Ronin [Blu-ray] [Region B]

One of my favourite movies and I have alot. Now own on dvd , blu ray , and now 4k

Ronin came along at a time when the spy genre was finding its second wind. 007 had bombastically come back to screens, Mission:Impossible was reimagined for the movies in a fine romp, whilst The Saint proved that Val Kilmer was NOT Simon Templer. And then there is Ronin. A film that could not have been more different than the fun, and naive films of the same genre. Right from the moment we hear Elia Cmiral's score, we know this isn't going to be a fun breezy romp, but a slick, old school reminder on how said films were perceived in the 70s. Hard hitting with its visceral car chases, and unapologetic of its violence and of its, frankly, ridiculous plot and Macguffin, Ronin should have been a welcome reminder that mixed the hard bitten post Cold War mentality with the star stunned international caper romps of the 60s. Instead Ronin became a film that was perceived as a dark and cynical, totally the opposite of action romps like Tomorrow Never Dies and was no small surprise it had difficulty finding its audience. I remember first seeing Ronin on opening day in September 1998, and right from the outset this was a film that stood apart from other blockbusters of the era... Dark, minimalist, unapologetic, beautfiully shot, and brilliantly paced... Ronin was the perfect antidote to the likes of Armageddon and Godzilla. However instead of wowing audiences, the film was pulled out of my local cinema a week later to make way for Spielberg's overrated war epic Saving Private Ryan. Thankfully home video was a mainstay and the film found its audience soon enough. Ronin was always a controversial choice on DVD and Blu-Ray, with the first pressings of each format in the late 90s and late 00's leaving a lot to be desired with a terrible soundtrack for the former and a gaudy cheap picture quality for the latter. Arrow Video (I'm still surprised they have released this film) thankfully brings the film to the upper echolon's it deserves, with a brilliant DTS-HD soundtrack that was used in the original blu-ray release, and a 4K transfer that leaves previous presentations of 90s classics out in the cold. The picture quality is superb and I really doubt it would be impoved. Dark settings and shadows are beautifully realised, the muted colours are natual and never crushes the image. Grain is obviously evident due to the fact that this was shot on celliloid and actually emphasis the gritiness of the film and I'll take even grain over DNR anyday of the week. The extras (with the exception of a few interviews) have been ported over from the MGM 2 disc edition DVD released over 10 years ago, and its great to see them here finally on blu ray. Ronin really is a strange character of a film, sure it harkons back to some of the action films of the 70s, but it also anticipates the return of the said cynical, hard hitting films of the past as would be exemplified by The Bourne Identity. The initial Bourne trilogy may have been a phenomenon that rewrote the rules of the genre, but Ronin tried to do it first.

Ronin is one of those films that gets better with age, like a fine wine it just tastes so good when you revisit it years later, what’s more it has a cast of actors who all excel in their jobs, i particularly liked De Niro, Jean Reno and Natascha McElhone in their respective roles but everyone does a great acting job here. I never give plot details away in a review, I won’t do here either, if you are interested in this 4K disc you probably already know the plot details, just know this, the disc is superb, bags of fine detail because they have left the film grain alone, very filmic, very detailed image quality, it’s never looked better, this film hails from the digital age, it has a dts 5.1 mix on the disc and sounds good too, it’s not as aggressive as some mixes but the rears kick in when they need to and if you use a Mini DSP you can get the bass back too, unfortunately ALL film companies now filter the bass away under 30hz, a Mini DSP and the relevant file gets that bass back. I am very pleased with this release, extremely good film, and it’s a great UHD 4k disc.

Arrived in great condition

My fourth iteration of this movie! Had VHS, have special edition on DVD, love watching on Blu Ray and now look forward to seeing it in its new transfer to 4K! Glad that all the original graininess is still here as it sets the mood of the film. I watch this at least once a year and still enjoy story, acting and action!

This is my absolutely my favourite film. Robert De Niro, Jean Reno, Sean Bean, Natasha,McElHone, Katarina Witt et al. It has just the right balance of action, intrigue and menace . Picture and sound are superb. This is (so far) the ultimate version. Watch and Enjoy.

I've been looking for this dvd for ages and was delighted to find it in Amazon - along with lots of my other old favorites - as I remember it as having the best car chases ever - even better than Michael Caine's romp through Italy...Robert de Nero has a great supporting cast, the plot is one of those slightly off-beat scripts that I thoroughly enjoy and if you like the genre You will enjoy this. P.S. I also bought the others in the series as I'd seen them before in cinemas and like to have them available to watch anytime

Great value for money

Actionkino auf höchstem Niveau – jetzt in brillanter 4K-Qualität! Ronin ist ein absolutes Highlight des Action-Genres und diese 4K UHD Blu-ray bringt den Film in einer Qualität, die dem packenden Inhalt endlich gerecht wird. Die berühmten Verfolgungsjagden durch enge europäische Straßen wirken noch intensiver, schärfer und realistischer als je zuvor. Die Bildrestaurierung ist hervorragend gelungen – klare Details, natürliche Farben und ein insgesamt sehr filmisches, hochwertiges Bild. Robert De Niro und Jean Reno liefern starke Leistungen in einem spannenden, intelligenten Thriller mit düsterer Atmosphäre. Der überarbeitete Ton (besonders in der englischen Originalfassung) ist dynamisch und klar – perfekt für Fans gut gemachter Action mit Anspruch. Ein echtes Muss für Fans von 90er-Jahre-Kino und ein würdiges Update eines Klassikers. So muss eine 4K-Veröffentlichung aussehen!

Fast service. New product. Only it was one of a set of 3 dvds which were available at 799/-

John Frankenheimer didn't have a lot of credibility in his last few years. His final film was the rather crap Reindeer Games, with Ben Affleck, and in 1996 he gave us the utterly terrible Island Of Doctor Moreau. However, he did do Ronin in 1998, which makes up for absolutely everything. It is a detachment from glossy, MTV-directed, Hollywood action movies. If you want trash, like Bad Boys 2, then this isn't for you. Ronin returns to the gritty, rustic and deadly serious actioners of the Seventies, much like Frankenheimer's own French Connection 2. The title refers to Samurai warriors in ancient Japan who were left with no cause, or purpose, if their master was killed. They'd roam the countryside, pretending to be thieves, beggars, even madmen and hiring their skills out to the highest bidder. Much like the lost, wandering freelancers that make up our cast of characters. Robert De Niro is Sam, an ex-CIA agent (or is he?), who bands together with a ragtag group of similar ex-spies for a "no questions asked" job with what appears to be the IRA. First we have Vincent (the wonderful Jean Reno), as a French agent who knows where to find just about anything you want. Spence (Sean Bean) is a gung-ho SAS dropout who is waaaaay out of his depth and ends up jeopardizing the whole mission. Gregor (Stellan Skarsgard), an ex-KGB spy who knows his gadgets and another American called Larry (who is rather disposable). All of these men are led by Deirdre (Natascha McElhone), a young Irish woman who answers to Seamus O'Rourke (Jonathan Price), an IRA boss who is in a lot of trouble with his superiors. Still with me? No? Well I'm gonna continue anyway. The group's mission is to steal a metallic briefcase from the Russian Mafia. The contents of this case are a mystery; all we know is that a lot of people are willing to pay mucho plento to get their hands on it. As if the set-up wasn't tenuous enough, there is immediately too much suspicion within the group to bear. And the already complicated plot is thrown into endless chaos as double-crosses, double-double-crosses, secrets and lies screw things up in a big, big way. It sounds tough going, but it's not really. I'll admit I didn't really like Ronin when I first saw it (or the second or third for that matter), but it's one of those movies that creeps back on you. Frankenheimer's direction is so flawless and masterful that every frame of every scene flows effortlessly The acting is so well rehearsed and the cast so well chosen that even in every gesture, idiosyncrasy and subtle glance you can read into the characters' hidden motives. It takes a good number of viewings to decipher Ronin, but when the story is this well done, who cares? Since its release there have been few action films that have come close to its intensity. Some, like Bourne Identity/Supremacy try to emulate its bleak tone, but don't match up. Supremacy has a car chase that was desperate to beat Ronin's, but is far too flashy. That's also the ace up it's sleeve. About 80 minutes into the film, the second car chase is a juggernaut of film-making. Never before and probably never again for a long, long time, has there been a car chase so completely mental. No Michael Bay 1000 cuts a second, no slow-motion, no stunts silhouetted against the sunset, just sheer, relentless adrenaline, as DeNiro and Reno tear up the streets of Paris. It's the centerpiece of the movie and a perfect example of what REAL action film-making is. Elia Cmiral's score is the other utterly perfect aspect of the movie. Simultaneously lonely, seductive and mysterious, it surely is one of the best themes ever and anyone with sense would go out and buy the soundtrack CD right away. Ronin is perfection from beginning to end, from Frankenheimer's strong, imposing direction to David Mamet's script, riddled with cryptic dialogue and double-meanings. No one can deny Ronin's importance as a real action picture. No one can watch crap like xXx, or 6 Fast 6 Furious, and claim Ronin to be a bad movie. It has enough, maybe too much, integrity and intelligence to shame anything that comes even halfway close. If you're sick of action flicks, or films in general, where the audience just sits there passively and is fed information, then Ronin is the cure. It may sound like a bizarre comparison, but it's on par with Lost Highway, as one of those movies you have to figure out in your own damn time. The Blu Ray looks merely okay with a 1080p transfer. The film was shot in Super 35 (the credits incorrectly claim anamorphic Panavision) and was intended to look drab and miserable, so it's hard to fault the transfer. The DTS HD-MA sound design is loud and aggressive. There are no extras, which is stupid considering they already existed. Even the 1999 DVD had a Frankenheimer commentary!

Film bellissimo e introvabile nei negozi.

Un excentrique triller. Synopsis : Le film suit six mercenaires recrutés pour former une équipe d'élite qui se rejoignent à Paris, où ils apprennent la mission qui leur est confiée : récupérer intacte une mallette fortement défendue et très convoitée. Les informations sur le contrat s'ébruitent, chacun suit son idée pour mettre la main sur la mallette : la conserver devient trouble et périlleux. Elle n'est pas le seul objectif en jeu.