THE SUM OF ALL FEARS

Starring: Ben Affleck, Morgan Freeman, James Cromwell, Liev Schreiber and Alan Bates
Director: Phil Alden Robinson
Running Time: 124 mins
Certificate: 12

Out to buy on DVD March 31st

The Cold War might be over but the Russians and Americans are still cautious of each other. Fascist extremist Richard Dressler (Bates) and a group of disillusioned wannabe Nazis, see this as a chance to reaffirm Europe's position as a world power by triggering events that will cause Russian and the US to come in to conflict and destroy each other. As Dressler's plan starts to come into fruition and the Americans ready for war, low level CIA analysis Jack Ryan (Affleck) has only hours to convince his superior William Cabot (Freeman) and the President of the United States (Cromwell) that Russia are not the aggressors.

With the current political climate and the world still feeling the effects of September 11th, this movie could have been a complete disaster and could have put the final nail in the coffin of the terrorist thriller. The good news is that the filmmakers have taken an intelligent approach and handled the subject delicately and most importantly, with a great deal of authenticity.

By creating a movie that is both believable and poignant, the film relies more on reason and thinking problems through than in revenge or a lone warrior with an unlimited supply of bullets. It shows you what a Government goes through in a time of extreme crisis and that decisions and conclusions made in the heat of the moment can have a devastating effect.

The performances are very good. James Cromwell and Morgan Freeman bring an element of class to the proceedings but it is Ben Affleck who shines through. Unless he has written it himself or he is under the guidance of Kevin Smith, Ben Affleck cannot act in a big budget movie. As Jack Ryan he breaks this rule and gives his best performance ever as a leading man in a big Hollywood production.

The only problem with the movie is that the filmmakers want you to forget the Jack Ryan you know from The Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger and see this as a fresh start to the Tom Clancy series. By setting the film in modern times and not as a prequel to the previous three movies, you seem to lose any sense of continuation. Whether this is good or bad depends on if you were a fan of the previous films or not.

As with all Tom Clancy adaptations the source material is very good which leads to a more intelligent take on the political thriller. Slow moving at first but thought provoking and with a dramatic and tense final act, The Sum of all Fears is a must for all Clancy fans and anyone enjoys a great thriller.

Commentary by Director Phil Alden Robinson and Cinematographer John Lindley, Commentary by Director Phil Alden Robinson and novelist Tom Clancy, A Cautionary Tale, Creating Reality: The Visual Effects of 'Sum Of All Fears', Theatrical Trailer and Animated Menus