Ransom

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Ransom

R

Released Nov 8, 1996

2h 0m

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

74%

Tomatometer

74 Reviews

63%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

Through a life of hard work, airline owner Tom Mullen (Mel Gibson) has amassed a great deal of wealth. When a group of criminals want a piece of his cash, they kidnap his son (Brawley Nolte) for a $2 million ransom. Encouraged by his wife (Rene Russo) and an FBI agent (Delroy Lindo), Tom prepares to pay the money, but the ransom drop goes awry. Enraged, Tom decides to turn the tables on the kidnappers by making the ransom a bounty on their heads -- which he announces on national television.

Critics Consensus

Directed with propulsive intensity by Ron Howard, Ransom is a fiery thriller packed with hot-blooded performances and jolting twists.

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Gene Siskel

Chicago Tribune

The special nature of this story is its many climaxes that border on false endings and also how Gibson's character responds to the ransom demand of $2 million.... it is Gibson who sells us on it and sells it well.

Rated: 3/4

Jan 22, 2014

Full Review

Desson Thomson

Washington Post

There are more climaxes in here than in a Swedish blue movie. This is not to say you won't be thrilled, charged up and put through the ringer at times, but your intelligence will need to be shoved under your seat like warm, flat soda.

Jan 22, 2014

Full Review

Steven Rea

Philadelphia Inquirer

That's interesting stuff, but it doesn't play out with a lot of smarts. And the opportunity to end Ransom on a creepy note of unpredictability is forsaken for the usual glass-shattering, bullets-flying finale.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jan 22, 2014

Full Review

Rob Gonsalves

Rob's Movie Vault

The movie, quite unavoidably, becomes "Guys With Phones."

Rated: C

Sep 1, 2022

Full Review

Sheila Reid

Women in the Life

The result is a riveting 121 minute ride.

May 16, 2022

Full Review

PJ Nabarro

Patrick Nabarro

The sheer plethora of silly plot holes and nonsensical moments does sort of ebb away at one's suspension of disbelief.

Rated: 2/5

Oct 29, 2019

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Ian R

This film hasn't aged particularly well. The plot holes are too large to be filled by Gibson's performance. It's also overly long at about 2 hours running time.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

07/29/25

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Jerod S

You can't really go wrong with Howard and Gibson...the tension and suspense is built well. Kidnapping and a $2 mil ransom.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

06/10/25

Full Review

thiago s

Filme bacana, o roteiro é bacaninha, as cenas são bacaninhas, a história é bacaninha, o elenco é bacaninha, e alguns ajudam a melhorar o filme, os personagens são bacaninhas, mas o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

04/12/25

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Tim M

Uncompromisingly dark but equal parts thrilling, Ransom continuously subverts viewer expectations en route to a memorable experience.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/09/24

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Alain E

Excellent entertainment with a lot of twists and turns, plus a healthy dose of violence. It did do very well at the box office and remains very watchable. Interesting that some professional critics were disappointed that the rich guy, played wonderfully by Mel Gibson, is the upright character.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

12/07/24

Full Review

Crey Fish S

A gripping action/thriller with enough surprises and good direction from Ron Howard.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/11/24

Full Review

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Ron Howard

Director

Mel Gibson

Tom Mullen

Rene Russo

Kate Mullen

Gary Sinise

Det. Jimmy Shaker

Delroy Lindo

Agent Lonnie Hawkins

Lili Taylor

Maris Conner

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Synopsis

Through a life of hard work, airline owner Tom Mullen (Mel Gibson) has amassed a great deal of wealth. When a group of criminals want a piece of his cash, they kidnap his son (Brawley Nolte) for a $2 million ransom. Encouraged by his wife (Rene Russo) and an FBI agent (Delroy Lindo), Tom prepares to pay the money, but the ransom drop goes awry. Enraged, Tom decides to turn the tables on the kidnappers by making the ransom a bounty on their heads -- which he announces on national television.

Director: Ron Howard
Producer: Brian Grazer, Kip Hagopian, Scott Rudin
Screenwriter: Cyril Hume, Richard Maibaum, Richard Price, Alexander Ignon
Distributor: Touchstone Home Video, Buena Vista Pictures
Production Co: Touchstone Pictures, Imagine Entertainment
Rating: R
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 8, 1996, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 27, 2020
Box Office (Gross USA): $136.5M
Runtime: 2h 0m
Sound Mix: Surround