Ransom (1996)

71% of critics liked it
(31 reviews)
61% of users liked it
(105,882 ratings)

Ron Howard directed this thriller which stars Mel Gibson as Tom Mullen, a former fighter pilot who built a ramshackle one-plane airline into a major multinational service fleet. Mullen has a multi-million dollar fortune, a beautiful wife, Kate (Rene Russo) and a nine-year-old son, Sean (Brawley… More Ron Howard directed this thriller which stars Mel Gibson as Tom Mullen, a former fighter pilot who built a ramshackle one-plane airline into a major multinational service fleet. Mullen has a multi-million dollar fortune, a beautiful wife, Kate (Rene Russo) and a nine-year-old son, Sean (Brawley Nolte) that he dotes on. However, Mullen's life comes crashing down around him when Sean is kidnapped. The FBI are called in, but Mullen is wary -- he was the recent target of an FBI investigation in which he was found to have bribed union officials while negotiating a contract. FBI Agent Hawkins (Delroy Lindo) advises Mullen to make the $2 million dollar drop to pay the kidnappers, which will make it easier to track the criminals, but when the tradeoff goes wrong, Mullen takes a new tactic -- he goes on television and offers a $2 million bounty for the heads of the people who kidnapped his child. Meanwhile, it becomes clear the kidnappers include Maris Connor (Lili Taylor), who once worked for the Mullens, and Jimmy Shaker (Gary Sinise), one of the cops who investigated Mullen for bribery. This remake of the 1956 Glenn Ford vehicle of the same name was scripted by Richard Price, who has a bit part as a police detective. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 2 hr.
Directed By: Ron Howard
Written By: Richard Price, Alexander Ignon
Genres: Drama, Action & Adventure, Mystery & Suspense

In Theaters: Nov 8, 1996 Wide
On DVD: Jan 15, 2002

Critic Reviews

Chuck O'Leary, Fantastica Daily
A tough, gripping thriller.
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
...it is, after all, still just a movie thriller, not a serious drama. Keep that in mind, and you'll have fun with it.
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
...unless you expect high drama or intense realism, the movie is going to provide solid Hollywood entertainment.
Blake French, Filmcritic.com
...doesn?t take a lot of risks, but it packs surprise after surprise..

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

Melvin W

Ransom is an underrated thriller that has a great deal of top notch stars attached to it. Ron Howard is a good director and even though this isn't even close to his best movie, it is a good movie. I like all the major actors in this movie especially Gary Sinise. Mel Gibson and… More
Ransom is an underrated thriller that has a great deal of top notch stars attached to it. Ron Howard is a good director and even though this isn't even close to his best movie, it is a good movie. I like all the major actors in this movie especially Gary Sinise. Mel Gibson and Rene Russo are good as the devastated parents to an abducted child. This delivers exactly what I wanted from it. It never grew boring or tiresome as some movies in this genre can. It was able to move smoothly through it's story with no lag that sometimes is accompanied by abduction films. Not one of the best movies out there, but definitely an entertaining one.
♥Robyn

Mel Gibson gives a good performance, showing a man trying to think his way out of a crisis,when his son is kidnapped holding him for ransom. Intrigue is established early and tension never lets up all the way,in this film, until the very final shot. It's only in the final scene… More
Mel Gibson gives a good performance, showing a man trying to think his way out of a crisis,when his son is kidnapped holding him for ransom. Intrigue is established early and tension never lets up all the way,in this film, until the very final shot. It's only in the final scene that the story starts to bite off more than it can chew in a bloody showdown !!!
Albert K

Fun action thriller. Nothing more.
Dan S

Solid thriller. Flirts with greatness, especially with its dynamite, bloody, awesome conclusion. Gibson vs. Sinise is pretty riveting stuff, Mel gives a routine powerful performance. It loses a little of it's momentum after the main plot is concluded, but Ron Howard still knows… More
Solid thriller. Flirts with greatness, especially with its dynamite, bloody, awesome conclusion. Gibson vs. Sinise is pretty riveting stuff, Mel gives a routine powerful performance. It loses a little of it's momentum after the main plot is concluded, but Ron Howard still knows how to keep things interesting after that.
Conner R

Not exactly a classic, it's perhaps one of the the least suspenseful thrillers out there. Ron Howard just didn't have the ability to pull off a movie like this at the time. The plot is seriously flawed and gives itself away much too early. The only real shining moment of the… More
Not exactly a classic, it's perhaps one of the the least suspenseful thrillers out there. Ron Howard just didn't have the ability to pull off a movie like this at the time. The plot is seriously flawed and gives itself away much too early. The only real shining moment of the film is Mel Gibson's complete rampage to find his son. He was clearly the only one working on this movie.
Anthony L

'Give me back my son'! Give me back my money!
Film C

i like this movie its fantastic i like the cast i like the acting i love the storyline and its just really good and is entertainig with a good gun shot!!
Derek A

"Give me back my son!" Ransom is one of those films that reminds me why I love 90's movies! They're great popcorn action thrillers. Mel Gibson gives one of the more underrated performances of his career here as a… More
"Give me back my son!" Ransom is one of those films that reminds me why I love 90's movies! They're great popcorn action thrillers. Mel Gibson gives one of the more underrated performances of his career here as a wealthy man who doesn't play by the rules when his son is kidnapped. Rich (and cliched) in plot, Ransom is pulse-pounding and twisting all the way to it's dramatic (yet ironic) conclusion. I also think Gary Sinise makes a great diabolical antagonist. Don't miss it....
Candy R

Full of drama. Mel's a successful business man, who has his son kidnapped for ransom. Mel puts on a brilliant performance.
Al S

A spellbinding, tension-loaded, first-rate edge of your seat thriller. A pulse-racing plot that packs plenty of excitment, unpredictable twist and explosive action. Gripping and electrifying. A great all star cast. Mel Gibson gives an explosive powerhouse performance. Gary Sinise is… More
A spellbinding, tension-loaded, first-rate edge of your seat thriller. A pulse-racing plot that packs plenty of excitment, unpredictable twist and explosive action. Gripping and electrifying. A great all star cast. Mel Gibson gives an explosive powerhouse performance. Gary Sinise is fantastic. Delroy Lindo is teriffic. Rene Russo is electric. It's good but not great, but could of been so much better.
Curtis L

Okay.
William S

I was really surprised at how much I liked this. Mel Gibson's character is actually quite unpleasant.
Lady D

A watchable film abou the kidnapping of a wealthy businessman's son, nothing specail, quite liked the ending. VERDICT: It's the kind of film that if it came on tv you'd watch it, but no point renting or buying
Michael S

Solid, entertaining thriller.
Dean !

A very good thriller with a strong cast, set in New York as a top businessman has his son kidnapped. However he goes against the traditional way of dealing with kidnappers, but at what cost?
Dean M

What a riveting thriller in the stunning performances by Mel Gibson and Rene Russo, they reunite again since Lethal Weapon 3, as millionaire parents whose son is kidnapped.
danny d

pretty good flick
xGary X

Hysterical nonsense in which Mel Gibson gets red-faced and shouts a lot at some nefarious kidnappers who have taken his freckle-faced poster child of a son. Cold, calculating mastermind, untrustworthy psychopath, tart with a heart; all the stereotpyes are on display. Stupid contrived… More
Hysterical nonsense in which Mel Gibson gets red-faced and shouts a lot at some nefarious kidnappers who have taken his freckle-faced poster child of a son. Cold, calculating mastermind, untrustworthy psychopath, tart with a heart; all the stereotpyes are on display. Stupid contrived rubbish.
Leigh R

Great thriller.
Michael G

Entertaining, but not remarkable.