Rating: 
Summary: Tom Clancy sold out
Review: I read in the WSJ today ("How to Market Movie About the Bomb So It Won't Be One," May 30, 2002) that Clancy changed the bad guys from Arabs to neo-Nazis for the movie because he wanted to be "sensitive to stereotypes." Pathetic, absolutely pathetic. Is it a stereotype to say that the biggest terrorist attack in the history of the world was carried out by Arab men? The one group that Hollywood still feels it can beat up on is neo-Nazis, even if it's completely ridiculous. I guarantee you, most neo-Nazis are more interested in getting enough money together to buy a six-pack or some crystal meth, than trying to get their hands on a nuke to blow up their own country. On the other hand, if Clancy (who's an executive producer, so he's got NO excuse) had had the integrity to keep the Arabs as the bad guys, we could have had an ultra-realistic, hardhitting and thought-provoking movie. Shame on you Mr. Clancy, shame!
Rating:
Summary: Huh? Clancy's Novel Gets PC Treatment...
Review: One thing strikes me as extremely odd about this film: the folks in Hollywood have opted to get rid of the Middle Eastern terrorists from the book and replace them with Neo-Nazis. Why? I know it's certainly more politically correct to hate white supremacists than the "religion of peace" crowd, but I can't buy the idea of neo-Nazis getting their hands on a nuke and subsequently detonating it. I mean, these goofballs generally just goosestep around at their silly protest marches, proclaiming their ignorance to the world. It requires no stretch of the imagination, however, to believe that if Islamic terrorists ever get their hands on a nuke, they're gonna set it off at the earliest opportunity - a scenario which would have made this movie much more cogent and harrowing. So, why the plot change? Who knows? Perhaps the producers hired CAIR as a creative consultant for the film. So, the sum of all MY fears has been realized: Hollywood leftists are now tinkering with the plots of novels under the banner of political correctness... No thanks.
Rating:
Summary: Wrong Movie for the Right Times
Review: During the Cold War, some of the best cinema sprung up in the form of cautionary tales that echoed the fears of the period. "Fail Safe", "Seven Days in May", "The Day After", and even "Dr. Strangelove" took the complex issues of the day and, as only Hollywood can, put them into perspective. Today, with America engaged in a war against terrorism, "The Sum of All Fears" arrives as the first film to tackle subject matter relevant to this current struggle. In the annals of cinema, Jack Ryan has become the techno-thriller version of the Griswold kids from the "Vacation" series - each film finds him at a different age and circumstance. In this go around, Jack has found the Fountain of Youth, reverting from Harrison Ford's weathered idealist who isn't afraid to confront authority into Ben Affleck's fresh-faced idealist who isn't afraid to confront authority. Some constants, it would seem, remain. Another constant, and certainly for the better, is in the casting of Jack's superior. James Earl Jones' Admiral Cutter has given way to Morgan Freeman's Director Cabot, which is fine since both men fall into the "a film with them just reading the phone book aloud would be interesting" category. Other casting choices for major roles do not fare as well. Liev Schreiber is miscast as Clancy's shadow operative John Clark, especially when contrasted with Willem Dafoe's portrayal of the same character (and even that one was poorly adapted from the novel). James Cromwell puts in a rote performance as President Fowler, going through the same motions that he did in "Eraser", all scowls, sliminess, and bluster, something that suited the vapidness of a Schwarzenegger vehicle but is like a hammer hit repeatedly over the head in this morality play. The two small upsides are Philip Baker Hall, who really only inhabits that brooding in-the-know character he plays so well, and Ciarán Hinds, an Irishman whose Russian Premier would have made Peter Bull ("Dr. Strangelove"'s Ambassador de Sadesky) proud. The downfall of "The Sum of All Fears" is twofold. First is in their adaptation of the source material. Anyone familiar with Clancy's novel of the same name knows that the terrorists attempting to set off a nuke in the USA are Islamic extremists. With today's war on terrorism, where American citizens face the very real possibilities of nuclear and biological attack, the movie could have been a lightning rod for both reminding Americans why they are at war and for putting the spotlight on the breakdowns in intellegence and communication that let determined fanatics slip through the cracks. Instead, the movie, in very contemptible PC fashion, changes the antagonists from Islamic terrorists to (of all things) neo-fascists. That's right - the NAZIs are out to nuke Baltimore, and their costumes come complete with vintage hidden Swastika insignia rings. Even if a viewer can resist laughing at the concept, there is no allowance for taking it seriously. Thus, the event of terrorism is disturbing in and of itself, but lacks the underlying, contemporary insights that would have made for a visceral, jarring, and educating experience. Indeed, it is this dodging of the edgy and most important aspect of the book that makes the major flaw of Clancy's original book all the more unbearable. This review could have been called "A Preachy Book Becomes A Preachy Movie". Jack Ryan plays the modern Cassandra the whole way through, though the time constraints of moviemaking mercifully cull out most of the extended political commentary found in the book. However, the third act of the film mirrors the last act of the book, featuring a ham-fisted President exhibiting the intellectual depth of Duke Nukem blathering about to a soundtrack consisting of long-winded Jack Ryan monologues and declaratives. This material, even as unrefined and obvious as it was in the book, had relevance in the novel given the relation between terrorists and the populations they hide in. In the film, where the...ahem...neo-fascists take a page from the SPECTRE playbook to incite war between Russia and the USA, the preaching and hand wringing clang loudly off the hollow artifice that is the plot. The movie gets two-stars for being an accomplished and well-shot production, as well as for some of the actors in the film. However, the film is really only a one-star excursion for a single reason. For the filmmakers to shoot this material, release this movie, and cover these topics while the USA is at war over similar circumstances, the American public deserves a braver film. By eliminating the elements that tie in all the story's issues to today's news, what could have been a transcendent adaptation of a standard techno-thriller became a mailed-in summer lightweight production of average Tom Clancy fare. Instead of "Fail Safe", we get "Whoops Apocalypse". "The Sum of All Fears" is a wasted opportunity that could have been the right movie for the right times.
Rating: 
Summary: Book to Film Hits a New Low.
Review: Havng read the book, I can tell you that it takes place when Jack Ryan is older and gets to become President of the United States. In this film, that doesn't happen. Here Jack is younger and is trying to use information as his greatest weapon. Not a gun. But the performances are really below par. Even Morgan Freeman does not quite deliver his useual good acting work. Ben Affelick is all wrong for the role. They should have had Alec Baldwin return to play Jack Ryan one more time. These Tom Clancy based films have really fallen by the way side.When Hollywood makes movies like this, it reminds one all too much of the sorry state of things that we see everyday on the news, I think there will be a growing number of film goers who don't want to see films like this anymore, but yearn to see better new films that help us flee from the everyday negative world around us, to better tomorrows and futures as seen in science fiction and fantasy films.
Rating: 
Summary: Fun and suspenseful
Review: I'm a hard-core Tom Clancy fan and was surprised to see how much this latest film adaptation wandered from the book, but it was still very entertaining. The latest incarnation of Jack Ryan is very young and inexperienced. The film seems to pretend the other Jack Ryan adventures haven't happened. Jack is new with the CIA and doesn't know the ropes the way he does in the book. He isn't even married yet. Morgan Freeman is wonderful as his boss (no surprise there) and the relationship between them is the best part of the film. I'm no expert, but there seemed to be some technical flaws which required that the viewer suspend their skepticism. (Would cell phones continue to work when your local area has been hit by a nuke?) Still a worthy addition to the series. Clancy's readers will have to be especially open-minded though.
Rating: 
Summary: I liked it. I REALLY liked it.
Review: I saw this movie at a theatre for the first time and thought it was an 'excellent' movie. I thought it was excellent because I felt 'something' as I was walking out of the theatre. I don't know- I liked particularly the latter part of the movie, where Ben Affleck tries to convince both side to the very ending of the movie. I am not personally familiar with Tom Clancy's novels (I began to read his novels, after watching this movie twice, starting with 'the Hunt for Red October'), meaning I'm giving this review purely from 'unadulterated' perspective. It looks like lot of reviewers gave this movie low rating due to 'political incorrectness' and 'revisions' from original plot. However, I still thought it was an excellent movie for several reasons. Honestly I could not pinpoint exactly why I felt 'moved' when I was walking out of theatre nor inspired watching it on DVD again- I think, I think I felt moved and inspired because it does demonstrate a glimpse of 'truth', the truth that all nuclear war is possible as long as we and they have them. Our very fear of nuclear war might have diminished considerably after the end of the Cold War era, however, the 'possibility' still exists as long as the existence of nuclear weapons is a fact. I do not think the 'possibility' of nuclear war would differ whether it's Neo-Nazis or some fundamental terrorists trying to accomplish their purpose; the 'more' important point is that the sum of all fears will exists no matter what. I think I was moved because of another possibility that this existence of sum of all fears can be prevented by one side's willingness to yield and back down 'unconditionally'. This was very important factor, at least for a novice movie critic like myself, because you are preventing the sum of all fears by 'putting down' your pride and even risking everything you have- I was definitely inspired by Russian president's very courageous and bold decision in the heat of the moment... wow. You know, perhaps I was moved walking out of the theatre on one sunny day because of realization that anything is possible. Anything is possible in the sense that I might die or vaporize instantly without knowing it, especially when you went through and witness 9/11. I was motivated to live my life more faithfully and courageously. And I also want to believe that the good of humanity can be achieved through true courage. (I'm being sidetrack here...but who's real 'chicken' when you refuse to smoke back in high school under peer-pressure? Those, who try to force you to smoke and call you 'chicken' for not smoking, are the ones who couldn't stand up to the peer-pressure in the first place...the true C) I liked the ending, whether it's realistic or not, to see that there are still forces working for the good of humanity. Alrite people..better get back to Ryan now.
Rating:
Summary: Reall good film
Review: Can Ryan save the world from a terrible war? Well we can only hope. Ben Affleck has been cast as Ryan, and he actually surprised me. He takes over for Harrison Ford who had the part in previous films. He was really good in the role. He brings something new and different to the role. I watched this movie more because of Morgan Freeman then Ben Affleck. I know I'm dating myself, but I've been a Morgan Freeman fans since seeing him on the Electric Company on PBS. Ryan is a rookie who helps to unravel a plot that could have the Russians and America at war with one another. A nuclear bombs goes off in Baltimore and the two countries point the fingers at one another. Morgan plays Affleck's boss and friend in this film , and his performance is outstanding. There is a touch of comedy that takes the edge off in the flim, but you never lose fact of the terror and drama in the film. I've rented this film 4 times so far. I think I will end up buying this one to add to my collection. It's not often I like a movie with Ben in it.
Rating:
Summary: If I didn't read the book first, I might've liked it.
Review: For those of you who haven't read any of the books in the Jack Ryan series, rent this movie, you may like it, but I am totally biased against it from this point on. The movie changed way too much of the book. Pretty much everything about Ryan is different. In the books, Jack Ryan is one of my favorite heros, he's a real person that is put into tough situations and with all of his skill and intuition, he comes out on top, in the movie, I cannot see any of it.
The main things that kept me from putting the book down were the side stories. How Ryan's stress levels were effecting his professional and personal life. Ryan's relationship with Clark (which in the movie seems like they just met). Chavez is one of my favorite charactors, I'm not really sure why, he just is, and he was totally cut out.
I don't know, to me, the movie was a complete failure as a book adaptation. If they said that they were making a movie from a few of Clancy's ideas, then it would've been OK, but as a movie that should have closely stuck to the book, it was horrendous.
Rating:
Summary: The Sum of All Failures
Review: From seeing the Sum of All Fears it looks like Clancy needs to excercize more conrol over his books being released as movies. The director & writers did a simply horrible job. First, the movie is nearly completely sanatized of any Islamic terrorist themes which were in the book. The director obviously went way overboard in trying to make everything so P.C.that any reader of the book will see the movie as boring and lame, not to mention virtually unrecognizable. Also, the native Indian radical is written out of the movie as are the East German scientists & a great ending with peace in the Middle East. Nearly all of the Arabic characters are also written out of the movie too. If is by FAR the worst adaption of any Clancy book to movies.
The movie also confuses Jack Ryan fans by making him unmaried, his CIA co-workers look like a bunch of high school kids at lunch break & the acting is fairly poorly done except for the guy playing the Russian president. The going back to the past just does not work & the flick is a failure. Don't waste your time or money on it. Go see the Search for Red October or Clear and Present Danger instead.
Rating:
Summary: DON'T SPEND ONE CENT ON THIS HORRIBLE ADAPTATION
Review: The challenge facing any screenwriter attempting to adapt a Clancy novel is what to cut from the massive tome to fit the two-hour film run-time limit that theater owners so desperately covet.
For instance, the huge scope of "Red October" was cut to the bone, but just deftly enough to be a decent film. The plots of the other two (Clancy books made into films) actually lent themselves well to film adaptation.
Also, in light of 9/11, a case could be made that "Sum" is Clancy's most terrifying and realistic novel, so great care should have been exercised in bringing this to the screen.
The cinematic result, however, is so hackneyed, so utterly ludicrous, that what was supposed to be high drama and suspense delivers nothing to the devoted Clancy fan but utter disappointment.
The film's first problem is the casting of Ben Affleck as Jack Ryan. Clancy's Jack Ryan is a CIA analyst, an intellectual who is always forced into reluctant action by circumstance.
Affleck's portrayal of Ryan is nothing but the same wide-eyed, slack-jawed, one-note performance that he has phoned-in on every film he's ever done. Wherever he delivers any line concerning analysis of data, people or scenarios, Affleck is totally unbelievable as Ryan.
At least Alec Baldwin, and especially Harrison Ford, correctly nailed the nuances of Ryan's character. But those guys are actors WITH chops, something Affleck is totally devoid of, and boy, is it obvious and ugly to watch.
The second problem is the concession (to the Islamic community in this country) that the producers made of shifting the book's main protagonists from Islamic terrorists to Neo-Nazis. In one scene, the Nazi Big Cheese (the always wonderful, but here, totally wasted Alan Bates) reflects that Hitler was stupid for taking on the Russians and Americans instead of getting them to destroy each other. He plans to do just this by detonating a nuclear bomb on U.S. soil, and an associated rogue military act, to goad the two countries to full nuclear war and then rule the world afterward.
In the book, the full-scale nuclear exchange scenario was not the design of the Islamic protagonist, but rather a horrifying extension of external circumstance surrounding the detonation of a terrorist's single atomic bomb. The film's revised premise is a terrible compromise that just makes no sense whatsoever: There wouldn't be much left to take over after a full nuke exchange between the U.S. and Russia.
The film's biggest problem, however, is the script, which heaps contrivance upon contrivance, going from bad to worse as the film progresses.
Examples: There is a jarring instant geographical shift of Ryan from the U.S. to a covert mission deep inside Russia with no explanation of how he got there; Ryan in downtown post-nuclear explosion Baltimore, clad in nothing but a sweater, with no apparent radiation/fallout after-effects; Ryan using the crashed helicopter radio that still functions after being EMP'd by the nuclear detonation (didn't the screenwriters do ANY research on the subject at all, or at least watch a "Broken Arrow" DVD?); Ryan utilizing his mentor's PDA (also exposed to the EMP but also still miraculously functioning) to communicate with the CIA's deepest mole inside the Kremlin (anybody at the CIA have a security problem with one of their own having a direct communication link to their highest level Russian source???!!!).
And here's one for you: Ryan is running thru post-blast downtown Baltimore because he's chasing the bad guys who installed the bomb: Why would those guys still be in Baltimore? To hang out and roast radioactive weenies? No, it's because the screenwriters needed to set up a ridiculous fight scene with the personal bodyguard of the Nazi Big Cheese, who A.) had never been shown in the U.S. prior to this scene, and more importantly B.), WHY WOULD HE BE THERE WHEN HE KNOWS THE BOMB IS GOING TO DETONATE??!!
And just when you think it's over, just when you thought it couldn't get any more ludicrous, the final scene is so silly that the writers should be locked up and never allowed near a Powerbook ever again.
The wonderful supporting cast are the only redeeming thing this vapid clunker has to offer (once again, the magnificent Morgan Freeman rises above terrible material).
Clancy himself is listed as exec producer of this croaker. Maybe not having enough cash to buy the Minnesota Vikings a few years ago was such a blow to his ego that he's willing to compromise the book he fashioned with such wondrous detail and imagination, just for the almighty buck.
Geez, Tom, your fans, and especially Jack Ryan, deserve a WHOLE lot better.
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