Clear and Present Danger *** (1994, Harrison Ford, Willem Dafoe, Anne Archer, Benjamin Bratt, Thora Birch) – Classic Movie Review 728

Two years after his hit with Patriot Games in 1992, Harrison Ford reprises his role as CIA analyst Jack Ryan in director Phillip Noyce’s pounding 1994 action thriller, with some stupendous action scenes, based on Tom Clancy’s bestselling novel.

Ryan is assigned to investigate the murder of a close friend of the US President (Donald Moffat). It turns out he was implicated in a Columbian drugs cartel – a powerful and ruthless opponent.

But Ryan has to tread carefully as his colleagues prepare to be equally ruthless and treacherous.

Screenwriters Donald Stewart, Steven Zaillian and John Milius work hard to carve out a decent screenplay from Clancy’s book, with some reasonable plotting and good dialogue.

Willem Dafoe, Anne Archer (as Cathy Muller Ryan), Joaquim de Almeida, Henry Czerny, Harris Yulin, Miguel Sandoval, Benjamin Bratt, Thora Birch (as Sally Ryan), Raymond Cruz, Ann Magnuson, Hope Lange, Dean Jones (as Judge Moore) and James Earl Jones co-star in a fine ensemble cast.

After this, Ford bowed out. But the franchise continued with The Sum of All Fears in 2002 when Ben Affleck took over as Jack Ryan. It did well at the box office, taking $120million at the US box office, but it proved Affleck’s only Ryan movie.

After that, the Jack Ryan franchise expired, until it was unexpectedly resuscitated in 2014 with Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, starring Chris Pine.

Tom Clancy died on 1 October 2013.

Dean Jones died of Parkinson’s disease on 1 September 2015 in Los Angeles, aged 84.

© Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Movie Review 728

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