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Ransom poster

Ransom

year 1996decade 90sdirector Ron Howardgenre Actiongenre Thriller

121 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Mel Gibson Tom Mullen
Rene Russo Kate Mullen
Gary Sinise Jimmy Shaker
Delroy Lindo Lonnie Hawkins
Lili Taylor Maris Conner
Liev Schreiber Clark Barnes
Donnie Wahlberg Cubby Barnes
Brawley Nolte Sean Mullen
Evan Handler Miles Roberts
Dan Hedaya Jackie Brown
Paul Guilfoyle Stan Wallace
José Zúñiga David Torres

Ransom | The Rewatchables

host Bill Simmonshost Van Lathanproducer Craig Horlbeck format 25th anniversary
Explore episodeClose episode

Mount Rushmore for Kidnapping Movies

Man on Fire, Taken, Misery, Proof of Life; Taken, Man on Fire, Who's Harry Crumb?, Ruthless People

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:04:07Read transcript
  • A first list of four favorite kidnapping movies: Man on Fire, Taken, Misery (argued to count even though people do not think of it as a kidnap movie) and Proof of Life, which was already covered on the podcast.
  • Three more on the bubble: Ransom, Fargo, and Without a Trace from around 1982 with Kate Nelligan, whose son is taken and found in the end.
  • A second four-film Mount Rushmore puts Taken first and Man on Fire second, then two kidnapping comedies from childhood: Who's Harry Crum with John Candy and, after trying to recall the title, Ruthless People with Danny DeVito.
  • Kidnapping comedies are preferred for the levity because kidnapping movies can get grim, and Ransom gets about as grim as it gets.

Most Rewatchable Scene

TV-station bounty through the 'Give me back my son' call; Sinise's drive to the ransom drop

In the discussion (15)
Approx. transcript time · 00:28:02Read transcript
  • The second half is preferred over the setup-heavy first half; from Donnie Wahlberg's death the movie goes to another level.
  • Sean getting kidnapped is a first candidate: the balloon drifting up with nobody running it is a kidnapping-movie staple, like an overturned toy car, a basketball rolling across an empty court, or a swing still moving.
  • The scene sets up the parents' guilt and shows Sean as already alone: he cannot compete in the science fair because his mom is a judge, and he cannot play with his dad because too many people want to talk to him.
  • Because it was a different time, the family has no security; they were business magnates rather than celebrities and did not face threats on social media.
  • Tom's money delivery, with the locker-room change of clothes and bags, leads to the phone call in which he is told he paid off the union guy and is a payer, laying the groundwork for the kidnappers.
  • Donnie Wahlberg plays the good kidnapper, a type like the one good prison guard who will sneak you a candy bar but did not sign up to kill kids.
  • Tom realizing they will probably kill his son, after the man at the drop had no idea about the drop-off, is called a good piece of writing that motivates his refusal to pay.
  • Tom going on Channel 5 and flipping the ransom into a bounty is called fantastic; a clip is played, and the station staff look horrified.
  • At home Russo's character goes at him with full fire in a really nice argument (clip played); it is just a great stretch of the movie.
  • The 'Give me back my son' phone call (clip played) has Mel getting madder and madder, and few other actors seem right for that scene.
  • Sinise shooting the other kidnappers, the well-constructed shootout, and the final Gibson-versus-Sinise moment when the kid wets himself are listed; the last is an all-time movie moment.
  • The version watched on TNT on demand cut out the kid wetting himself, which is called an overreaction.
  • One pick: the stretch from the TV station through the 'give me back my son' call to Sinise, when they start playing chess, described as the obvious choice.
  • The other pick gives Sinise love: the car ride to the ransom with his time-machine and Morlocks speech about the rich, the reason he took the role, a rare 90s bad-cop moment with two acting greats going against each other.
  • Dirty-cop stories were just starting then, with Copeland and The Glass Shield.

What’s Aged the Best?

Gibson-Russo pairing; Sinise-Gibson chess match; script; kidnapping crew; email as a plot device; sneaky good cast; dirty-cop narrative

In the discussion (9)
Approx. transcript time · 00:52:29Read transcript
  • The Gibson-Russo reteaming leads off; actor pairs who run it back in different roles are rare, with examples including Julia Roberts and Richard Gear, Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks, Sana Lathan and Omar Epps, Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper in multiple movies with a co-star (more of a David O. Russell thing), and Winslet and Leo.
  • Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling (Crazy Stupid Love, La La Land) is the favorite re-pairing because they could make another completely different movie now.
  • The chess-match aspect of Sinise and Gibson has aged well.
  • The script is called well-constructed and well-written, with a shout-out to the writers, including Richard Price for the screenplay.
  • The kidnappers, by shorthand, are Lieutenant Dan, the bald Californication guy, New Kid on the Block number two, the HBO narrator guy and Lily Taylor; Lily Taylor is praised.
  • Donnie Wahlberg as the good kidnapper recalls the good Nazi in Victory.
  • Early email as a plot device, when getting an email signaled that he must be really rich.
  • The crew is a sneaky good cast who all played their positions; Donnie Wahlberg was stunt casting in 1996 and has since become a successful actor on Blue Bloods.
  • The narrative of the dirty cop as the lead villain has aged best.

What’s Aged the Worst?

Rich billionaire as action hero; Mel Gibson; A.J. Benza cameo

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:00:36Read transcript
  • The rich billionaire as the hero of an action movie has aged the worst.
  • A curveball objection cites Tony Stark and Bruce Wayne; the carve-out is that it can only exist in comic books, where those characters use their wealth for good.
  • Mel Gibson himself is offered as what aged worst.
  • A.J. Benza's cameo aged horribly: he was the cool gossip guy then, and within about five years was having fist fights on the Howard Stern show.
  • The kid-torture material dials it up about 25 percent too much, a feeling held at the time too; a reply says it did not jump out.
  • Kidnapping movies raise the bathroom question; this one is liked for showing the kidnappers' annoyance at having to care for the kid.

Casting What-Ifs

Alec Baldwin and Ray Liotta for Jimmy Shaker

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:03:12Read transcript
  • Ron Howard turned down directing The Chamber, a movie that did not totally work, to direct this.
  • The first choice for Jimmy Shaker was Alec Baldwin, who turned it down because of how the child was endangered; Ray Leota also passed over how kids are treated in the script, and Sinise was the third choice.
  • Baldwin once said his movie career felt like a failure without a huge hit he drove; he fumbled Jack Ryan and should have made seven of those movies.
  • Malice with Nicole Kidman is recommended for Baldwin's performance; the movie is called bad but rewatchable for a terrible Boston accent.

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

Dan Hedaya; the bald Californication guy

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:04:33Read transcript
  • Dan Hadea, who plays Jackie Brown, is the first nominee; the bald Californication guy is the other, though nobody knows his name.
  • An actress from What About Bob? seen on camera is noticed, but she is too small a role to qualify.
  • The award is left between Dan Hadea and the bald Californication guy, who is called great.

Recasting Couch

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:07:22Read transcript
  • Leav Schreiber is bumped for a skinny, pre-Good Will Hunting Ben Affleck of the Chasing Amy and Mallrats era, for a little more star power.
  • Jason Lee is the other option, to add some wise-ass comments; the bald Californication guy's role was meant to be the wise-ass and did not work.

Half-Assed Internet Research

Gibson's appendectomy delay; Brawley Nolte

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:08:16Read transcript
  • Good research was hard to find; production was delayed because Gibson needed an emergency appendectomy, pushing a planned 1995 release to 1996.
  • The kid is played by Nick Nalty's son, noticed in the credits; he did a couple more movies and then quit.

Apex Mountain

Rene Russo in 1996; Ransom for kidnapping movies; Gibson-Russo pairing

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 01:09:16Read transcript
  • Gibson's Apex is Braveheart, the year before.
  • Russo made this and Tin Cup in the same year opposite Costner and Gibson and never had more juice than 1996: Apex Mountain for her.
  • Ransom may be the Apex Mountain for kidnapping movies, as a big moneymaker that overtly announced itself as a kidnap movie, maybe the most popular ever.
  • It is not Delroy Lindo's Apex; his steady run (Crooklyn, Clockers, Get Shorty, Broken Arrow, Ransom, The Devil's Advocate) had no clear peak, but if he had one it was Crooklyn, where he was the lead.
  • Sinise's Apex is probably Apollo 13, coming off Gump.
  • The Gibson-Russo combo was peaking right around now; Jackie Brown as a movie character is also noted, with a Jackie Brown movie the next year.
  • Whether the couple's apartment is the Apex Mountain for rich-guy New York apartments is asked; it is called amazing, worth a deleted scene, and a revelation to someone from Louisiana, though Gecko is another candidate.

Picking Nits

Multi-millionaire label; Jimmy jumping the gun; missing security; unconvincing kidnapper relationship; no private parents scene; no security at the end; slow 'shouldn't be a problem' reaction; 'don't shoot him, Tom'; second gun; Jackie Brown storyline

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 01:12:53Read transcript
  • The TV station calling Tom a multi-millionaire is weird.
  • The biggest nitpick is Jimmy jumping the gun and showing up unannounced for the ransom; the reply is that the film telegraphs his panic by showing the girl's picture and saying a mastermind is still out there.
  • Where are Mel's security guards, given how rich he is?
  • Jimmy's relationship with the girl in the crew is never sold, so his hesitation and haunting after her death do not land.
  • The movie needed a quiet private scene of Renee and Mel lying in bed upset about their kid.
  • At the end the family is playing soccer outside with no security right after the kidnapping.
  • The film hinges on 'shouldn't be a problem' being said enough to trigger Mel; once he realizes it is the guy, he should jump across the table, sling or not.
  • The 'don't shoot him, Tom' trope should be retired; Tom would not go to jail a day for shooting him.
  • The villain definitely has a second gun on his leg.
  • Looking back, the Jackie Brown storyline is not needed; it is a red herring but makes little sense.

Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake

Yes, as a first season

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:16:52Read transcript
  • Absolutely, as long as the hosts are not the ones doing it after struggling to cast it; it may work better as a season one than as a movie.
  • A series would give more of the crew and their backstory, including prison material for the Jackie Brown character.

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Who is Tom Mullen today? Chris Sacca

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:17:43Read transcript
  • Who is Tom Mullen right now in real life?
  • Candidates floated are Mark Andresen, Chris Saka, the guy who owns Jit Blue, Mark Cuban as one of the more likable billionaires, and the Shark Tank guys.
  • The answer goes to Chris Saka, a billionaire investor in things like Uber who has been on the podcast.
  • Warren Buffett is a billionaire who owns everything and befriends athletes and rappers.

More from the conversation

Ransom came out 25 years ago that day; the episode is taped November 8.
Approx. transcript time · 00:02:51Read transcript
Mel Gibson is described as at his absolute peak, able to headline movies that made $300 million and up.
Approx. transcript time · 00:03:13Read transcript
A one-time 'Mel, why?' lament: the film is enjoyable on rewatch, but racism and anti-Semitism now come to mind when watching him.
Approx. transcript time · 00:03:13Read transcript
A hotel pay-per-view viewing of a Halle Berry movie called Kidnap is recalled as a car chase that lasts about 30 minutes; kidnap movies are said to almost always work because the villains are easy to hate and there is a strategy and a hero.
Approx. transcript time · 00:06:46Read transcript
Ransom is built around a billionaire white good guy; the opening establishes his virtue through how he built his airline from one plane as a war veteran, and in 2021 the film would have to approach that very differently.
Approx. transcript time · 00:07:41Read transcript
Today nobody treats Bezos, Zuckerberg or Musk as virtuous because of how they built their companies; the question now is billionaires' effect on society, whereas then billionaires were aspirational and worshiped.
Approx. transcript time · 00:08:52Read transcript
The film never calls Tom Mullen a billionaire, only a multi-millionaire, even though he owns his own airline.
Approx. transcript time · 00:10:51Read transcript
The Edge is offered as a contemporaneous virtuous-billionaire movie; one participant pitches it for a Rewatchables episode, and today the photographer or assistant, not the rich man, would save the day.
Approx. transcript time · 00:11:21Read transcript
Today huge wealth is treated as black comedy, as in Succession, where the family has everything but you would not want to be them.
Approx. transcript time · 00:12:42Read transcript
Gibson is at the tail end of his last A-plus-list run from 1994 to 1997: Maverick, Braveheart, Ransom and Conspiracy Theory, which is joked to lay the groundwork for QAnon (transcribed QNON).
Approx. transcript time · 00:13:36Read transcript
Other than Cruise, Gibson may have been the biggest A-plus-lister of the mid-90s; his movies paired big box office with critical weight Cruise did not get, helped by his Braveheart directing Oscar.
Approx. transcript time · 00:14:31Read transcript
Tom Hanks is described as levitating above everybody with first choice of any drama or rom-com, a level nobody has reached since.
Approx. transcript time · 00:16:07Read transcript
Ransom is called the most Mel Gibson-y movie he made; its trailer built around the TV-station scene made it an instant must-see.
Approx. transcript time · 00:17:11Read transcript
A plan to show a younger brother the earlier Mad Max movies was dropped because a night of Mel Gibson movies felt icky.
Approx. transcript time · 00:17:58Read transcript
Rene Russo reteams with Gibson after Lethal Weapon 3; her run is listed from Lethal Weapon 3 through In the Line of Fire, a Major League 2 cameo, Outbreak, Get Shorty, Tin Cup, Ransom, Buddy, Lethal Weapon 4 and The Thomas Crown Affair.
Approx. transcript time · 00:18:42Read transcript
She was the go-to co-star for about six years but never got her own signature vehicle or a lighter rom-com; Tin Cup is probably her most rewatchable film, though Major League is also named as probably her most rewatchable.
Approx. transcript time · 00:19:22Read transcript
Get Shorty made one participant want to come out here, feeling like Chili Palmer, though the cool spots like the Ivy were no longer cool on arrival.
Approx. transcript time · 00:21:01Read transcript
Russo felt like an adult woman on screen who always challenged her male co-star; there are fewer such roles now because every movie is a commentary on something, and her modern equivalent is Shiv Roy.
Approx. transcript time · 00:22:00Read transcript
Gary Sinise had his own run from Forrest Gump and Apollo 13 through Ransom and Snake Eyes to The Green Mile; he is so creepy here it may have hurt his career.
Approx. transcript time · 00:23:57Read transcript
Casting what-ifs are previewed: some actors turned down the villain role because nobody wants to be the bad guy in a movie where a kid gets hurt.
Approx. transcript time · 00:24:29Read transcript
Sinise is seen as a would-be heir apparent to Tommy Lee Jones, whose Fugitive turn made audiences want him to have his own movie.
Approx. transcript time · 00:24:43Read transcript
Sinise's Reindeer Games villain turn is defended, but its bombing is seen as where his film career started going down before CSI: NY; twenty years later he would have landed a prestige-TV role.
Approx. transcript time · 00:26:07Read transcript
A budget of $70 million is stated, with the box-office figure garbled in the transcript; it was just another year for Gibson.
Approx. transcript time · 00:26:58Read transcript
A modern 'Black Ransom' is cast: Denzel is too old, Michael B. Jordan may be too young to buy as the dad, and Idris Elba lacks vulnerability because he would just beat up the kidnappers.
Approx. transcript time · 00:31:51Read transcript
Flipping it to a female billionaire with a Stedman-type husband, Issa Rae is too young and Viola Davis a little too old; J-Lo is called perfect, possibly as a Kim Kardashian-type celebrity who posts the reward on Instagram or TikTok.
Approx. transcript time · 00:32:55Read transcript
The casting struggle reflects a shortage of stars in the right age range; Anthony Mackie is proposed as the right-age Black lead who would show a vulnerable side.
Approx. transcript time · 00:34:53Read transcript
Diddy is judged good in Monster's Ball but a poor picker of movies; an Affleck and J-Lo real-life couple version is floated, with a flip in which the unknown husband is kidnapped likened to Man on Fire.
Approx. transcript time · 00:35:44Read transcript
A Ransom remake will happen on a streamer and the casting will be flipped in many ways; the hosts joke they will not produce it after fumbling the exercise, but like landing on J-Lo.
Approx. transcript time · 00:37:08Read transcript
Delroy Lindo is having a second moment after Da 5 Bloods and The Harder They Fall; here he is the good cop to Sinise's bad cop, pushing Russo's character to pay.
Approx. transcript time · 00:42:49Read transcript
Lindo later did an NBC show called Kidnapped in the mid-2000s, with Timothy Hutton as a rich man whose kid is taken, essentially ripping off Ransom.
Approx. transcript time · 00:43:55Read transcript
Kidnapped and Friday Night Lights are cited as mid-2000s shows that arrived five or six years too early for streaming; the first Friday Night Lights season was watched on Chinese DVDs from eBay with subtitles, while The Wire was downloaded by torrent.
Approx. transcript time · 00:44:13Read transcript
Matt Damon would be the logical lead in a straight Ransom remake, needing movie-star charm plus a smarmy side; his Good Will Hunting meltdown shows the anger.
Approx. transcript time · 00:45:41Read transcript
Ron Howard's arc: 80s comedies (Night Shift, Splash, Cocoon, Gung Ho), then Parenthood, Backdraft, a Far and Away miss, The Paper and Apollo 13, then Ransom, EdTV and the Grinch before A Beautiful Mind finally made him an A-plus director.
Approx. transcript time · 00:49:57Read transcript
Far and Away is called one of the oddest cinematic experiences, Cruise's attempt at a weighty epic with an Irish accent.
Approx. transcript time · 00:50:38Read transcript
After A Beautiful Mind Howard tails off with the Da Vinci Code check-grabs; Frost/Nixon is fantastic and Rush (2013) is one participant's favorite Howard movie, while Cinderella Man did not work for one participant.
Approx. transcript time · 00:51:41Read transcript
Movies that are hard to rewatch: Revolutionary Road and The Revenant are one-and-done, Million Dollar Baby is never revisited, and United 93 is either rewatched whenever it is on or avoided entirely.
Approx. transcript time · 00:53:48Read transcript
A possible 2022 series on movies that badly predicted technology is floated, with The Net first and Disclosure second; Disclosure is really about Demi Moore's dominant performance, and Moore got the signature roles Russo never did.
Approx. transcript time · 00:58:23Read transcript
Cell and walkie-talkie reception in the movie is unrealistically great for 1996, with no dead spots.
Approx. transcript time · 01:19:40Read transcript
Gibson is noted to be back, cast in the John Wick prequel, which drew criticism.
Approx. transcript time · 01:20:33Read transcript
The film was hard to find across many streaming subscriptions and was watched on demand through TNT; one participant wonders whether Gibson has been quietly canceled on streaming, while Payback is praised.
Approx. transcript time · 01:20:44Read transcript