The Hunt for Red October Movie Review

The Hunt for Red October (1990)

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Written by: Tom Clancy (based on the novel by), Larry Ferguson and Donald E. Stewart (screenplay by), David Shaber (screenplay, uncredited)
Directed by: John McTiernan
Starring: Sean Connery, Alec Baldwin, Scott Glenn, Sam Neill, James Earl Jones, Tim Curry, Courtney B. Vance, Stellan Skarsgård, Jeffrey Jones, Fred Thompson
Rated: PG
Watch the trailer

Plot
In November 1984, the Soviet Union's best submarine captain violates orders and heads for the U.S. in a new undetectable sub. The American CIA and military must quickly determine: Is he trying to defect or to start a war?

Verdict
This is a cat and mouse game with a rogue Soviet Union submarine. If you like submarines, this will be a fun movie. It manages to be tense despite the limited settings. Due to being relegated to ships, the action can be stilted. There's only so much you can do underwater. It's life and death, but the effect is muted. The plot is great on paper, it's just difficult to translate that to the screen with the given limitations.
It depends.

Review
It's been a long time since I've seen this. I didn't realize it was a Jack Ryan movie based on a Tom Clancy book. It would be followed by Patriot Games (1992), Clear and Present Danger (1994), The Sum of All Fears (2002), and Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014). This is the only time Alec Baldwin appears as Jack Ryan.

There's just something special about the nostalgia around the time of the Cold War and Soviet submarines that's difficult to fathom now. The Soviet Union was a threat unlike any today. I appreciate the movie had the Soviet crew speaking Russian instead of making it easy and ruining the authenticity, though later they do speak English more frequently.

Sean Connery plays Ramius

Ramius (Sean Connery) is the head of an experimental new submarine, Red October. We soon realize Ramius is up to something, lying to his commanders and crew, but what is his end game? With both missile keys, he has all the power and responsibility as he defies mission orders. We follow the U.S. side of the story through Jack Ryan (Alec Baldwin). While the American are wary and the Soviets want to sink the sub, both sides think Ramius is a renegade that wants to start a war, Ryan theorizes that Ramius's intention might not be nuclear. The Soviets could be after Ramius to stop the technology of Red October from falling into American hands.

Alec Baldwin, Courtney B. Vance play Jack Ryan, Petty Officer Jones

The Soviets are desperate to stop Ramius which leads the U.S. to believe it's a worst case scenario. The Soviets go so far as to request the U.S. help them sink the sub. Ryan has to convince everyone Ramius isn't out to start a war, though he really doesn't have much evidence past his speculations. Ryan is smart enough to prove he's right, or at least get the chance. He even impresses Ramius along the way, correctly guessing exactly what Ramius is planning.

It's a great concept. A Soviet admiral wants to either start a world war or defect. That pits the U.S. and the Soviets against him, but how do you figure out his plan when you can't communicate with him and the Soviets won't reveal the truth? I'd guess this works better as a book. Submarines don't lend themselves to action sequences like cars. It's well plotted, but that also doesn't generate excitement by itself.