Tom Clancy Box Set (Box Set) (Special Edition) (DVD)

Tom Clancy was one of the best selling authors of the 80's and 90's with his political thrillers topping the charts. Indeed, Clear and Present Danger was the best selling novel of the 1980's and he was only one of three authors to sell over 2million copies on a first printing in the 1990's.

However good his books, this review is instead on the DVD boxset, which includes all four Clancy books currently made into films. These are: The ...
...Director Phil Alden Robinson and Tom Clancy
A Cautionary Tale
Visual Effects
Theatrical Trailer

Director: Phil Alden Robinson
Screenplay: Paul Attanasio/Daniel Pyne/Tom Clancy

Cast:
Ben Affleck - Jack Ryan
Morgan Freeman - DCI William Cabot
James Cromwell - President Robert Fowler
Liev Schreiber - John Clark
Bridget Moynahan - Dr. Cathy Muller
Ciarán ... more

Tom Clancy was one of the best selling authors of the 80's and 90's with his political thrillers topping the charts. Indeed, Clear and Present Danger was the best selling novel of the 1980's and he was only one of three authors to sell over 2million copies on a first printing in the 1990's.

However good his books, this review is instead on the DVD boxset, which includes all four Clancy books currently made into films. These are: The Hunt for Red October (1990), Patriot Games (1992), Clear and Present Danger (1994) and The Sum of All Fears (2002). The boxset includes all four DVDs in a hard cardboard case and is sold as a certificate 15. The cheapest that I found it on the internet was for about £17 when p+p is considered.

THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER

The first Jack Ryan film was released in 1990 starring Alec Baldwin and Sean Connery. Of the four films made this is probably the one that sticks to the storyline of the book the best and is an extremely enjoyable watch.

A new, superior Soviet nuclear submarine named the Red October is undertaking its sea trials under the command of Captain Markus Ramius (Connery). This sub incorporates a new propulsion system that makes it silent to the sonar operators on board their American counterparts. This technology would enable it to sneak up on America and launch a nuclear salvo undetected.

However, the sub disappears and the US government believe that Ramius plans to attack them based on the assertions of the Soviets who tell them that Ramius is acting against orders. Jack Ryan (Baldwin) thinks differently and struggles to persuade the Government that Ramius instead wants to defect and the hunt is on to find the Red October.

This is a gripping film and the story moves along at a steady pace with several twists and turns along the way. The performances are quite good although Connery's accent isn't that convincing and I personally don't feel that Baldwin is quite the right man for the role of Ryan. Director John McTiernan is well known for his work in films such as Die Hard and he handles this really well making a film that captures the essence of the book.

The DVD in the box set only includes the film and a theatrical trailer.

Director - John McTiernan
Screenplay - Larry Ferguson/Tom Clancy

Cast:
Alec Baldwin - Jack Ryan
Sean Connery - Captain Markus Ramius
Scott Glenn - Commander Bart Mancuso
Sam Neill - Captain Vasily Borodin
James Earl Jones - Admiral James Greer
Tim Curry - Dr. Petrov
Courtney B. Vance - Sonarman Ronald Jones

Certificate: PG
Running Time: 129mins

PATRIOT GAMES

The second book in the Jack Ryan series was turned into a film in 1992 with Harrison Ford taking the role of Ryan. This second film, directed by Phillip Noyce, is quite good at replicating the book although to a lesser extent than Red October.

Ryan has now left the CIA and is visiting London with his wife and daughter. However, when he is caught up in an IRA attack on Lord Holmes (nb. In the book, this character is instead the Prince of Wales); Ryan is able to thwart the attack and save the Lords life. His heroics don't please everyone, in particular those of Sean Miller (Sean Bean) a terrorist whose brother Ryan killed.

He returns to the US a marked man and it doesn't take long before he falls back into the world of the CIA as they try to track the terrorists in their plans to get one back over Ryan.

This film is slightly predictable as the terrorists slowly move in on Ryan and the ending isn't completely surprising. Having said that this is a good film and in my opinion, Ford does a better job at playing Ryan than Baldwin in the previous film. The only downside in the film is Ryan's daughter (Thora Birch) who is extremely annoying as is often the case with child actors.

As with Red October, the only extra on this DVD is a theatrical trailer.

Director: Phillip Noyce
Screenplay: W. Peter Iliff/Tom Clancy

Cast:
Harrison Ford - Jack Ryan
Anne Archer - Dr. Cathy Ryan
Sean Bean - Sean Miller
Thora Birch - Sally Ryan
Samuel L. Jackson - Robby Jackson
James Earl Jones - Admiral James Greer
Richard Harris - Paddy O'Neil

Certificate: 15
Running Time: 112mins

CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER

In my personal opinion, this is the worst of the four films as its starts to stray from the book and sometimes tries too hard. Harrison Ford returns as Jack Ryan and Phillip Noyce returns as director. This film also sees a jump in following the timeline of the books with my favourite book, The Cardinal of the Kremlin, being skipped.

When Ryan's mentor (James Earl Jones) becomes gravely ill, Ryan is appointed acting Deputy Director of Intelligence for the CIA. His first task is to investigate the murder of a businessman friend of the President who had links with the Colombian drugs cartels.

The director of operations sends a covert team into Colombia under the guidance of John Clark (Willem Dafoe) to disrupt the cartels activities but when things start to go bad, Ryan finds that his political naivety means that he is being implicated and he must clear his name.

If this film is watched solely on its own merits then it is an enjoyable action flick with many more explosions and gun fights than the previous two films. However, a critical comparison with the book shows many glaring differences and as such, I have always found it harder to like this film. These may seem inconsequential in the film itself, but if they were to ever make all the series into films, certain events that occur in this film contradict/don't explain situations that arise later.

Again, this DVDs only extra is a theatrical trailer.

Director: Phillip Noyce
Screenplay: Donald Stewart/Steven Zaillian/John Milius/Tom Clancy

Cast:
Harrison Ford - Jack Ryan
Willem Dafoe - John Clark
Anne Archer - Cathy Ryan
Joaquim de Almeida - Felix Cortez
Henry Czerny - Robert Ritter
Harris Yulin - James Cutter
Miguel Sandoval - Ernesto Escobedo
Raymond Cruz - Domingo Chavez
James Earl Jones - Admiral James Greer

Certificate: 12
Running Time: 135mins

THE SUM OF ALL FEARS

The final film in this boxset was released in 2002 with Ben Affleck taking the role of Jack Ryan. Harrison Ford was deemed too old to play the role and as such, several major changes were made to the plot of the story to accommodate a younger Ryan. The film was delayed due to the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and this also saw a huge change with the role of Arab terrorists being taking by a bunch of Neo-Nazis intent on starting a war between Russia and America.

When the Russian President dies and is replaced by an unknown successor, Ryan is suddenly thrust from a desk analysist's desk to reporting to the CIA director (Morgan Freeman) as he has written a paper on the new guy in charge.

Meanwhile, with reports of renegade Russian scientists constructing a nuclear bomb whilst the main stockpiles are being destroyed, tensions start to run high. It's therefore up to Ryan to persuade the President not to start a nuclear World War III when a bomb is detonated at the Super Bowl, narrowly missing killing the President.

Despite the huge differences between this film and the book, the film is one of the most enjoyable of the boxset. Affleck does a good job at playing the lead role, making the role his own in a new incarnation of the character. Morgan Freeman is really good as Director Cabot and James Cromwell is perfectly cast as the President of the USA.

This DVD has several extras:
Commentary by Director Phil Alden Robinson and Cinematographer John Lindley
Commentary by Director Phil Alden Robinson and Tom Clancy
A Cautionary Tale
Visual Effects
Theatrical Trailer

Director: Phil Alden Robinson
Screenplay: Paul Attanasio/Daniel Pyne/Tom Clancy

Cast:
Ben Affleck - Jack Ryan
Morgan Freeman - DCI William Cabot
James Cromwell - President Robert Fowler
Liev Schreiber - John Clark
Bridget Moynahan - Dr. Cathy Muller
Ciarán Hinds - President Nemerov

Certificate: 12
Running Time: 118mins

All in all this box set is a must for fans of any of these films and is a great addition to any DVD collection.
 

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