Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014) – Review

Review: Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit is generic yes, but still an entertaining and thrilling origin story. The film is about Jack Ryan, a man studying at Oxford who decides to leave school to join the Marines after the events of September 11, 2001. However, while in combat in Afghanistan, a helicopter he is traveling in is shot down severely injuring him, ending his military career. Now looking for a new way to serve, Ryan is approached by the CIA to join their financial crimes unit (being that he was working on his PhD in Economics before leaving school). Ryan accepts their offer and moves to New York to work on Wall Street (after finishing his PhD program). Meanwhile, Ryan courts Cathy Muller, a resident that he met while recovering from his injuries suffered in Afghanistan. Ten years later, Ryan and Muller are living together in New York and he is working in a trading firm, monitoring their trades for suspicious activity. He comes across something odd and the CIA sends him to Russia to investigate. Ryan thinks that the trades he is seeing could lead to the economic meltdown of the US economy coupled with a terrorist attack. But first he must uncover the plot.

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit is an adequate film in most every regard. It does what it sets out to do – i.e. it is a good origin story for Jack Ryan that will hopefully set up further adventures. Director Kenneth Branagh does a good job managing the characters, keeping the story and action moving forward, and creating exciting action beats.

That said, the biggest weakness of the film is that it is very generic. It is more or less a Jason Bourne, Ethan Hunt, James Bond type modern action thriller that audiences have seen many times and in some cases done better. Conceptually there is nothing new about this film or this type of character on a general level, and the action too is very typical. It is also a wonder that the film is based on an original story only using Tom Clancy’s characters rather than on one of the many Clancy stories that could have been slightly amended to be an origin story. Why ignore his vast array of great stories that are proven? The story in Shadow Recruit is not bad by any means; it is just typical and unsurprising. And thus, much of the story and the action (all being nothing new) sort of play in the background to what is actually the best part of the film: the characters themselves, specifically the villain Viktor Cherevin and Cathy Muller (who has an expanded role compared to other Jack Ryan films).

Branagh has always been a director who does his best work with actors, with the other aspects of filmmaking being more ordinary (that is to say, he is not a great director but an adequate one who generally gets good performances). The best part of this film is the performances – the dialogue scenes between characters are much more interesting than any of the bigger action beats. Though, to his credit, Branagh does keep all the action engaging and exciting. Personally, my favorite scene in the film came when Jack and Cathy meet Viktor for dinner. They put on a rouse to distract him while Jack breaks into his office to steal some documents, leaving Cathy to entertain/distract Viktor. The interplay between Cathy and Viktor is a lot of fun, and there is a nice bit of tension as the whole thing could be discovered at any moment. It feels like a classic spy-film scene.

Another thing that Branagh does to keep the film engaging is that he paces the film to move briskly. The film’s first act sprints through the events of Jack’s early life that shape who he is and why he ultimately ends up with the CIA. To some extent, the film probably could have been drawn out another 30-45 minutes for more development, which could have provided more character depth and narrative detail (and given it more of a classic spy-movie feel). But, at some stage the decision was made for this film to be more of a Hollywood style action thriller that relies on economic storytelling, quick pacing, and lots of action beats (Shadow Recruit is the shortest of all five Jack Ryan films), which is fine but it just leaves it feeling similar to many other action thriller franchises audiences have seen in the last few years. It does not bring anything new or different to the table, or really even try.

Jack Ryan has always been a character in film who finds himself pulled into action scenarios (even though he is constantly complaining that he is just an analyst). With Shadow Recruit, he is made an operative at one point, and the audience is shown (briefly) that he has a background as a Marine (rescuing two soldiers from the helicopter crash while having a broken back). Thus, his role as a man of action is not as surprising (as say Harrison Ford’s Jack Ryan who is a wrecking ball) – plus, this is what modern action film have become. Average movie fans do not want to see a man who stops terrorist plots from a desk (similar to a film like Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy); they want their star in the middle of all the action creating almost a mandate for what Hollywood franchise action thrillers should be.

 And so, on a brief side note, here is my ranking of all the Jack Ryan films (for those who are interested): 1) The Hunt for Red October (probably the most true to the idea of the character, but Ryan is really not the lead in the film), 2) Patriot Games, 3) Clear and Present Danger, 4) Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, and 5) The Sum of All Fears.

 All in all, Shadow Recruit works fine as the first chapter of the Jack Ryan reboot, and it does its job (as I would be interested in seeing future adventures with these characters and actors – but that all depends on international box office now, as this underperformed domestically opening weekend). And I suspect that fans of the genre, especially those who like it with a bit of action, will enjoy the film as it is both thrilling and entertaining, and best of all features good characters/performances.

Technical, aesthetic & acting achievements: Kenneth Branagh is best known for his work directing and starring in his adaptations of William Shakespeare’s work. In particular, his versions of Henry V, Much Ado About Nothing, and Hamlet are great (and are to this date still his best films). But then he directed Thor for Marvel, and has since been expanding his scope as a filmmaker. As said in the review, the best moments of Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit come in the scenes between characters, and that speaks to what kind of director Branagh is, but he does a good enough job with the action too. I am interested to see what he does with his next film Cinderella.

Patrick Doyle gives the film a great action thriller score that sounds like it tends towards the techno-thriller side, which in many ways is very fitting. The film does spend a lot of time with Ryan looking at financial transactions and code, and his big scene in which he breaks into Viktor’s office feels like something right out of a techno-thriller. Doyle’s music sets the tone and adds an additional level of excitement and tension. Haris Zambarloukos’s cinematography is good as well, but overall fairly standard for this type of Hollywood film. However, Andrew Laws does a wonderful job with his production design, especially with the sets in Russia. They are artistically compelling.

The performances in the film are strong across the board. Colm Feore and Nonso Anozie are good in small supporting roles. Kevin Costner plays Jack Ryan’s mentor Thomas Harper with his usual blending of a man who is both fatherly and tough (in a morally patriotic type of way). The scenes between Ryan and Harper are some of the better ones in the film, and it is really too bad that there could not have been more character development between them. Kenneth Branagh plays Viktor Cherevin, the film’s villain. In some ways he is just another in a long line of generic Euro-villains with some ambitious plot to bring America down. But, Branagh brings a lot more to the character with his performance. There is a real humanity and depth to this man, more than just pure cliché. The same can be said of Keira Knightley’s performances as Cathy Muller. She adds a lot more to the film than just merely being a girlfriend character or a damsel in distress (though she does serve those purposes too). She has a lot fight in her (and may even be a better and more willing spy than Jack Ryan). Knightley just seems to bring an added layer (much like Branagh) to the role; her Cathy feels like a fully realized person. And in some ways, the depth of these supporting characters makes this reiteration of the franchise seemingly have more potential than past Jack Ryan films that seemed to rest solely on the strength of their lead. Chris Pine is good as Jack Ryan. He does his action-man thing, and it works. But, he also sculpts it a little to fit the character too. His best work comes playing off Branagh, Knightley, and Costner.

Summary & score: While Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit adds nothing new to the action thriller genre, it is still yet another good film joining many other good and great films that the genre has produced in recent memory. 6/10

Ender’s Game (2013) – Review

Review: Ender’s Game is a perfectly acceptable young adult sci-fi action/drama. The film is about a teen, Ender Wiggin, who is being trained to lead the Earth’s Space fleet in an assault on an alien enemy that almost conquered Earth thirty years earlier. While Ender is being groomed for command by Colonel Graff, he must still overcome multiple obstacles to prove that he is indeed ready to lead. In this seemingly utopian (authoritarian governed) future, children are determined to be the Earth’s best hope at survival as their minds have a higher aptitude for taking on complex strategic problems (and they can be controlled more easily by propaganda, weeding out compassion).

Ender’s Game has a lot of interesting ideas: the morality of the use of child soldiers, compassion for the enemy, the social construct of a state governed by an authoritarian government, how propaganda is used to incite emotion and action within people, and many others. However, writer-director Gavin Hood’s film feels rather restrained. These elements are present, as they are in Orson Scott Card’s novel (for which the film is based), but here they are sort of glossed over and pushed to the shadows. The film is far less dark than it probably could have been tonally. In many ways, it reeks of a Hollywoodized makeover, which is disappointing as this feels watered down. That said, though, there are still interesting social and political elements that linger just below the surface.

The film overall can be read as an allegory for the West’s current feelings towards and on-going struggle with within Middle East, and vice versa. The International Military’s policy towards the Formics (the bug-like alien race that attempted to conquer the Earth) is that of total eradication, without regard for their civilization. They never question why the Formics first attacked Earth or to what end they now seem to be rebuilding their forces. They just assume the worse: the Formics intend to come back to Earth. The attitude of hate and ignorance that the film attributes to the International Military and through their propaganda the Earth’s population is similar to how many (on both sides) feel about the West’s current conflict within Middle East – the only way to truly gain victory is simply eradication (which is seemingly fueled by propaganda built on fear). The lesson of the film is that understanding is a better method. Applying this to the conflict in the Middle East is probably an over-reading of the film, but much like in Ender’s Game the current conflict seems to be escalating towards an event that will be catastrophic, irreversible, and civilization altering. The film warns of where unchecked hate and fear lead, when most of Hollywood’s generic output celebrates violence and hate.

Structurally, Hood has a lot of plot to get through, which does hurt his ability to develop supporting characters. Ender is given almost all the film’s character moments, which works well (given how much plot there is in a limited runtime) as the audience does become invested in his journey. However, the supporting characters and secondary storylines suffer greatly. There is almost no backstory or world building. The audience never really gets a full sense of the world Ender has grown up in, rather just quick glimpses. Hood tells his narrative very efficiently, but the film feels a bit emotionally bland. The audience wants to see Ender succeed from a story perspective, but so much is brushed to the side that the audience does not really have too much to grab onto and truly become invested in on a deeper level.

The military’s psychologist at one point expresses her concern for the use of children in war, but really the film does not dig into this idea, which otherwise seems like one of the central ideas in the narrative (I have not read the novel, so I comment purely based on what I saw in the film). The idea of using children to fight a war, tricking them by telling them they are merely playing ‘games’ and continually culturing them to be soldiers and hate the enemy, is very interesting and intellectually compelling. In our modern world, children are used for much the same reason they are in Ender’s Game in gangs (to sell drugs and commit other crimes) and even as soldiers in some third world countries. In both examples, children fall victim to powerful authoritative figures who exploit them using the hardships of their lives and propaganda. Children’s minds are still developing and thus are more susceptible to brainwashing by propaganda (in whatever form it takes). So the question becomes, while we know using children in such a way, as gangs and warlords use them in our modern society, is it still wrong to use them in a similar fashion to potentially save humanity? This question is maybe the most compelling that the film asks, but it spends almost no time addressing it, which is unfortunate. Again, Hood has a lot of plot to get through and seemingly just does not have the screen time.

In many ways, Ender’s Game is a straightforward sci-fi action/drama. Man must fight against an alien race for its very survival. Most of the action takes place in Space and the production design on Earth creates a very futuristic/utopian feeling. And to this degree, the film is entertaining. Its characters are also managed well enough to create an acceptably dramatic experience. The audience cares about Ender (though, I would argue only superficially) and thus are engaged in the story, action, and drama. But, the film is also nothing special. It just feels bland. This is the result of playing it safe in regards to all the interesting questions it raises about the nature of humanity in the face of war. Looking at the potential of what Ender’s Game could have been, it is a great disappointment, but that said it is still an enjoyable Hollywood sci-fi film as it is.

Technical, aesthetic & acting achievements: Gavin Hood’s Tsotsi (the story of a young Johannesburg gang leader) seems like it would translate very well into his ability to tackle Ender’s Game from a place of looking at the social and political ideas that the narrative raises. He also made the politically infused drama Rendition (regarding war-prisoner interrogation). But Ender’s Game is politically mute for the most part. Everything is very subtle and glossed over. It is as if Hood took an interesting narrative, sanitized it of all real grit, and then presented it as a polished, safe Hollywood film (a system/style of filmmaking that has not served him well in the past: X-Men Origins: Wolverine).

Composer Steve Jablonsky, who often works on action films, again offers up a score that emphasizes the action and sets the tone. The action as it is set forth in the film is really marginally interesting as presented (it is basically teens flying around in zero-gravity shooting stun guns at each other or meaningless Space ships firing at each other), but Jablonsky gives everything an extra feeling of excitement as his score seems to raise the stakes. The film has an overall look and feel that can be described as a mix of Gattaca and Starship Troopers (though in both cases much more restrained politically and tonally). Donald McAlpine’s cinematography does a great job giving the film a strong sci-fi aesthetic, as the lighting it very clean. Sean Haworth and Ben Procter’s production design is probably the film’s best attribute. In collaboration with McAlpine’s photography, their work creates the overall feeling that this takes place in a very rigid, futuristic world. Their sets in Space have somewhat of a generic sci-fi look, but they still work. However, the look of the sets and overall design of the scenes on Earth is fantastic. Again, everything looks very clean (the shots of the Space craft taking off set against the mountain landscape are beautiful).

The cast is adequate overall. The narrative, as it is structures, does not really give any of the characters much to do outside of Ender and Graff (though, even he is mostly just an authoritative caricature). Moises Arias (who plays a character completely different than his The Kings of Summer character Biaggio but can seemingly still not escape him), Nonso Anozie, and Viola Davis provide decent small supporting performances. Ben Kingsley takes his highly underwritten character of Mazer Rackham and infuses it with life with his intense eyes. Abigail Breslin plays the film’s only seemingly compassionate character and she is essential to the narrative, and yet is given almost nothing character wise. She merely says plot driven dialog while trying to emote deeper emotions. Hailee Steinfeld’s character of Petra Arkanian is also gravely underwritten. She ends up a stereotypical, boring PG love interest. Harrison Ford is good in the film, playing Graff. He mixes hardened war veteran with loving father well. I might argue that Ford is too sincere in his performance, but that plays into the film not being very dark tonally when it probably should have been. Asa Butterfield is also good as Ender. He does a great job of playing his emotions on the surface non-verbally. The audience can tell what is going on with him emotionally without explicitly needing to be told through dialog.

Summary & score: Ender’s Game is an entertaining sci-fi action/drama targeted at young adults, and to this purpose it is a decent film. The issue with the film is that it squanders the potential to be something more, say something more, and dig deeper into interesting social and political questions (that are clearly central to its narrative). 6/10