VHS Memory Theater Review #7: Ransom
Purchase History: 1997 from Columbia House, the first ever director’s selection VHS tape I owned, and part of the very first group of VHS tapes I ever got from Columbia House.
Important Milestone: First R-rated movie I ever saw. I was 5 at the time.
Ransom tells a pretty routine story. A child gets kidnapped and the parents attempt to get him back. This probably wouldn’t be anything special if it didn’t have a few twists and most of all, Mel Gibson. In this movie, he plays Tom Mullen, a millionaire and while you don’t think it’s a character you could sympathize with. Gibson makes him likable and you really feel for him when he loses his son. At first, he decides to cooperate with the kidnappers because he just wants to get his son back. But when plans go awry, he decides to take matters in his own hands. Gary Sinise plays a police officer who has a dark secret that may connect him with Tom and his son. I don’t want to say too much, it’s better if you find out as you watch it. Ransom is always entertaining and a lot of that is due to Gibson’s performance. It’s action-packed and is well made with director Ron Howard and screenwriter Richard Price in tow.
Trivia: “The nosy reporter at the party was played by actual reporter A.J. Benza and the partner of Gary Sinise in the convenience store scene was played by screenwriter Richard Price.”
“This film was based on an episode of The United States Steel Hour called "Fearful Decision" that first aired live on June 22, 1954. It was so well received it was restaged on May 10, 1955. A film was made from the drama called Ransom! that was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.”
-IMDb
How does this hold up? I still love it as much as I did when I was a kid. I'll admit, I didn't see this recently. I saw it a few months ago, but my memory is pretty good.
Is it worth double dipping on DVD? Definitely.
Would I recommend it? Yes, especially if you're a Mel Gibson fan.
Rating: 10
Chillin'
I thought this was a very good Film . One of my fave MEL Flicks .