Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.

Horrible, fascist and poorly acted

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

What makes Jack Ryan unique among action heroes? In "The Hunt for Red October," his first appearance on screen, Alec Baldwin played him almost as an innocent, albeit a highly intelligent one. He was bright-eyed, often smiling, and joked privately to himself about the people he'd had to deal with. In the next two Ryan movies, Harrison Ford went in a different direction by giving the character Ford's own trademark scowl and seething brusqueness. Ford is entertaining enough in "Patriot Games," and he can convey a lot with that scowl, or with a finger raised threateningly, but it must be admitted that a lot of action movies are helmed by characters much like his. And that's no surprise, because Ford himself played a lot of them. Compared to the strategic chess game of "Red October," then, "Patriot Games" feels routine and even simple. Ryan's family, which includes his medical doctor wife (Anne Archer) and a daughter played by Thora Birch, a veritable acting prodigy for her young age, is targeted by a rogue IRA terrorist seeking vengeance for a perceived wrong. This personalized attack provokes Ryan to seek vengeance in return, and suddenly we have a vendetta movie that might as well star anyone other than CIA analyst Jack Ryan. The not-quite-IRA terrorists also hang around with some vaguely middle-eastern terrorists for no clear reason, which means that despite some over-the-top Irishness from the likes of Richard Harris the bad guys might as well be anybody, too. There may be something to the idea of using Ryan's family to illustrate the fact that terrorists in general, unlike Soviets or other more conventional enemies, intentionally and indiscriminately target civilians and families, but that's not really what's going on in "Patriot Games." Here it's specifically and exclusively Ryan's family members who are targets, and that's a far more lazy, manipulative way of generating stakes than the intricate plotting of "Red October." To be clear, "Patriot Games" is far from dislikable; it's an effective, even a good, mainstream thriller. It's just a bit disappointing to see Jack Ryan, our formerly wonky history teacher, turn into the kind of film character who goes around settling personal scores with his fists, his guns, and the occasional explosion.

There are some Deadly Serious Flourishes in this slightly above Average Spy Thriller. The Film, from the Novel by Tom Clancy, is another, the second, slightly dry account of James Bondish type stuff without the Intense High Tech Action. Clancy's, forte is behind the Scenes and is generally of the more Cerebral Stuff. Hero Jack Ryan is an Analyst, not a Secret Agent.But that doesn't stop Hollywood from putting Him, no longer on the Payroll but not for long, into the center of the "Action". In this one it is actually Ryan himself that triggers the ire of an IRA Fringe Group, by foiling an attempted Assassination of a British Royal.From then on its Cat and Mouse as our Hero begs back in among the Spooks to protect His Family. There is one Spooky Event in front of Computer Screens that makes Ryan feel a bit Queasy. This is a Powerful Scene but one wonders why all the Emotional Display, after all He's been in this situation before. Hasn't He?Anyway, this is a not bad Film with a good enough Cast and some Intriguing Set Pieces, but it does have a rather Slow Pace with Spurts of Family in Peril Tension.

I was not a fan of The Hunt For Red October. It was very boring in my opinion. Alec Baldwin never really cut it as Jack Ryan for me, so needless to say. It's refreshing to say that an ideal hero like Harrison Ford took over. Harrison Ford is able to keep your eyes glued to the screen throughout the film, and I was fully involved in his plight. I wouldn't say this movie is action packed. It's more of a suspenseful thriller with cat and mouse stuff. It does the job extremely well as a thriller. It also helps that the Ryan family is a unit, and so likable. I cared about every one of them. This also has one of the most intense finales you'll ever see. It's not very often these days in which I am on the edge of my seat anymore, but the invasion scene at the end will get your pulse rising, but quickly. The boat chase sequence is especially memorable. Harrison Ford is fantastic as I explained. He's not superman, he bleeds, he gets wounded, and he's human. I felt Ford did a perfect job of conveying his emotions, and I was on his side the whole way. I'm not a fan of holier than thou heroes, but Ford isn't one of those people as Jack Ryan. I loved him. Anne Archer is excellent as the supportive wife who reluctantly goes along for the ride. I always felt she was underrated. Her chemistry with Ford was very good. Sean Bean makes for a chilling villain. His morose & psychotic performance gave me the creeps. Thora Birch was cute as a button, and played a very likable kid. Samuel L. Jackson & James Earl Jones both do well in their respective roles, and add class to the proceedingsFinal Thoughts: This is a tense thriller that will make almost two hours fly by with ease. Watch Harrison Ford go to work, and have a blast! Highly recommended8.3/10

PATRIOT GAMESWhat a great thriller...I remember this getting released back in the 90s... and I was never really interested. I can't remember why because this is a great movie.The movie is about an ex CIA agent who foils an assassination attempt on a member of the royal family. Because one of the terrorists got killed during the attempt, the IRA want revenge on him. They travel to the USA and try to kill him and his family.The story is brilliant. Great action and on the edge of your seat thrills. It has got some good twists that I never saw coming and the movie runs very smoothly. I didn't get bored at all and really enjoyed this from beginning to end.This has got a host of stars. Harrison Ford takes the lead and he plays it brilliantly. I like Harrison in a lot of movies, especially thrillers. My favourite thriller of his is What Lies Beneath. Patriot Games also stars Anne Archer, Patrick Bergin, Sean Bean, Thora Birch, Samuel L. Jackson & James Earl Jones. I think all of these actors are great. I also think this is the youngest I have seen Thora in a movie. I would say the only thing I wasn't very keen on was her character. The way she reacted just seemed very unrealistic to me. People were getting shot and attacked all around this little girl and she stayed calm and even smiled at one point. I am pretty sure any other little girl would be scared, crying or freaking out.The movie has a great 90s feel to it. I always think that the 90s released a lot of great thrillers. In fact most of my favourite thrillers are from the 90s. The Juror & Sleeping with the Enemy are 2 that stick out in my mind that were exceptionally brilliant.I will give this 7 out of 10.A great thriller with a great cast list... I will be watching Clear & Present Danger tomorrow.For more of my reviews, please like my Facebook page:https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ordinary-Person-Movie- Reviews/456572047728204?ref=hl