HTF REVIEW: " The Sum Of All Fears" (with screenshots) (1 Viewer)

[Ed Vandeweerd]

Thanks for the review Ron but I am boycotting this film. Ben Affleck does not have the Authority necessary as an Actor to make him a Believable Jack Ryan. Judging by it's theatrical run and the storm of controversy around Affleck's assumption of the role neither the critics nor the public believed or bought his portrayal. I emailed Tom Clancy personally. He wrote back simply that he disagreed and that Ben Affleck is the future for Jack Ryan. I replied by asking him to watch how long it stays in the theatres and made the prediction that Affleck would be the death of the "Jack Ryan Franchise". He of course did not reply.

 

[Paul_D]

I replied by asking him to watch how long it stays in the theatres and made the prediction that Affleck would be the death of the "Jack Ryan Franchise".

$118 million domestic gross. There's your answer.

 

[Leif Wall]

Just watched this movie tonight. I'm not a Clancy reader or anything, but I was thoroughly entertained and like the movie.

The transfer was a little dark, just had to bump my brightness up about 2-3 notches in my 53" Panny. Edge enhancement on the credits, but I probably wouldn't of even noticed had I not read about it first. I have a tough time seeing any edge enhancement on any dvd.

The audio was killer. That nuke came out of nowhere and my SVS had the house rocking.

A good add to the dvd collection for me.

 

[Steve_AA]

Watched this Sat night. I could see EE all over the place in this transfer. By comparison, the night before I watched "The Panic Room" .... no EE anywhere, very nice picture.

 

[Greg*go]

I just watched this film and thought it was great. Although it doesn't have everything the book includes, I can't really expect it too (unless I want a 5 hr movie). I remember flipping through the pages late at night during high school eager to get to the end, then upset that I finished it. The film was slow going off, but picked up pace soon enough. I noticed some edge enhancement... particularly when I was trying to read some of the credits at the end. I haven't yet listened to Clany's commentary, but hopefully get around to it in the next week.
As far as the casting... It was interesting to see how they are redeveloping Jack Ryan, Affleck wasn't as bad as I feared he would be, and I eagerly await to see what the next film is going to be and how they'll incorporate a young Ryan into the picture. But my favorite casting decision was the John Clark character. Schreiber was MUCH MUCH better then Willem Dafoe in Clear & Present Danger. I always imagined Clark to be a bad ass, and Dafoe just didn't pull it off.
With Schreiber, my wish of having my favorite Clancy book appear on the big screen (Without Remorse) would be nice.

 

[Ric Easton]

Got this one for Christmas and just finished watching it. It did take a little bit of adjustment getting used to the reinventing of Jack Ryan. In the book was it supposed to be more of a prequel of Ryan's earlier years? This seems to take place in the present, so I guess we are just supposed to dismiss the other JR movies continuity wise.
I did notice the film looked a little dark at times, but it didn't really bother me much... For the most part I thought the sound and picture were great. Admittedly, I am not sure exactly what I should be looking for regarding edge enhancement. I have heard you folks talk about it from time to time, but I am not sure I have ever noticed it. Your eyes must be better than mine!
As much as I started out missing Harrison Ford, I enjoyed the movie and am looking forward to seeing how the new series develops. I assume they plan on making more with Affleck.
I look forward to listening to the commentaries, especially Clancy's
Ric

 

[jonathan_little]

I thought Clancy came off as a pompous know-it-all in the commentary. Sure, Tom does seem to know his stuff, but he obviously made Phil Alden Robinson feel uneasy or even possibly offended after some of his comments. I couldn't help but feel sorry for Phil while I was listening to most of the track. The other commentary has none of this uncomfortable tension, and I enjoyed it a bit more because of that.

 

[Ric Easton]

Y'know, I got about halfway thru that commentary and couldn't listen anymore! Clancy was very condescending! "That's bullcrap! This is wrong... They would not use that kind of jet... blah, blah, blah..." Sheesh! What a know-it-all grouch!

Ric

 

[Mark Lee]

Just picked up this disc in a trade -- had seen the movie during its theatrical run, even though I try to avoid most Ben Affleck vehicles as a rule of thumb. (Guess it was my residual Tom Clancy-philia that took over.) Anyway, while I had found Ben a bit callow-seeming in this movie the first time around (and still found him that way the second time, and third time.... ), the movie was entertaining enough to be worth picking up in trade. Besides, I was really interested to hear Tom Clancy participating in an audio commentary on one of his stories, at last! I'd heard that he personally preferred Alec Baldwin's portrayal of Jack Ryan to Harrison Ford's, and that he generally approved of Sum's conversion to the big screen, so I was curious what he'd say.
I thought his commentary was great!!

Y'know, I got about halfway thru that commentary and couldn't listen anymore! Clancy was very condescending! "That's bullcrap! This is wrong... They would not use that kind of jet... blah, blah, blah..." Sheesh! What a know-it-all grouch!

Of course he comes off as a know-it-all -- in the realm of military gadgetry and minutiae, he does know it all! One usually doesn't run to a Tom Clancy book for deep, nuanced character portrayals (though even he seems to have them all over some of his contemporary techno-thriller authors, like Larry Bond). What one is looking for, first and foremost, is a voice of authority on all things military, from the precise yield of a Trident ballistic missile, to the particular sound of an AK-47 vs an M-16. (At least, that's what I'm looking for when I pick up one of his books.) So while SOAF didn't bug me off-the-bat, accuracy-wise, the same way Red October did, I found it fascinating to see how a "military geek" would pick apart the film, in the same way many of the folks on this forum pick apart the latest Star Wars installment. And why shouldn't he be a bit crotchety? He prides himself on his strict adherence to detail when he's describing the technology in his books, so I would imagine those seemingly niggling little insignificances loom mighty large in his mind while he's watching the film! True, he could've been a bit more diplomatic, but given how much success he's had over the years in this area, I would imagine he's developed something of a big head when it comes to matters like this.
A priceless commentary, overall!