John Frankenheimer's Ronin is one of the top ten most underrated action-thrillers of the 90's. It's a film so well made you could swear it would easily fit in with other spy thrillers of the 60's and 70's, like The Day of the Jackal or The French Connection. The script is mysterious, the characters are all intelligent and sophisticated and the direction it's well crafted; bustling with suspense, intrigue and excitement. The film is about a group of freelancing mercenaries who formerly worked for various different military and intelligence organizations that are hired to steal a case that contains important materials that are wanted badly by both Irish and Russian rouge factions. The team is assembled by an Irish woman named Deirdre (Natasha McElhone) which includes an ex-CIA intelligence officer named Sam (Robert De Niro), a computer expert (Stellan Skarsgard), a fast getaway driver (Skipp Sudduth), a French man who knows how to track down anything and everything (Jean Reno), and a former IRA weapons expert (Sean Bean).
The film is gritty and played out with a realistic hand due to Frankenheimer's constant vision of keeping things real, and not using any kind of CGI-trickery. Ronin isn't stylized or over-the-top, it's down in the gutter with a sense of believable intensity. The violence is bloody, at times a little gruesome, but only because it would only be realistic, not because he wants it to be over-the-top, but because that's the way it would probably be. Ronin is a rare thing in contemporary action films; it's exciting, without ever having to sacrifice any of its brains in the process of being entertaining and for that reason alone it does stand out from all the rest. Much like 1994's The Professional (another film about a gun for hire, which also stars Jean Reno), Ronin is exciting, entertaining, well acted, well scripted and doesn't ask you to buy into preposterous events in order to get some sort of satisfaction out of enjoying the film; you buy it whole sale from the beginning and it never cheats you out of its believability.
The film features two absolutely amazing car chases, which have now become a part of film history, ranking up there with Bullit and The French Connection, and also went on to inspire such films as The Bourne Identity and Supremacy. The chases are purely exhilarating and realistically intense. Why does De Niro have a scared look on his face throughout the chase? That's because that's really him in the car during the entire chase; the stunt driver (usually in the back of the car) was steering the whole time, but it's really the actors in those cars doing 60 through heavy traffic, and driving through those Paris tunnels. John Frankenheimer is probably most remembered for directing the original black and white version of The Manchurian Candidate back in 1962, and if you want to, watch Ronin and turn the color level on your TV all the way down and enjoy it in black and white; and because of the way it's shot it still works quite well even without color. If you're looking for an action movie with some fun thrills without it ever insulting your intelligence, backed up with some solid performances and set against some great European locations than I highly recommend you check this one out.
The film is gritty and played out with a realistic hand due to Frankenheimer's constant vision of keeping things real, and not using any kind of CGI-trickery. Ronin isn't stylized or over-the-top, it's down in the gutter with a sense of believable intensity. The violence is bloody, at times a little gruesome, but only because it would only be realistic, not because he wants it to be over-the-top, but because that's the way it would probably be. Ronin is a rare thing in contemporary action films; it's exciting, without ever having to sacrifice any of its brains in the process of being entertaining and for that reason alone it does stand out from all the rest. Much like 1994's The Professional (another film about a gun for hire, which also stars Jean Reno), Ronin is exciting, entertaining, well acted, well scripted and doesn't ask you to buy into preposterous events in order to get some sort of satisfaction out of enjoying the film; you buy it whole sale from the beginning and it never cheats you out of its believability.
The film features two absolutely amazing car chases, which have now become a part of film history, ranking up there with Bullit and The French Connection, and also went on to inspire such films as The Bourne Identity and Supremacy. The chases are purely exhilarating and realistically intense. Why does De Niro have a scared look on his face throughout the chase? That's because that's really him in the car during the entire chase; the stunt driver (usually in the back of the car) was steering the whole time, but it's really the actors in those cars doing 60 through heavy traffic, and driving through those Paris tunnels. John Frankenheimer is probably most remembered for directing the original black and white version of The Manchurian Candidate back in 1962, and if you want to, watch Ronin and turn the color level on your TV all the way down and enjoy it in black and white; and because of the way it's shot it still works quite well even without color. If you're looking for an action movie with some fun thrills without it ever insulting your intelligence, backed up with some solid performances and set against some great European locations than I highly recommend you check this one out.