Clear and Present Danger (1994)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Phillip Noyce

Writers (WGA):

Tom Clancy (novel)
Donald Stewart (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

3 August 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Thriller

Tagline:

Truth needs a soldier.

Plot:

CIA Analyst Jack Ryan is drawn into an illegal war fought by the US government against a Colombian drug cartel.

Plot Keywords:

CIA | Drugs | Jack Ryan | Colombian Drug Cartel | Colombia

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 4 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Wed. July 8	8:00 PM	AMC
Thur. July 9	5:00 PM	AMC

Cast

Harrison Ford	...	Jack Ryan
Willem Dafoe	...	John Clark
Anne Archer	...	Cathy Muller Ryan
Joaquim de Almeida	...	Col. Felix Cortez
Henry Czerny	...	Robert Ritter
Harris Yulin	...	James Cutter
Donald Moffat	...	President Bennett
Miguel Sandoval	...	Ernesto Escobedo
Benjamin Bratt	...	Captain Ramirez
Raymond Cruz	...	Domingo Chavez
Dean Jones	...	Judge Moore
Thora Birch	...	Sally Ryan
Ann Magnuson	...	Moira Wolfson
Hope Lange	...	Senator Mayo
Tom Tammi	...	FBI Director Emile Jacobs

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some intense action/violence and language.

Runtime:

141 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Netherlands:12 | South Korea:15 | Brazil:12 | Philippines:PG-13 | USA:PG-13 CORRECT: REPLACE WITH: (Certifitcate #32825) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-14 | Germany:12 | Ireland:15 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:12 | USA:PG-13 (Certifitcate #32825)

Filming Locations:

Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, USA

Company:

Mace Neufeld Productions

Trivia:

The drug lord mansion destroyed by the missile was a real brick-and-mortar residence in Mexico purchased by the filmmakers from a divorcee who had unpleasant memories of the place. The filmmakers bought the mansion and destroyed it; the divorcee kept the land and presumably built a new house after clearing out the rubble.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When the President and Cutter are alone in the conference room talking about their "little war" and Cutter suggests, "I think it's time the whole thing went away," the President replies, "Then it should go away. It never happened..." to which Cutter replies, "Yes, sir", but Cutter's lips don't move.

Quotes:

Ernesto Escobedo: Who is doing this to me?
Felix Cortez: If I were to guess...
Ernesto Escobedo: No, that is not I asked of you, to guess. I can guess.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Il giorno della prima di Close Up (1996)

Soundtrack:

Semper Fidelis

Best Clancy Film so Far...

With 2002's Sum of All Fears in close 2nd, this one remains the best of all 4: it has Harrison Ford as Ryan, solid sub-plots (the one involving Dafoe as John Clark [Liv Schreiber in SOAF]being the best!) and moral dimension, especially in the ambiguous sense toward the end. I've read many of Clancy's books, and many are very good (well, the early Ryan series are great but after Debt of Honor they went downhill!), however they are all VERY long (mostly 800p +), detailed and complex, so adapting them into 120p screenplays must be a nightmare, but Clancy actually participated in the writing of this one - along with Steve Zallian (Schindler's List) and John Millius, no less! - so it turns out we get a decent enough one. In all fairness, the script is great, featuring a slightly different ending than the book. If you add good actors and tight direction (Noyce knows Jack Ryan and Ford, since he already directed Patriot Games) you can not go wrong, and this flies high. Smart, tight, utterly convincing and believable and well executed, this is that rare brainy "action" film that does get you involved and hanging on the edge of your seat.