Ronin

[Hal]

My first review here at DVD Collector's, so be nice! 



Title: Ronin
Year: 1998
Director: John Frankenheimer
Rating: R
Length: 122 Min.
Video: Widescreen 2.35:1
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio: 5.1, French: Dolby Digital: 5.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround
Subtitles: Chinese, English, Korean, Spanish

Stars:
Robert De Niro
Jean Reno
Natascha McElhone
Stellan Skarsgård
Sean Bean

Plot:
The Cold War may be over, but a new world order keeps a group of covert mercenaries employed by the highest bidder. These operatives, known as Ronin, are assembled in France by a mysterious client for a seemingly routine mission: steal a top-secret briefcase. But the simple task soon proves explosive as other underworld organizations vie for the same prize...

Extras:
Scene Access
Feature Trailers
Closed Captioned

My Thoughts:

After getting off to a somewhat slow start, this spy/thriller heats up quickly after the first ten or fifteen minutes and never stops ‘til you get to the end.  There are plenty of twists and turns, and a plot that is refreshingly unpredictable as well as one or two relative shockers.  De Niro and Reno are excellent as always and develop a bond right from the start.  Although McElhone is a beauty, I just didn’t feel she was the best choice for the Deirdre character.  I thought that the cinematography of this film was excellent with some really stunning settings in various European locations.
This was a fun, action-filled, well acted film that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Spoiler (hover to show)

I still want to know what was in the damn case! 

Rating:

[Achim]

That car chase, especially the bit where there go against traffic, is one of the most exciting ones I have ever seen. great little flick, Frankenheimer showing the youngsters how it's done.

[Hal]

That car chase, especially the bit where there go against traffic, is one of the most exciting ones I have ever seen. great little flick, Frankenheimer showing the youngsters how it's done.

Absolutely.  That really took some phenomenal choreography! 

[kahless]

Thank you for this excellent review, Hal! 

A must have IMHO! Long time ago, I've watched it on dvd... I will think about a blu-ray upgrade.

[Achim]

The review at blu-ray.com indicates that the video transfer is not reference material. Even worse, no Extras at all. Since my original-release DVD has an alternate ending and a commentary I will hold on to that until Fox/MGM decide to give us a proper Blu-ray.



In similar regards, I read the below on DVDBeaver, regarding the Spartsacus Blu-ray. He had originally written that the release was acceptable and that he thought the improvement over the DVD was quite substantial. He then later added the below comment, which is valid for all Blu-ray releases that are not the best they can be:

NOTE: People are speaking out against this title making a solid point that the majors won't get the point unless we are vehement in our dismissal. I believe they are right. Our recommendation is to own the Criterion DVD until this title is transferred correctly in the new format.