Ransom

Just a quick comparison between the original Cinema Club DVD and the recent Network release.Don't be too eager to dismiss the original; if you examine the two versions, there are pros and cons to both. The Cinema Club disc does have more noticeable grain and framing could be a little better, although the picture does appear very slightly sharper. Network's release has an improved ratio but picture quality is softer and with more muted colours.Sound is a little quiet on both, but I think the original still gets the nod.Of course this is all very subjective, but I had nothing better to do tonight.

Why anybody bothered to put this together is a mystery not worth solving. Looks like an episode of the Sweeney, terrible score by the great Gerry Goldmith perfunctory script and performance’s. Everybody sounds dubbed but only some of them are. You’ll need a very wet Sunday afternoon for this one.

I had never seen this film before but had read some of the other reviews. It is a very different film from that you would expect to see Sean Connery in and reflects the fact that he is able to act and to bring any character to life. A well plotted tale of betrayal and terrorism.

Having never seen or heard of this film before I was a bit apprehensive about buying but glad I did, think it’s a little known Connery film which is a shame as it’s actually a good film with a few twists to keep you watching till the end, the Blu ray version is of good quality as you would hope.

Caspar Wrede's Ransom (retitled The Terrorists in the USA) is an entertaining enough cat-and-mouse yarn from 1975 if you have an hour and a half to spare, helped immensely by a commanding performance by Sean Connery as the Scandinavian security chief having to deal with a hostage crisis and an airplane hijacking by Ian McShane's terrorist. There are some neat plot twists, Sven Nykvist's cinematography makes good use of the snowbound locations and there's a strong Jerry Goldsmith score that helps drive the film along nicely, although it is rather disconcerting to hear John Quentin speaking with Malcolm Terris' voice in a particularly noticeable bit of dubbing. An efficient Saturday night thriller, it doesn't aim high but does deliver.Unlike Anchor Bay's US Region A-locked Blu-ray release, which had no extras - in fact, it's so barebones it doesn't even have a menu, simply playing the film on a loop with fewer chapter stops than the US DVD - and offered a mediocre widescreen transfer is no better than you'd get from an upscaled DVD, Network's UK Region B-locked UK Blu-ray, however, is a much better bet, with a better widescreen transfer, trailer, teaser trailer and stills gallery - not to mention a proper menu and chapter stops!

If you think that if Connery was still doing Bond he would have been in the much warmer climes as Phucket & Hong Kong doing The Man With The Golden Gun. But instead Connery is in the very cold, snowy & wet Scandanavia with a film that feels like a tv movie, It has the feel of an episode of Bergerac to me. It's a slightly boring plot that left me not really understanding what was going on and not really caring as it continued. Connery continues or starts his ability to be Scottish of accent no matter where he is from, here he is meant to be Scandinavian. Not a film I would go out of my way to watch again, but mearly ok

The Blue Ray version by Network is a nice addition to my Connery collection. Fine film dominated by Sean. Good story. but it is dated. Those who like older well acted and written films will enjoy.

RANSOM on this Network blu ray is immaculately presented in crystal clarity. The story however is less clear and the twist at the end just left me confused, though having read reviews about it and now having a greater understanding of the ending I feel sure I will enjoy it more on a second viewing. It's certainly not in the same entertainment league as a James Bond movie, more like an episode of that TV series with Bodie and Doyle (what was it called?) but Connery as usual gives a very good convincing performance and I have seen lots of movies which are far less entertaining. Nothing outstanding but definitely worth a look. KAN