Patriot Games (1992)

Director:

Phillip Noyce

Writers (WGA):

Tom Clancy (novel)
W. Peter Iliff (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

5 June 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Let the Games Begin.

Plot:

When CIA Analyst Jack Ryan interferes with an IRA assassination, a renegade faction targets him and his family for revenge.

Plot Keywords:

Historically Inaccurate | Irish American | American In The Uk | Jack Ryan | Freeway Shooting

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Harrison Ford	...	Jack Ryan
Anne Archer	...	Dr. Caroline "Cathy" Ryan
Patrick Bergin	...	Kevin O'Donnell
Sean Bean	...	Sean Miller
Thora Birch	...	Sally Ryan
James Fox	...	Lord William Holmes
Samuel L. Jackson	...	Lt. Cmdr. Robby Jackson
Polly Walker	...	Annette
J.E. Freeman	...	Marty Cantor
James Earl Jones	...	Adm. James Greer
Richard Harris	...	Paddy O'Neil
Alex Norton	...	Dennis Cooley
Hugh Fraser	...	Geoffrey Watkins
David Threlfall	...	Insp. Robert Highland
Alun Armstrong	...	Sgt. Owens

Runtime:

117 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby SR (35 mm prints)

Certification:

South Korea:15 | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Brazil:12 | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Iceland:16 | New Zealand:PG | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | Germany:16 | Netherlands:12 | Peru:18 | Singapore:PG | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Aldwych Underground Station, Aldwych, Holborn, London, England, UK

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Paramount yanked all their advertising out of Variety when one of the magazine's film critics, Joseph McBride, called the film "fascistic, blatantly anti-Irish... a right-wing cartoon". Variety's editor Peter Bart privately sided with Paramount's boycott, calling McBride "unprofessional". Bart was subsequently embarrassed when his letter criticizing one of his reviewers and supporting studio censorship was leaked to the press. The Los Angeles Film Critics' Association and the National Society of Film Critics then publicly lambasted Bart for his "dismaying treatment" of one of his members of staff, saying "the question is not whether any responsible critic is right or wrong, but whether any responsible critic must be muted so as not to offend an advertiser or bruise a handful of tender egos".

Goofs:

Continuity: Just before he is shot, Jimmy O'Reardon is naked on the bed. As he is being shot, a blanket suddenly covers the lower half of his body. When he falls backwards onto the bed, the blanket also moves as if it is attached with some sort of adhesive.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Jack Ryan: [answering machine answers] Sorry, we can't come to the phone right now. If you leave a message, we'll get back to you as soon as we can. Thanks.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Bob Saget/TLC (#20.19)" (1995)

Soundtrack:

Theme from Harry's Game

Terrific!, the best of the Tom Clancy adaptations!

I have wanted to see this film for quite a while now. Ive seen The Hunt For Red October(1990), and Clear and Present Danger(1994), and Patriot Games is much better than them. Patriot Games is a great thinking man's thriller, although its much less difficult to follow than "Clear and Present Danger". It has plenty of suspense and action, and Ford's acting is terrific. I am so surprised that Patriot Games is often considered the worst Clancy film, and "The Hunt For Red October" considered the best, but I think it should be the other way around. Overall a great suspenseful movie. 9 out of 10