Ronin: A Star-studded Cast Delivers Thrills and International Espionage
By C.A. Ramirez
This article originally appeared on Medium.com (9/10/2021).
1998’s Ronin is a pulse-pounding ride that makes The Bourne Identity feel like The Pink Panther. Starring Robert DeNiro as Sam, we follow his character as he is recruited by Diedra, played by Natasha McElhone, the leader of a small cell of operatives whose sole mission is to obtain “the case”. While “the case” is an on-the-nose throwback to Hitchcock’s McGuffin, it is one of the best parts of the film’s plot. We never discover what is in the case, but we know that international teams of spies are willing to kill and die for it. One of the many overlooked gems of late 90’s cinema, Ronin delivers action packed cloak and dagger excellence, leaving the viewer wishing for a sequel.
Set in the 1990’s Europe, Sam is folded into an international ring of freelance operatives with varying areas of specialty that better serve the job they take. Larry, played by Skipp Sudduth, is the group’s driver and can shoot and scoot around the sharp street corners of Europe with ease. Spence, played by Sean Bean, is a self-proclaimed weapons expert, in charge of outfitting our crew with the tools necessary to secure “the case”. French actor, Jean Reno, plays Vincent, a grizzled operative with plenty of experience as an operator in the European theatre. Rounding out the team is Stellan Skarsgard as Gregor, a former KGB agent turned freelance operative. The movie takes off once our eclectic team has formed, and the film doesn’t let off the gas as bands of agent provocateurs stab and shoot their way across Western Europe.
The beauty of Ronin is in its pacing, plot, and acting. As mentioned before, the plot is very simple — “the case” is valuable, and someone is willing to pay big money to get it. Where Ronin really outshines the competition is with its cast. Few movies can capture this kind of lighting in a bottle. Tense scenes are made even more dramatic when they’re propped up by some of the best actors on the planet. Sean Bean DOES NOT die in this film … that alone is worth a viewing. Jonathan Pryce plays Seamus O’Rourke, an IRA leader looking to upgrade his arsenal by obtaining “the case” for himself. Pryce is a perfect example of the kind of acting caliber that Ronin is able to deliver in spades; In this role, he stands toe-to-toe with DeNiro’s, and it’s absolutely fantastic. Every faction that is after “the case,” be it Russian, Irish, etc., is composed of characters that really sell their role to the audience with such ease that one nearly starts to wonder if these actors had former lives as the respective roles they play on screen.
Bouncing around Western Europe, Ronin takes us on a wild ride that scratches the itch of even the most discerning fan of espionage thrillers, existing in a world unto its own. Aside from the James Bond franchise, few films are able to bottle international espionage as well as Ronin does, and it only takes a few scenes for anyone with a pulse to become invested in the movie’s plot and characters. A handful of films can command this kind of interest and an even smaller cross-section can sustain that interest over two hours, and yet, Ronin pulls this off beautifully. Never once skipping a beat or letting the audience recoil into boredom, Ronin has the kind of grit and grandeur that only comes from a masterfully written script and impeccable cast. Missing this cinematic gem would be tantamount to slapping a newborn baby across the face without reason, and you’re not that kind of a monster, are you?