Movie Review: Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit
What We Liked
What We Didn't Like
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit is a re-boot of the character that Tom Clancy created back in 1984 in his book The Hunt for Red October. Several novel and movie sequels later we are re-introduced to Jack Ryan (Chris Pine) thru this film. His origins are updated to fit with contemporary American history. We meet Jack as post-grad student in London studying Economics. He abruptly opts to join the USMC, due to real world events, and is subsequently injured during a mission. No longer fit for active duty, Jack is rehabbing and meets a pretty med student named Cathy Mueller (Keira Knightly) – romance blooms.
Meanwhile a certain someone keeps an interested eye on the former Marine – Commander Palmer (Kevin Costner). Palmer wants to recruit Ryan, as the film’s title foreshadows, into the CIA as an analyst specializing in foreign economic investigation. The theory being that major terrorist activities are generally linked to large chunks of money moving from unlikely places and someone needs to keep an eye on that; someone like Jack Ryan. Jack is sent back to finish the doctorate that his USMC stint interrupted and told to get placed with a firm on Wall Street so that he can keep an eye on certain types of economic indicators. Soon Jack finds a troubling pattern and is roped into investigating, by Palmer, the Russian company that his firm is in a partnership with to conduct oil production and trading. Jack convinces his boss at the firm, Rob Behringer (Colm Feore), that the accounts that have come to his attention need an on-site audit. This clever use of needing to investigate the firm’s problem, which is really America’s problem, sets Jack off on his way to Russia. There Jack encounters Viktor Cherevin (Kenneth Branagh) the owner of the Russian firm and the villain of this film. The inevitable, but truly enjoyable, spy vs. spy shenanigans follow as Jack and Palmer need to find out what the Russians are up to so they can put a stop to it.
Chris Pine in “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit.”
I won’t spoil the fun for you with any more detail. However, I will say that Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit is a fast-paced, fun ride. Just the way a spy thriller should be. I cannot exaggerate how tight the film is. There are no extraneous scenes. They all have meaning and impact; very impressive Mr. Branagh (who also directed the film). The only reason I haven’t opted for a higher rating is the character Kathy, Jack’s beloved. She is an important part of the story of who Jack Ryan is and who he will become but she really feels shoe-horned into this film. This is the only weakness I saw of an otherwise good film. Lastly, there were a couple of specific dialogue references in Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit that were clearly intended to make Clancy’s novel fan-base happy. As a long-time fan myself, I certainly appreciated that and more so because of the light touch involved.
Steven Gahm
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