Ronin (1998)

Let's be realistic.

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

A very good movie with a good storyline,excellent script,acting,setting and pairing between Robert De Niro and Jean Reno.Wish to watch them again together on the screen.

This French-set thriller opens with Sam, a former CIA operative entering a Parisian bar; here he meets Deirdre, an Irish woman who is recruiting a team to steal a case that the Russians are also keen to get their hands on. We are quickly introduced to the rest of the team; Vincent, Gregor, Spence and Larry. One of their number is soon dismissed when it is revealed that he is just a wannabe rather than the skilled ex-soldier he claimed. The remaining members get on with the job but just as it looks as though they have got the case it turns out that one of their number intends to betray them and inevitably he gets his hands on the case. Now both the Russians and the remaining members of the team are after the case and if that weren't enough the team's Irish employers seem about to betray them as well.If you are looking for a solid thriller with plenty of action this is definitely worth watching. There are plenty of impressive shootouts and a couple of really good car chases. There are several tense moments and a few real surprises. The story itself is fairly simple and we never learn what is in the case. The fact that the case remains a McGuffin is a good thing to my mind; this way it can be whatever the viewer thinks it is; if it was explained explicitly we'd be wondering how realistic it is that both the Russians and a shadowy Irish group want with it. The cast features plenty of well-known actors most of whom are on good form. Robert De Niro puts in a solid performance as Sam and Jean Reno is equally impressive as Vincent. Natascha McElhone impresses as Deirdre and Stellan Skarsgård is great as Gregor. Sean Bean is fun as Spence even though his character isn't around for all that long. The ending is satisfying although trying to tie it in to certain real life events seemed a bit forced. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to fans of classic action-thrillers; especially if you like a really good car chase.

From 1998, Ronin is directed by John Frankenheimer and stars Robert DeNiro, Jean Reno, Jonathan Pryce, Natascha McElhone, Stellan Skarsgård, and Sean Bean.The title is taken from the Japanese; it describes Samurai without a master. These Ronin are specialists and mercenaries, from Special Forces or Intelligence units hired by Dierdre (McElhone) on behalf of her boss Seamus (Price). Their job is to obtain a suitcase from someone who is about to sell it to the Russians. It seems obvious that Dierdre is an IRA member. The men are nearly successful, but one of their own switches the real suitcase for a useless one and steals it for himself, intending to sell it to the Russians. The chase is on.Wonderful action movie with fantastic performances all around, but especially from DeNiro and Reno. The scenery from all over France and the camera angles used are wonderful. One of the towns filmed in is shown in such detail, you feel like you're there. The car chases are killers, done in Alpes-Maritime.For figure skating lovers, there are skating sequences by Katarina Witt, who won won two Olympic Gold Medals for East Germany, first in the 1984 and 1988, and was world champion 1984-88. This was filmed ten years later, and she was still in phenomenal shape. Highly recommended.

This unpretentious thriller with its well-staged explosions, shootouts and high-speed chases, delivers enough excitement to satisfy any action movie fan but what makes it even more entertaining, is its snappy dialogue by David Mamet (credited as Robert Weisz), its top class ensemble cast and some sterling work by the late John Frankenheimer. Its weaknesses are its wafer-thin plot, its under-developed characters and the implausible ways in which the story is advanced at various points (e.g. if you want to find Russians, go to an ice-skating show!!). The action takes place in France and the locations chosen, not only look good, but also add enormously to the atmosphere of the piece.A small team of former covert operations specialists from various countries are brought together in Paris by an enigmatic Irish woman called Deirdre (Natascha McElhone). She appears to be an IRA operative who briefs the team about their forthcoming mission to ambush a convoy of vehicles in order to steal an important metal case for which the Russian mob is prepared to pay generously. Deirdre doesn't disclose any information about what the box contains and is also not very forthcoming when asked to clarify some other operational details that are important to the team members who have considerable expertise in carrying out this type of work.The team, which comprises Americans, Sam (Robert De Niro) and Larry (Skipp Sudduth), Frenchman Vincent (Jean Reno), a German called Gregor (Stellan Skarsgard) and Englishman Spence (Sean Bean), go ahead with the operation as planned but are double crossed by Gregor who steals the coveted case and escapes. He travels to the amphitheatre in Arles where he intends to sell the case to the Russians but gets betrayed by his first contact and then attempts to negotiate a deal with Mikhi (Feodor Atkine) who's the head Russian mobster. After discovering where Gregor had escaped to, Sam and the team head for Arles but a series of further betrayals and killings follow before the truths about Deirdre's boss Seamus O'Rourke (Jonathan Pryce) and Sam's actual mission, become clear.At the end of the Cold War, the lives of the gang-members in this story had mirrored those of the eponymous warriors of feudal Japan who, after becoming masterless, had become wanderers and mercenaries. These highly-trained 1990s men had clearly become jaded by their experiences and their world-weariness is especially well portrayed in the on-screen performances of Robert De Niro, Jean Reno and Stellan Skarsgard. Skarsgard is terrific as one of the villains and De Niro and Reno excel as they show the warmth and trust that develops between their characters in an environment in which it's not easy to trust anyone.The main strength of this movie is its action sequences which are masterfully choreographed, brilliantly edited and remarkably realistic. Tremendous tension is generated during a weapons deal that gets transacted near the Seine, the stunts are highly impressive and the car chases are exceptional. Overall, this movie provides an undemanding but nevertheless highly entertaining way to spend a couple of hours.