The Flipcritic

No novelist in the past two decades has mingled political intrigue, government operations, and military know-how, and captured them with such technical weight, intelligence, and suspense, better than Tom Clancy. The Jack Ryan series that have been translated to movies (THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER - the best of the lot, PATRIOT GAMES, and CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER) are some of the best political and military thrillers that have been put on film. They have astounding realism and are presented with such strong pacing and remarkable clarity for the amount of information they carry (one wonders if Tom Clancy has as many contacts in the US government as they do in others). His latest book-to-movie offering is THE SUM OF ALL FEARS, which is just about that: a terrorist attack resulting in the destruction of a major metropolitan city by a nuclear bomb, and its all-too-frightening consequences.

The film begins in 1973, with an Israeli jet carrying a nuclear bomb being shot down and crashing somewhere in Syria. 29 years later, the weapon is dug out and sold on the black market. It comes into the possession of a right-wing Austrian politician named Richard Dressler (Alan Bates) who is a member of an underground fascist Aryan organization hell bent on continuing what Hitler started. His plan: to get America and Russia, the two biggest nuclear powers, to destroy each other so that his members can pick up the pieces (how they intend to do that with Europe still intact and firmly against fascism, I have no idea).

As Dressler schemes, we come across young Jack Ryan (Ben Affleck of BOUNCE), a young CIA analyst. He comes into the forefront when an old Russian President dies of health problems (remind you of Boris Yeltsin?) and a new one, Nemerov (Ciaran Hinds), is installed. The US government doesn't know what to make of him, and Jack Ryan is the only one who's ever written about him. The CIA head and personal friend of the US President, William Cabot (Morgan Freeman of KISS THE GIRLS) is sent to Russia to find out what Nemerov's intentions are so that Russia's internal stability are maintained. When Nemerov takes a liking to Jack Ryan, his boss does too.

Nemerov: I like him
William Cabot: In that case, so do I.

I can't describe the film any further, but I will say that most of the events which unfold are all based on plausible notions. Russia has always been the US' concern since they do have the second largest (if not the first) stockpile of nukes on the planet. Internal conflicts within the Russian state are always tense when it comes Chechnya. When the turning point arrives on the suspicion of Nemerov's motives after an attack on Grozny (Chechnya's capital), we know that Jack Ryan's intuition is correct, but the film makes convincing arguments why the US would believe otherwise (Cabot to Ryan: You just don't like what it adds up to.).

For most of its length, THE SUM OF ALL FEARS is as gripping and compelling as any film of its kind. Some films would use "the bomb" as the film's climax, but here it's just the beginning (don't think I spoiled the story because the trailers reveal it anyway). I liked the way it provides glimpses into the minds of its decision-makers: the rumblings of Cabot's attempts to get into a Russian nuclear facility, the regret of what the US president thinks his presidency will be remembered for, and the arguments amongst crucial officials in the confusion of all hell breaking loose. We really feel that these are real people, not just politicians going through all the motions when disaster strikes. You really feel the fear in these leaders when they have to make their final decisions. You can see the distress that comes across their faces.

Though the film is resonantly strong, it has more weaknesses than it should. The scenes after the nuclear devastation are believable and scary (not as much as James Cameron's dystopic vision in TERMINATOR 2), but I felt there was too little of this. And near the end, it's as if it didn't happen. Maybe the film didn't want to the deal with the horror and grief we should be faced with the obliteration of a small population. But with the fresh memories of September 11, I can understand why. How Jack Ryan could also be in the right place at the right time in several situations is simply too convenient. And I found it highly unlikely that his chatting with the Russian and US Presidents to stave off the worst nuclear nightmare would save the world. I can't describe how justice is delivered to the villains, but after you see the movie, would you agree that it was the right way to bring it?

And what is it with casting a love interest (Bridget Moynahan of SERENDIPITY)? Sure she's good looking and smart, but what has she got to do with the story? This is the first Tom Clancy installment where I've seen Jack Ryan get all gooey for a girl. Since when has Jack Ryan been like that? All she does is get mad when he can't be around. I'm sure she's a talented actress, but she's unnecessary. Now if they had put a female character as one of the President's cabinet members, that would have been interesting (just as Glen Close's powerful portrayal as a vice-president in AIR FORCE ONE).

A lot has been made of Ben Affleck playing Jack Ryan, that he's younger than Harrison Ford but in a more recent conflict but the earliest stage of his career. It's true that the Jack Ryan timeline gets whacked, but it's best to just forget it altogether. Make no mistake, Mr. Affleck is just too small for the role. He's not bad, it's just not his strength. They just picked him because Mr. Ford is too old and Alec Baldwin (whom I feel was the best of them all) is too fat. He doesn't have the presence for the part. Morgan Freeman (my favorite 'old' actor) is supremely convincing. And James Cromwell (BABE) is Lincolnesque as the US President. I always like Liev Schrieber (RKO 281) in whatever he's in, and he's game as a the seedy CIA agent John Clark.

Roger Ebert made the most interesting observation about this picture. It's not so much a "thriller", but a "confirmer". His words: "confirming our fears that the world is headed for disaster... Movies like BLACK SUNDAY (The 1977 blockbuster about a plot to kill people at the Superbowl) could exorcise our fears, but this one works instead to give them form." His observation is correct, but I would like to call THE SUM OF ALL FEARS a "comforter" as well. It does try to somewhat emulate what such a situation might be like, but it comforts us too much near the end. It's a great show though.

Posted by FLIPCRITIC at June 19, 2002 12:00 AM