I watched a little of Spike TV's broadcast of The Hunt For Red October last night and couldn't help thinking what might have been had Alec Baldwin stayed on as Jack Ryan. Baldwin shied away from the franchise because he didn't want to cash in and become an action hero. That aside, I thought he made the most believable Ryan.
The second film, Patriot Games, whose source material was set before Red October, had to be refit for an older Ryan when Harrison Ford stepped in. Ford made the role his own in his second go-round, Clear and Present Danger, but Patriot Games definitely sputtered.
Clancy intended Ryan precisely to break from macho spy tradition; he was an analyst, not a field agent. I think Baldwin could have tapped into this and satisfied his artistic sensibilities.
The cast of Red October was great across the board. Sean Connery's Ramius was backed by Sam Neill as his executive officer. Scott Glenn played the tough but fair sub skipper Bart Mancuso. Courtney B. Vance played inventive sonarman Jones.
4 comments:
I remember reading Patriot Games. I didn't think it was set before Red October. I know Red October was Clancy's first novel. And Patriot Games was a more modern take on "terrorism" in the US, and took place post-October.
Just looked it up, and I stand corrected.
I like Red the most. I did like Willem Dafoe who played John Clark in the Clear and Present Danger, I thought his portrayal was accurate.
I have to agree with you on Baldwin. He does make the best Ryan. Red October is also the best, and the most faithful adaptation, of the movies based on Clancy's books.
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