Amazon’s “Jack Ryan” series (2018-2023) seems to have morphed into a franchise of occasional stand-alone movies like Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan Ghost War. John Krasinski, joins the role previously played by Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, and Ben Affleck.
Krasinski plays Jack Ryan as a reluctant former CIA analyst who gets sucked into doing a “favor” for his old friend and boss, James Greer (Wendell Pierce, who is also a Police Captain on Elsbeth) who is now CIA Deputed Director, and by his former colleague, Mike November (Michael Kelly), a security contractor who was once a CIA station chief.
What seems like a simple “drop” with Jack Ryan making contact with a former MI6 agent named Nigel Cooke (Douglas Hodge) in Dubai one night turns into a disaster when Ryan receives a super-important package that’s supposed to end up on Greer’s desk but poor Nigel gets a sniper’s bullet.
Ryan and November are taken into custody by MI-6 agent Emma Marlow (Sienna Miller), a tough but attractive love interest for Ryan. Marlow and Ryan figure out their adversary is former MI6 agent named Liam Crown (actor and jazz musician Max Beesley) who wants to continue the Ghost Wars that were politically terminated a couple decades ago.
Crown and Greer have an association from those post 9/11 years when they created a super-secret Black Ops unit called Project Starling to hunt down and kill terrorists.
I liked the fiery conclusion when Ryan, Marlow, and November take on Crown’s forces in a blazing shoot-out. Mildly entertaining. GRADE: B-
I found it to be an interesting, non-essential flick with a dubious premise. Glad I watched it, but also glad I did not pay money for it.
Jerry, I have about the same opinion of GHOST WAR that you do. Hopefully, the next JACK RYAN movie will be better…
Jackie says, “ditto” to Jerry’s review.
Jeff, there’s speculation that this AMAZON PRIME Video JACK RYAN “movie” is going to be part of a series of movies.
Jackie was a fan of the Jack Ryan series and, of course, she watched this. I think she’d agree that it was (in the immortal phrase of the late Marv Lachman), good but not great. I know she’s a Wendell Pierce fan.
Jeff, I’d modify Marv’s immortal phrase to “mediocre but not great.”
I read HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER when it first came out. Liked it but never got into Clancy’s increasingly bloated novels after that. Most of the ones on the library shelf appear to be the Jack Ryan Jr series that other guys were hired to write after Clancy died. The movies were okay. But I don’t have any desire to see this one. Who can top today’s reality of drone warfare, Armageddon in Ukraine and the Middle East, Trump’s Reality Show “leadership”, and Xi waiting patiently to scoop up the pieces.
Fred, you’re right! Our country is in dire straits because of this War With Iran and our declining impact on Foreign Affairs. It’s cost the U.S. a billion dollars a day for all those ships and soldiers in the Middle East. Iran has proved that the U.S. is a paper tiger. The German Chancellor was right when he announced that Iran is “humiliating” the United States. And XI is playing the Waiting Game and planning what to do with Taiwan.
I enjoy the series as a time filler. Good for when I need something easy to watch. I still don’t have prime or Netflix but Larry does and we watch some together. When he plays in senior softball tournaments, I no longer go, but I stay & Blondee sit. I catch up on a lot of shows that way and have time with her.
Maggie, there’s plenty to watch on Netflix and AMAZON PRIME Video!
I’ve always wondered what Jim Halpern did after he left Dunder-Mifflin! It doesn’t matter; I don’t get that station! If it’s a download from Amazon, I’m not interested anyway!
Bob, JACK RYAN fans keep Tom Clancy’s legacy alive!