By: Anthony Zangrillo
“Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit” reboots one of Tom Clancy’s most iconic characters in an exciting, suspense thriller. In Jack Ryan’s fifth outing, he is portrayed by Chris Pine from the recent “Star Trek” films. Previously, Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, and Ben Affleck have all taken on a mission as the former marine turned banker turned CIA agent.
This movie definitely seems to be intent on beginning a new franchise around this agent. Instead of being thrust into the middle of a top-secret mission, the audience is treated to more of an origin story. Ryan, inspired to protect his country against terrorism, joins the marines, but is injured, when his helicopter is shot down on a mission. He survives and eventually recovers full use of his legs.
A mysterious CIA recruiter, William Harper [Kevin Costner], offers Ryan a job. Ryan accepts and adopts a cover as an analyst on Wall Street. Years later, Ryan notices a discrepancy in the account for a Russian bank that is suspected of funding terrorism. Ryan rushes to Moscow to begin his first field mission as a CIA agent.
Surprisingly, there isn’t as much action as some audience members may expect. The first fight sequence, taking place in a hotel suite in Moscow, is very disorienting, reminiscent of a Michael Bay “Transformers” battle. This is actually somewhat surprising, since Director Kenneth Brannagh’s last big blockbuster film, Thor, did not suffer from this technique. However, as the film progresses, the plot intensifies, culminating in a few impressive car chases, as well as a very suspenseful climax.
Costner begins slowly as The Handler, but I appreciated the character’s active involvement in Moscow, rather than just being a commander in the shadows. Keira Knightly plays Ryan’s love interest and is originally written as a standard feminine character for the action genre. After finding out that her boyfriend is a spy, she becomes more involved in the plot, however, overall, she is still forgettable. Brannagh pulls double duty in this film as the main antagonist and the director. Aside from a few jarring action scenes, his direction was good, but he is only mildly serviceable as a villain. I find it hard for anyone in the audience to truly fear this villain and the logic of some of his actions makes his character very frustrating to watch. Brannagh did express some fleeting moments of intensity, but there were too few to establish the supposed treachery of his character.
Overall, if you need a break from awards season, Jack Ryan is not a bad action movie, however the film has some lost potential. In the wake of Bourne look-a-likes, this movie may not have differentiated itself enough from the pack, however Chris Pine’s portrayal gives me some hope for the future of this franchise, and I look forward to the next installment.
I give this movie a 6.5/10.
