Surely everybody loves a good Tom Clancy spy thriller right? The Sum of All Fears from 2002 follows his Jack Ryan character. Ben Affleck takes over the role from Harrison Ford and is backed up by the excellent Morgan Freeman as the Director of the CIA. Let’s find out if the change works, so without further ado here’s my The Sum of All Fears blu-ray review.
- The Sum of All Fears (2002)
- Genre: Spy Thriller
- Directed by Phil Alden Robinson
- UK Rating 12
- Discs: 1
- Released By Paramount Home Entertainment
- Blu-ray Released: 5 November 2013
Plot
In 1973 an Israeli plane is shot down carrying a nuclear bomb. Skip forward to 2002 and the bomb is dug up in the Golan Heights and sold. Meanwhile the Russians have a new leader and tensions between the two superpowers begins to rise.
CIA director William Cabot and CIA analyst Jack Ryan head over to Russia to examine a Russian nuclear weapons facility and check it is complying with the reduction of nuclear weapons treaty.
However it soon becomes clear that tensions are about to escalate even further and maybe even lead to a full on nuclear war.
Style / Direction
The film is directed by Phil Alden Robinson whilst the cinematography is handled by John Lindley. I found the film to be very stylish, action packed and compelling. The director really does deliver the perfect spy action thriller.
Music / Audio Effects
The music comes from Jerry Goldsmith and is you might expect adds to the onscreen tension perfectly.
Acting / Characters
I’ll openly admit I’m not a huge Ben Affleck fan. He’s fine in a few movies but generally I’m not that impressed. However I found him to be rather good as Jack Ryan. Maybe it was because of the other actors around him made him up his game.
Speaking of other actors Morgan Freeman is on top form as the Director of the CIA. It’s a commanding but warm performance. In fact it’s Freeman’s role that I enjoyed the most.
Elsewhere Bridget Moynahan plays Ryan’s love interest. It’s actually a pretty fleshed out character and one that adds a needed real life perspective.
Cast
- Ben Affleck as Jack Ryan
- Morgan Freeman as William Cabot, Director of the CIA
- Bridget Moynahan as Cathy Mueller
- James Cromwell as J. Robert Fowler, President of the United States
- Liev Schreiber as John Clark
- Michael Byrne as Anatoly Grushkov
- Colm Feore as Olson
- Alan Bates as Richard Dressler
- Ron Rifkin as Sidney Owens, Secretary of State
- Ciarán Hinds as Alexander Nemerov, President of the Russian Federation
- Bruce McGill as Gene Revell
- Richard Marner as President Zorkin, President of the Russian Federation prior to Nemerov
- Philip Baker Hall as David Becker
- Josef Sommer as Senator Jessup
- Ken Jenkins as Admiral Pollack
- Philip Akin as General Wilkes
- John Beasley as General Lasseter
- Joel Bissonnette as Mason
- Sven-Ole Thorsen as Haft
- Lev Prygunov as General Saratkin
- Yevgeni Lazarev as General Dubinin
- Gregory Hlady as Milinov
Conclusion: The Sum of All Fears (2002) Film Review
The Sum of All Fears has everything you want from a Tom Clancy novel. It has a compelling story and a fabulous set of interesting characters.
Make sure you take the time to watch this one as I for one am recommending it as a must see.
If you enjoyed my The Sum of All Fears blu-ray review so far you may want to check out the following films:
Conclusion: The Sum of All Fears Blu-ray Review
There’s good news on the picture quality front as the image is simply perfect. That said the film is only from 2002 so I would expect it to be pretty decent.
The Making of feature is well worth a look and features interviews with all the main cast and crew.
Extras
- Audio Commentaries by director, cinematographer & Tom Clancy
- The Making of The Sum of All Fears (30 mins)
- Creating Reality: The Visual Effects of The Sum of All Fears (28)
- Theatrical Trailer
Popcorn Cinema Rating:
The Sum of All Fears (2002)
MOVIE RATING: MUST SEE
BLU-RAY RATING: EXCELLENT
EXTRAS: GOOD
POPCORN CINEMA: RECOMMENDED
Amazon UK Links
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The Sum of All Fears (2002) Film Trailer
For those of you yet to see the film I’ll leave you with a little taster…
Clip may not representative of the blu-ray version
That concludes my The Sum of All Fears blu-ray review. I’m aiming to review more thrillers over the coming weeks. What’s next? Check back soon…
Summary: The Sum of All Fears (2002) Blu-ray Review
Movie title: The Sum of All Fears (2002)
Duration: 124 mins
Director(s): Phil Alden Robinson
Actor(s): Ben Affleck, Morgan Freeman, Bridget Moynahan, James Cromwell, Liev Schreiber, Ciarán Hinds, Michael Byrne
Genre: Spy Thriller
- Movie Rating
- Blu-ray Picture Rating
- Extras
Summary
Fabulous Tom Clancy spy thriller expertly brought to the big screen.
