My parents raised me as a reader, stressing that I read for enjoyment and knowledge, so I’ve been reading all of my life. I also consider myself a fairly decent movie buff. Having said all that, I’m sorry to admit I’ve never read a Tom Clancy novel or seen any of the previously made Jack Ryan movies. So I went in to this one fresh with no preconceived notions.
As a spy action film, it started well and I was hooked through the first half to two thirds of the film. Then it sort of fell apart for me. The last part of the movie was hurried through, and I understand they probably did this on purpose to build excitement, but it just felt rushed. Not to mention, the story asked the viewer to follow them on some pretty outlandish leaps of faith. (Really? You can guess the location of bombing from looking at a series of random photos taken? You can guess the exact spot based on looking at blueprints of the area handed to you 2 minutes ago? Many like this in the last 20 minutes of the film.) Really unfortunate, most of the film until then was great.
If the movie does well enough to greenlight a sequel, I’d be in, hoping it to be better, because this one definitely had potential. And it will make me crack a Clancy before too long to see where the muse for the movie started.
Jons Movie Takes 