The Sum of All Fears Video

Average Rating:

As for the plot, it was reduced to the point of childish simplicity, and the reduction rendered it barely credible. The reasons for the rebel nuclear attack on the U.S. were never fully explained. And how did the President and Jack Ryan, among others, escape after the bombing without suffering from radiation poisoning? And why, oh why, is Ryan, portrayed as a mere rookie in this movie, the only person willing to seek the truth? This is nuclear warfare, for crying out loud. We don't launch bombs at the drop of a hat.

Although the acting was decent -- Ben Affleck as Jack Ryan, Morgan Freeman as a senior CIA agent, and Liev Schreiber as a covert CIA agent were performed especially well -- the characters were left paper shallow, as undeveloped as the plot. While it's admittedly difficult to reduce any Clancy book to a couple of hours screen time, but I felt the screen writers could have done a better job.

Can I recommend this movie? If you like war and action and Ben Affleck and aren't too worried about details, probably. But if you're a huge Clancy fan, you'll be better off sticking with the book. This version of The Sum of All Fears doesn't do the author justice.

I have all kinds of intellectual problems with that premise, which I'll go into in greater depth later, but in the aftermath of September 11, it's safe to say that the events depicted here are every American's worst nightmare come true. Given that this movie was made before September 11, I don't if the filmmakers were aiming for this kind of resonance, but they achieved it nonetheless.

Stepping back and viewing "The Sum of All Fears" strictly as an entertainment, it's pretty close to a home run. It is suspenseful, smart, and even humorous at times. Like the other Clancy novels brought to the big screen, the hero is Jack Ryan (an effective Ben Affleck), a CIA analyst who always seems to get thrown into operations more suited for field spies. However, unlike the earlier Clancy-based movies, Ryan isn't married with kids - he's a twenty-something guy who's just beginning his CIA career, and his analysis of the new Russian government gains the notice of the CIA director, William Cabot (Morgan Freeman).

Soon, Ryan is on his way to Moscow to do a weapons inspection (and UN-bashers, take note: he doesn't do a very good job either), much to the disappointment of his girlfriend Cathy, who has no idea what her man does for a living and is disappointed over being blown off. The payoff for this subplot comes when Ryan is on a plane somewhere over the Atlantic, and has to break a date with Cathy. He doesn't think he can let her in on his "secret" profession, but Cabot gives him the green light, and Ryan spills the beans. Of course, Cathy doesn't buy it, which provides the movie's best humorous moment.

Strong supporting performances in ample supply, most prominently from James Cromwell, who plays the president, and Liev Schreiber as Mr. Clark, a nice enough guy who you better pray never comes calling for you. The sets have an authentic feel about them, and the visual effects are well-done.

Most importantly, the payoff scene - the detonation of the nuclear weapon - is completely effective, despite being less graphic and detailed than depictions in other films (notably "Terminator 2"). Instead, director Phil Alden Robinson chooses to use timing and the shock value of the event itself, not detailed depictions of the bomb's effects, as a dramatic device, and it works very well. It probably saved him a few million in special effects as well, but if it works, why not?

One thing that doesn't work in "The Sum of All Fears" is the depiction of military action, especially the attack on an American carrier. It was far too easy for the Russians to hit the carrier with missiles, which is something Tom Clancy points out on the commentary track. In reality, the closest those bombers would have gotten, especially in a wartime environment, would have been a picture in "Jane's Fighting Ships."

Come to think of it, what this movie really lacks is the kind of detail that Clancy's novels always come with, but then again, Clancy's tendency towards verbal diarrhea and constant Dittohead blathering are mercifully left out. In a two-hour movie, I suppose that's a good balance.

Much has also been made of the producers' decision to replace the villains in the book version (Arabs, a German terrorist, and an American Indian) with neo-Nazis was based on political correctness, a charge the producers deny. Bunk, I say - it's obvious to me that the last people on Earth who would start an all-out nuclear war between Russia and America would be Europeans. A look at the map tells you why - Russia IS a European country, after all. Why would they poison their own continent?

I suspect replacing Arabs as the villain was as much a financial consideration as anything else - the Middle East is an important market for Hollywood, and while Europeans wouldn't skip this movie because it concerns European neo-Nazis (they have little love for Nazis, neo or not), Middle Easterners would certainly complain about having Arabs depicted as bloodthirsty terrorists, particularly after September 11.

But that carping aside, "The Sum of All Fears" delivers the goods - action, political intrigue, and a very relevant cautionary tale that should have us all thinking twice. Early in the movie, there's an exchange between the president and Cabot about the Russians. The president is worried about the Russians, who have 27,000 nuclear weapons pointed in our direction. "I'm worried about the guy with one," replies Cabot.

Worried, indeed. More like scared to death.

The plot of this movie revolves around a neo-fascist group, led by a nasty Alan Bates, trying to provoke a nuclear war between Russia and America by exploding a nuclear device on American soil (Baltimore, to be precise). It stars Ben Affleck as a younger Ryan, pre-marriage and pre Hunt For Red October, being taken under the wing of fatherly CIA director Morgan Freeman. I know there have been some very mixed reviews for this movie but much to my pleasant surprise I really enjoyed this movie and found it to be totally gripping and an excellent edge of the seat thriller.

The Sum of all Fears is directed by Phil Alden Robinson, who previously directed the wonderful Field of Dreams, and he brings a lot more depth, subtlety and humour to both the characters and the plot development than Phillip Noyce previously managed in either of the last two Ryan movies (Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger), not to mention the other clunkers on Noyce's résumé, including The Saint, Sliver and The Bone Collector (excellent novel, terrible adaptation). In fact it's a wonder this franchise has survived Phillip Noyce and that Noyce still has a career (although apparently his latest movie Rabbit Proof fence is actually very good).

As for the cast, I feel that Affleck is a perfect choice and that he has at last found a decent role in a decent movie. Perhaps his first decent role since Good Will Hunting, which he co-wrote with Matt Damon, and certainly much much better than the dreadful Titanic-alike Pearl Harbour. Morgan Freeman is of course reliably excellent as always and has some of the best lines in the whole movie as CIA boss Bill Cabot but there are also other excellent supporting performances from the likes of Liev Schrieber as a covert CIA operative, James Cromwell (as a belligerent U.S. President), Ciarán Hinds as Russian President Nemerov and Alan Bates as the chief villain. However I can't say I was totally convinced with Bridget Moynahan as Ryan's girlfriend, Dr Cathy Mueller. Although one thing's for sure, she is very pleasant to look at and there were some excellent shared scenes between her and Affleck. I just didn't find her very convincing in her white coat playing a surgeon.

In summary, I cannot think of a mainstream Hollywood thriller that I've enjoyed so much in a long time and many of the people I know that have also seen this film were equally as thrilled. I can honestly say that it was a pleasant surprise to enjoy this so much and that this is definitely one of the best films I've seen all year. Highly recommended! Four and a half stars.