Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit Review
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit is a reboot of the old action thriller series based on the works of Tom Clancy, and featuring the character Jack Ryan. For those of you unfamiliar with the mythos, Ryan is a CIA analyst that often finds himself in political, and ultimately dangerous, situations. This reboot is the origin story for the character, which is in itself a new thing. That being said, that's just about all that's new with this movie. Much of it is taken from the generic international espionage genre mold. However, that mold has proven itself to be entertaining, no matter how many times it's used. This is no different with Shadow Recruit.
Chris Pine has taken over as Jack Ryan, a role previously held by Alec Baldwin in The Hunt for Red October, Harrison Ford in Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger, and most recently Ben Affleck in The Sum of All Fears. I've gradually come to be a big Chris Pine fan after seeing him in films like Tony Scott's Unstoppable alongside Denzel Washington, and in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek flicks as Captain James Kirk. I just think he's a really good actor, and he's no different in Shadow Recruit. A rock solid performance by Pine, and perhaps the best portrayal of Jack Ryan yet.
The film also stars Keira Knightley as Ryan's girlfriend. I'm going to be honest, I'm not a very big fan of Knightley. This was true for me in Shadow Recruit as well. I don't know what it is, but I just do not like her as an actress. She doesn't ruin the movie, but I didn't think she added anything to it, either. Kevin Costner stars as Ryan's mentor of sorts. It's a conventional role in a spy movie, but Costner plays it admirably.
Kenneth Branagh not only directs the film, but also appears in it as the villain, Viktor Cherevin. The name alone sounds like a pretty by-the-numbers Russian antagonist, and while Branagh is able to give the character a bit of flare, he is largely the typical villain you'd expect in an international spy flick.
Shadow Recruit is able to provide a commendable amount of genuine thrills, despite it being quite generic in structure. There were moments of true white-knuckle excitement, and even a couple of times where I jumped in my seat. All this is to say that I found this Jack Ryan flick to be reasonably thrilling. Not as consistently as one might hope, but certainly enough to keep me engaged.
I have never read the Tom Clancy novels featuring Jack Ryan, so I don't know how accurate the film adaptions are. However, I enjoyed all 4 of the previous adaptions (yes, even The Sum of All Fears), and I regard them as quite respectable political action thrillers. They're not as flashy and exciting as the Die Hard franchise, nor as smart and visceral as the Bourne films. Nonetheless, they get the job done, and satisfy me every time. Shadow Recruit is the same. It won't be thought of as one of the best movies of the year, and probably not of the franchise either. But, I thoroughly enjoyed my time watching it, which is what going to the theater is all about, right? And in this dry January movie season, it's a pleasant and welcome surprise.
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