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Clear and Present Danger (1994)

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108 comments in total

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19 out of 23 people found the following comment useful :-
Best Clancy Film so Far..., 18 septiembre 2002

Author: mr_sboub de Switzerland

With 2002's Sum of All Fears in close 2nd, this one remains the best of all 4: it has Harrison Ford as Ryan, solid sub-plots (the one involving Dafoe as John Clark [Liv Schreiber in SOAF]being the best!) and moral dimension, especially in the ambiguous sense toward the end. I've read many of Clancy's books, and many are very good (well, the early Ryan series are great but after Debt of Honor they went downhill!), however they are all VERY long (mostly 800p +), detailed and complex, so adapting them into 120p screenplays must be a nightmare, but Clancy actually participated in the writing of this one - along with Steve Zallian (Schindler's List) and John Millius, no less! - so it turns out we get a decent enough one. In all fairness, the script is great, featuring a slightly different ending than the book. If you add good actors and tight direction (Noyce knows Jack Ryan and Ford, since he already directed Patriot Games) you can not go wrong, and this flies high. Smart, tight, utterly convincing and believable and well executed, this is that rare brainy "action" film that does get you involved and hanging on the edge of your seat.

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16 out of 20 people found the following comment useful :-
Great Clancy novel brought to life., 7 agosto 2003

Author: Twilight_Wraith

I have to say that ALL of the Clancy novels that were made into films, with the exception of "The Sum of All Fears" were brought to life as great films. Harrison Ford reprises his role as Dr. Jack Ryan, who is forced in this film to step into the shoes of Admiral Greer, who is dying. While there is a lot of each characters personal lives carefully inserted into the film, it NEVER ceases to be clever and interesting. It's much better to watch than any senseless action picture with Bruce Willis or your wimpy little Ben Affleckish character. The film is perfectly balanced so that there is not a single boring scene in the picture. The wheels are constantly turning to make sure something dramatic is happening to really draw you further into the picture. I recommend this movie as well as it's two predecessors, "The Hunt for Red October", and "Patriot Games". Both of which are equally brilliant.

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15 out of 19 people found the following comment useful :-
A Lot More Good Than Bad, 21 marzo 2006

Author: ccthemovieman-1 de Lockport, NY, United States

Harrison Ford returns as "Jack Ryan," star of the very well-done "Patriot Games," the film adaption off the best-selling Tom Clancy novels. Also returning are Anne Archer and James Earl Jones.

THE BAD - This isn't as intense, especially in the first half hour, as Patriot Games and the ending was a little disappointing with a action-scene credibility problem. Once again - it's getting to be a tired Hollywood theme - top U.S. government officials, going all the way to the President, are corrupt people, liars not to be trusted.

THE GOOD - It's nice to see Willem Dafoe finally play a good guy. The villains in here are deceptively interesting, actors such as Joaquim De Almeida, Harris Yulin and Henry Czerny and Miguel Sandoval - not big names but recognizable and good actors. The violence is not overdone in here and when the action does occur, the sound is terrific. The best action scene was shootout in the streets with snipers firing at cars below.

The positives are far more than the negatives, making this a solid thriller.

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8 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
A more cerebral Ryan, and a more Machiavellian cast, 12 abril 2003
Author: steve-thomp de Victoria, Australia

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

This is a completely different film to its predecessor, Patriot Games - not necessarily better or worse, but its tone and direction are much more different, and its use of Ryan certainly is. We see far more of James Earl Jones' character Greer in this movie, and that is a good thing: he is a strong figure, a mentor and a sounding-board for Ryan, and watching his decline and death brings both counterpoint and perspective to the other on-screen events. The other supporting cast don't serve a single-minded purpose as they did in Patriot Games, rather they interact more, engage in political manouvreing, and indulge in self-serving machination. Ryan tries to weave his way through all this, choosing the path he believes is right, often with great doubt and a lack of confidence. This is not Patriot Games, where the goals and the target were clear and distinct, and where the cast either attacked or defended you - this is a far more politically unstable movie.

Corruption is an underlying theme in this movie. It is not necessary big-money corruption, merely the act of cover-up, subterfuge and failure to follow due process. The president wants vengance against Colombian drug lords so orders covert military operations, against the express wishes of Congress, while bit-players in the CIA and NSC manouvre to protect themselves if and when it all goes bad. When it does, they surrender the troops in a fit of deal-making and cover-up, while the key drug lord himself has been double-crossed. Ryan, in the guise of intelligence expert rather than fighter (though he sees his share of that) puts all the pieces together and goes to any extent to do what is right: firstly to rescue the troops from Colombia, and then to expose the stench of presidential and bureacratic corruption. Can you guess if he is successful?

The stand-out scene is when Ryan returns and confronts the President in the Oval Office, bunting away his offers and then his threats. Ford's acting in this scene is terrific: he conveys frustration, sadness and raw fury, barely restrained by respect for the office, as he squares off against the most powerful man in the world. But in the end he leaves with his dignity intact, which is the underlying moral of the story: that doing the right thing is ultimately dignifying. In essence this is what Tom Clancy's Ryan is all about.

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9 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
Fully Entertaining, 27 septiembre 2003
Author: RamRichards

I don't know of anybody who doesn't like this movie, Clear and Present Danger. There was a funny cartoon I once read called Clear and Present Dangerfield which showed Rodney Dangerfield saying "I get no respect from these terrorists!" Very funny. The movie has some cheesy moments and some patriotic moments John Wayne would be proud of. The book and movie are different but the book, like most of Tom Clancy's books are so long that it's not possible to make it into an alike movie. So therefore the movie is focused on the parts with Jack Ryan and the other characters are hardly in it. Henry Czerny comes across as the top supporting actor in it and earned some roles from his solid underrated performance. Donald Moffat plays a two-faced president better than any actor who would have otherwise played him as a straight up mean dictator. Like in the book, the President has no name, he simply goes by the name the President of the United States of America. Philip Noyce does his job well at directing this picture. And of course this is one of Harrison Ford's last great roles since he did a Tom Hanks and has been desperate for an Oscar ever since. Overall, it's a great movie for anyone to enjoy.

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14 out of 20 people found the following comment useful :-
One of my all time favorite movies, 3 mayo 2002
Author: Sm5454 (qumn4545@aol.com)

A CIA anaylst, Jack Ryan(Harrison Ford), is promoted to Deputy Director of Intelligence of the CIA after Admiral James Greer(James Earl Jones) suffers from illness. A close friend of the president(Donald Moffat) is murdered. The situation gets worse when the President is convinced to take actions against the drug cartels. Felix Cortez plays both sides. He tries to "inform" the CIA and he also works with the cartels. James Cutter(Harris Yulin) an advisor to the President, makes a deal with Cortez, and cuts off communications to troops in Columbia, through the Deputy Director of CIA Operations, Robert Ritter(Henry Czerny). Ryan goes to Colombia to save the troops with the help of John Clark(Willem Dafoe), but not before Ritter blames Ryan for Clark's men being captured by Cortez's mercenaries.

Clear and Present Danger is a great action/political thriller that is one of my all time favorite movies. Ford gives a great performance, perhaps his best. Theres also a great supporting cast including Willem Dafoe, Henry Czerny, and James Earl Jones. Besides powerful drama, Clear and Present Danger supplies good action sequences. I haven't read the book, but I plan to after seeing this movie.

Although the plot is a bit complex, this is a great movie and a must see. If you like Ford, action, or great drama, then Clear and Present Danger is a movie you should see. This film recieves my highest recommendation. 10/10

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9 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
A commercial thriller that lacks intelligence and ignores complexity but is still entertaining and provides good thrills on the Hill and in the jungle, 25 octubre 2006
Author: bob the moo de Birmingham, UK

When Admiral Greer is diagnosed with cancer, Jack Ryan finds himself as Acting Deputy Director of Intelligence at the same time as one of the President's personal friends is murdered by a Columbian drugs cartel. Despite the suggestion that his friend was involved in illegal money laundering the President gives the "unofficial" nod to National Security Adviser Cutter who falsifies a Presidential Order for Robert Ritter to employ a covert operation to strike at Escobedo's operations in Columbia. Meanwhile Ryan goes before the Senate to get funding for the fight on drugs – although the funding does not include troops or direct action, which doesn't concern Jack as he is out of the loop on the covert op. While Jack tries to trace the money on the laundering, Clark's men get bombing in the Columbia jungle. However as things start to get out of control, political backs get covered, plausible deniability kicks in and both Ryan and Slater find themselves exposed and in danger.

Despite Ryan's outings in Patriot Games and Sum of All Fears being roundly average at best, I decided to try this film and I actually found it quite easy to enjoy. The first thing to state is that it is very safe and commercial thriller in that, for all its supposed commentary on corruption and drugs, it really doesn't say much and the good guys and bad guys are painted very clearly and the lines between them are clean. Those familiar with the much more interesting look at America and drugs presented in HBO's The Wire will not find the same level of intelligence or comment in this film. Of course this doesn't make this a bad film, but perhaps a weaker one. The plot uses these clear lines and turns in an enjoyable if basic mix of political drama and action thrills. I found myself quite gripped by some parts and the plot regularly throw up tough talking and action to keep things interesting.

Although Ford is already looking a bit older, he fits in perfectly on the "intelligence" side of the film but when he is called into action on the streets of Columbia then he doesn't look the part at all. Much better at this is Dafoe, who spends the majority of this in his own little action movie. He is convincing and was a good call for the role, although it doesn't help that the material calls for Ford to occupy equal status with him in the action stakes. Providing the political tough talk with good turns are Czerny, Yulin and Moffat – each would have benefited from the script recognising the complexities of right and wrong but this wasn't the place for that. Almedia and Sandoval are both pretty average but they are handed half-cooked clichés to work with so it isn't really their fault.

Overall this is a perfectly serviceable commercial thriller and I have no doubt that those who accepted the problems in Patriot Games and Sum of All Fears will find this easy to enjoy. Personally I would have liked a bit more intelligence instead of the black/white approach but it still worked for what it was and it was effective in catching me up.

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10 out of 14 people found the following comment useful :-
Harrison Ford on form in an excellent movie, 27 febrero 2005

Author: rudgeno1-1 de United Kingdom

I have read some quite negative reviews of this film, with many being upset by the lack of coherence with the book despite taking it's characterisations etc...I agree that the film does not follow the book particularly well but it is a film, for film watchers, not a book or a film for book readers so stop criticising it on that level. This film is entertaining from start to finish with a surprisingly clever plot considering the genre and credit must go to Ford for starring and excelling in yet another blockbuster. People may say he's not the most versatile actor in the world and I'm not going to disagree, but he does what he does brilliantly and those who don't enjoy this movie really do need a good talking to. Along with Patriot Games, this is part of an impressive set of movies which are far more entertaining than the books (perhaps thats because I'm not an avid reader) and shall keep all you viewers out there happy, if only for a short while.

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6 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
Excellent! Worthy of the Jack Ryan Series!, 6 abril 2003
Author: Andrew KITCHENER de Sydney, NSW, Australia

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

With the book being so long, obviously not all of the plot twists and events could be squeezed into this film, which is a little over 2 hours.

With respect to this, the movie is very good, with a good mix of action scenes and strong politically minded scenes. One major shame was the ending and the omission of notable characters that played a part in the end of the book. This was the same with Patriot Games.

My only disappointment was that Ryan's friend Dan Murray was killed in the same scene where Emil Jacobs, the FBI Director was killed. He was a good character, but wasn't given time to show. In the books Murray becomes FBI Director at the end of Clancy's series.

Other than the scenes with Murray and Jack Ryan, the acting and drama was perfect. A worthy addition to the Jack Ryan Series, and much better than ‘The Sum of All Fears' with Ben Affleck was Ryan.

Harrison Ford is without doubt the best Jack Ryan.

Top notch!!!

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7 out of 9 people found the following comment useful :-
Condensed Clancy, 8 abril 2000

Author: goggy turk de Aberdeen, Scotland

The makers of this movie are to be congratulated for turning a Tom Clancy doorstop into a tense, tightly woven international thriller with a top notch cast and believeable plot. Where the previous two Jack Ryan movies depended on stunts and quite unbelieveable plot twists this film concentrates on a grubby little military/political incident (more the domain of intelligence men) and the men of honour and integrity (Ford and an under used Dafoe) trapped in the middle of it.

I also like this movie for its subtle dig at the American establishment and how it assumes it can coerce the weak into doing its bidding.

The Clark character in Clancy's fiction is an interesting one and deserves to be further developed. Casting Willem Dafoe in the part was actually a stroke of genius, and I could easily imagine his character in Platoon doing this kind of work if he had survived Vietnam. The fact that Dafoe is one of THE most underrated actors in Hollywood also means I like this.

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