RONIN
"Are we not Men?"
"We are Ronin!"
"What is the Law?"
"The Law is: John Frankenheimer must make action thrilla’ - like he useta’!"
That’s just what Frankenheimer did when he escaped from "The Island of Dr. Moreau"(his last movie) to de-evolve to the style of movie that cemented his reputation. His latest is "Ronin." And it’s pure style. It ain’t the meat. It’s the motion! It ain’t the story. It’s the tellin’ of the tale.
The tale is: There’s this metal carrying case. Everyone wants it. Some are willing to pay for it. Others are willing to kill for it. So what is it? In Frankenheimer’s world, it’s not important. The bonds, forged or broken by the ex-spies for hire recruited by an unknown employer who communicates through a cell group, much like the IRA, are….important. ‘Are they not Men?’ No. ‘They are Ronin!’
"Ronin" is an old fashioned connect-the-dots action thriller with the requisite double and triple cross retreads. The surprise is there are no dazzling digital effects and no phony dialogue to clutter the script. What you see is what you get. The paucity of verbiage is parceled out on a history lesson that draws a parallel between "Ronin"s stock characters and the fate of the Japanese Samurai who sold their allegiance to the highest bidder when Japan’s feudal system began to collapse. In other words, they are mercenaries. Once the identities are established, the action is in-your-face from a shootout with some renegade arms dealers to the two stupendous car chases that are right up their with the ones in "Bullitt" and "The French Connection." They’re the kind of thing that can never be appreciated on the tube, even if you have a big screen TV! In fact, Frankenheimer’s obsession with cars and the thrill of speed can be traced to his documentary styled "Grand Prix."
Most of Frankenheimer’s better films fall into two categories, the thriller and the character study. Pictures like "Seven days in May" about an attempted military coup d’etat, "The Train" that pitted an art loving Nazi against the French Resistance, and particularly "The Manchurian Candidate" with its brain washing scenes and assassination plot, managed to embody both. "Ronin", like "Grand Prix", does not.
Everyone in "Ronin" is the same at the end of the movie as they were at the outset. Alliances change, there’s a hint of a possible love story, but there is no character growth. There is no light bulb going off in anyone’s head. It’s all about posturing. The guns-for-hire are professionals. They know what they have to do and do it. Robert De Niro’s Sam, and Jean Reno’s Vincent are not your typical action heroes. They don’t display an uncommon gift for martial arts, and don’t dodge bullets at the speed of light! But they are good at their game, careful not to be too trusting, but trusting enough to accomplish their mission. They are the flesh and blood remnants of the post Cold War who are trying to get by just like, well, Ronin!
"Ronin" is supposed to be John Frankenheimer’s return to the big screen after reinvigorating himself with a few critically acclaimed cable movies like "George Wallace" for TNT and "Against the Wall" for HBO. His fall from grace after his fruitful run in the sixties and early 70’s had more to do with his choice of material, rather than a decline in craftsmanship. Frankenheimer was a victim of the Hollywood adage, ‘you’re only as good as your last picture.’ Lucky for him it didn’t apply to "The Island of Dr. Moreau", probably because he took over while the movie was already in production.
If "Ronin" does anything, it should remind us that he made films that made people care about movies. His character studies include, "The Young Savages", a serious look at gang violence; "The Birdman of Alcatraz" told the true story of Robert Stroud, a convicted murderer who became a recognized ornithologist while locked away in solitary confinement for most of his life; and "The Fixer", based on a novel by Bernard Malamud, was about an apolitical Jew in Tsarist Russia who becomes politicized when he is jailed for unnamed crimes against the state. As far as thrillers go, "Black Sunday" ranks with the best just for its portrayal of modern day terrorists as realistic cold blooded murderers instead of romanticized heroes. The one of a kind ending with the Good Year Blimp armed to blow up the Miami Super Bowl was a bonus.