DeNiro and Jean Reno pootling about Europe in a stolen Volkswagen Golf, come to think of it.)

Ultimately though, it goes on too long. The film doesn't seem to care much for the plot, and in the end it all seems strangely forgettable - it goes in one ear, and comes out the other easily enough, but you probably won't remember it much in a month or so.

Watch out for some of the ugliest 'heavies' ever committed to film, too.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Lots of action, 5 star cast but for some reason it's a bore
Review: Two of my favorite actors, Jean Reno and Robert De Niro, in a action packed, espionage movie should be good but for some reason it falls short. How could this be? Bad acting? No, all are at least capable actors. Bad directing? No, the scenes were put together well. Perhaps, bad writing? That's the ticket laddie. The writing was very confusing, the writers used reference points such as Military base names, other military terms and jargon that your just supposed to be familar with i suppose. The actors had some very notable quotes that seem somewhat interesting, but since i don't understand military terms they're pretty useless. Maybe there was some bad directing after all, i mean guns, bullets, rocket launchers, and fast paced chases over picnic tables and cafes everywhere but not a cop in sight. I'm no expert but i have watched "World's most dangerous police chases" a few times and cops worldwide are all over you if you look like your driving funny. So how can they drive on the wrong side of the highway for about 2 miles, run people off the street, smash into every obstacle on the road and not 1 cop show up? I suppose the cops knew they were all ex military secret service type jerks and were just staying out of the way. This movie get 1 star for Jean Reno, 1 star to De Niro, 1 star for the action scenes, 1 star deduction for bad writing and 1 star deduction for bad directing. Rent don't buy on this one.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Entertaining
Review: Okay, I'll admit it! I like this movie for two reasons: Jean Reno and car chases. :) I'm a huge fan of Jean Reno (The Professional), and the car chases are really something else. It's like watching a rally race where they forgot to clear the streets!

Thankfully the film is more than just Jean Reno and car chases. Al Pacino gives a good performance, and his character keeps the film interesting. It's not a very deep or thought provoking movie, but it's entertaining...and isn't that what's important?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Homage to 70s French thrillers
Review: "Ronin" is director John Frankenheimer's homage to 70s French thrillers. It's got forceful acting, awesome car chase scenes, good shooting, and moody, realistic European locations.

THIS FILM IS FOR YOU IF ... This movie is for you if you like darkish, 70's-style, European-flavored thrillers that balance action with introspection, intelligence, paranoia, and ambiguity. You probably also like La Femme Nikita, The Little Drummer Girl, The Final Option, the novels of John Le Carre, and so on ...

IT'S NOT FOR YOU IF ... Avoid "Ronin" if you're looking for an action movie that is all-American, straightforward, uncomplicated, Hollywood blockbuster style, good guys vs. bad guys, blow-em-up. Go rent Con Air.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: A good idea gone bad.
Review: What makes RONIN fail? As an action film, it has plenty of action. Too many characters? Maybe. I found it very hard to focus, like I was always asking the person next to me 'what was that?' or, 'who is he again?'.

Those sort of digressions make me wonder about the story. I could neither stay with it, God forbid ahead of it, as we've been conditioned in most films today of this genre. There have been wonderful, simple heist films (The Italian Job) and complicated ones (Heat), but Ronin is neither, just messy.

What might have been a wonderful, fast-paced car chase is destroyed by too many close ups of a very scared Robert Deniro in the chase car. A needless appearance of Katarina Witt verifies that 'sold out for no good reason' feeling.

The characterizations are all too predictable, Natasha McElhone and Jonathan Pryce are weak in key roles. Stellan Skarsgard is superb, however. Jean Reno and Michel Lonsdale, as always, are excellent.

Poor story, poor direction, poor film.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Plenty of twists and turns
Review: This was a pleasant surprise - a great action flick with twists and turns in the story as well as the awesome car chases. De Niro and the rest did a great job. The DVD quality is excellent, with the widescreen captivating (adding to the excitement of the car chases). Includes a feature-length audio commentary by the director, always a plus in my book! Recommended!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great Flick
Review: Unlike some of the other people that reviewed this movie, I found that it does a great job creating a sort of "Chinese Box" to make for a great mysterious movie. Yes, there IS a good plot and many underscores that leave the viewer guessing right up to the very end. DeNiro uses simple strategies with his technologies to give a sort of 60s James Bond feel. This movie takes "Mission Impossible" a step further by giving you a more involved plot that isn't obvious. This is an intelligent movie, not the muck that action movies have been taking to in the 90s. A definite must see...

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Okay
Review: RONIN isn't bad, nor is it great. It is simply okay. Basically, this is a poor man's Mission Impossible. While you get cool car chases, the story itself is mediocre and the characters, while I like the actors, are not developed. And you won't care for the characters either.

This is very much influenced by De Palma's excellent Mission Impossible film. It takes place in Europe, with the foreign actors, the guy on the computer coordinating everything, the planned set-ups, etc. The difference is that RONIN puts more emphasis on flashy action, like hyperkinetic car chases and violent gun fighting. I liked the car chases a lot, especially the point of view angle used frequently. The gunfighting was alright, nothing special. There was quite a bit of blood letting, and one scene with De Niro that was totally unncessary (I won't give it away).

The story is very simple. They just add some mumbo jumbo, some foreign accents, and some twists and turns to throw you off. Not bad, but nothing to write home about.

Regarding the DVD. It contains a director's commentary and an aleternate ending. The latter is not great, but it's better than nothing. You also get the option to view in pan/scan. The visuals and sound are very good. I was highly impressed with the sound quality, particularly the gun fire. Job well done.

If you like car chases, look no further. I just hope you don't mind the lackluster story and characters.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Zero Stars Option - DeNiro, Were You Broke And Desperate?
Review: This was quite possibly one of the worst films I've ever seen. It's nothing but eye candy, filled with car chases, bullets, shattering glass, explosions and the like. The acting didn't even matter. No plot, and the most aggravating detail of all is that they never tell you what's in the black suit case that everyone is killing each other over. I really want someone to hurt that director for making the people that wasted that hard-earned money sit through two hours of nothing and deprive them of that information. Blah, blah, blah. Burn the reel!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: What are (almost) all of you thinking?
Review: This is, without a doubt, one of the worst movies I have ever seen. If you want DeNiro, car chases, shoot 'um up at its best, buy "Heat."

This was horrible.

If I could choose "no star at all" I would.


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