Ronin
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) | Release Date: September 25, 1998 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
67
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 23 Critic Reviews
Positive:
14
Mixed:
9
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
Dallas ObserverBill Gallo
As is common in a Frankenheimer picture, the plot lines get a bit tangled in Ronin, but the atmosphere is tense, the style impeccable. Read full review
90
The New York TimesElvis Mitchell
Ronin can be watched as appreciatively for its hard-boiled performances as for its visceral excitement. Read full review
90
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
It's a welcome throwback to the days when the world didn't have to end or tanker trucks explode to get an action audience's attention. Read full review
88
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Ronin manages to remain focused on the plot and the characters, even while staging increasingly complicated pyrotechnic set pieces and offering its share of white-knuckle moments. Read full review
88
Rolling StoneStaff(Not credited)
Ronin represents an exhilarating return to form for Frankenheimer. Read full review
88
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
What an impeccably crafted film this is -- slightly impoverished in theme, perhaps, but so rich everywhere else that it seems rude to notice. Read full review
80
VarietyTodd McCarthy
A pleasurable throwback to the sort of gritty, low-tech international thriller that was a staple of the 1960s. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
I enjoyed the film on two levels: for its skill and its silliness. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Frankenheimer doesn't recapture the magic he once created in movies like "The Manchurian Candidate," but he does cook up an effective thriller in the "French Connection" vein. Read full review
70
L.A. WeeklyManohla Dargis
A film in which the mechanics of the plot are far less interesting, and vital, then the interior landscape of men who exist outside the law. Read full review
70
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
Here's a strangely flawed and strangely satisfying movie. Read full review
70
The New YorkerAnthony Lane
After a while, you stop counting the chases -- they just get longer and louder, and it's like watching the revival of a forgotten art form; the fact that it's done with a minimum of special effects makes it all the more stirring. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
It remains head and shoulders above what little competition there is by virtue of its stellar casting, editing, and above all, Frankenheimer's fluid, explosive direction. Read full review
67
Entertainment WeeklyMichael Sauter
It's not just the crack stunt driving that makes Ronin such a welcome throwback; it's also the existential hardness of this thriller's motley band of mercenaries. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
Frankenheimer pretty much ignores everything that's happened in the action and thriller genres since 1975, and mostly that's a good thing. Read full review
60
New York Magazine (Vulture)David Denby
Ronin is well-made, but it's an act of connoisseurship for people who have given up on movies as an art form. Read full review
60
Washington PostRita Kempley
Unlike the ronin, the heroes of a Japanese legend, these guys are still searching for a story. Read full review
50
Washington PostMichael O'Sullivan
Although laced with adrenaline and flavored with noirish seasoning, John Frankenheimer's Ronin is a disappointingly conventional thriller. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
Ronin eventually becomes tiresome, but the pairing of De Niro and Reno never gets old. Read full review
50
Film ThreatTom Meek
The concept is intriguing and the car chases are pure adrenaline. Read full review
50
SlateDavid Edelstein
It has a gritty feel and a tight, methodical, one-thing-after-another tempo. Read full review
50
San Francisco ExaminerWalter Addiego
Ronin shows the mark of a veteran hand and is entertaining in fits and starts. Read full review
40
Chicago ReaderLisa Alspector
Not even supercool Robert De Niro can enliven this boring tale about a team of mercenary operatives. Read full review
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