PATRIOT GAMES (1992)

Retired from the C.I.A. agent Jack Ryan (Harrison Ford) is innocently walking down the sidewalk in London with his wife (Anne Archer) and young daughter (Thora Birch) when he gets a front row seat to a terrorist attack on a member of the Royal Family.  Ford ends up killing the main terrorist's little brother, so now the bad guy (Sean Bean) swears revenge.  Next thing you know, Bean has followed Ford to America and attacks his family.  This...means...war!

PATRIOT GAMES is a fun, action-packed international thriller.  You got a terrorist attack in England, murders in Ireland, a convey attacked in England, the British SAS taking on a terrorist camp in Africa, multiple attacks in America. Some people might be a little taken back by Ford's replacement of Alec Baldwin in the role of Jack Ryan, but it didn't bother me in the least.  I actually like Ford better, so it was all good.  I also enjoyed seeing a young Sean Bean as a bad guy.  He was only in "Game of Thrones" as Eddard Stark for a short time, but he captured the sadness so well that he's forever identified in my mind as Eddard.

Quick pace, exciting fights and shoot outs, great acting, Atia from "Rome", engaging story, J. E. Freeman, James Earl Jones, Harrison Ford saying "Tits.", explosions, cars getting fucked up.  PATRIOT GAMES is a satisfying continuation to the cinematic adventures of Jack Ryan.

Part 1 -The Hunt for Red October (1990)
Part 3 - Clear and Present Danger (1994)
Reboot 1 - The Sum of All Fears (2002)
Reboot 2 - Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014)

RONIN (1998)

Helmed by legendary film director John Frankenheimer and boasting an even more legendary cast, RONIN tells the mildly entertaining story of a bunch of dangerous motherfuckers (CIA agents, Russian mafia, mercenaries, etc.) all trying to get a hold of a mysterious briefcase. Backstabbing, double-crossing, ambushes, explosions, gunfights, ice skating, car chases, improper lane changes…RONIN has plenty to keep the viewer entertained, but unfortunately, the characters and the overall story are not interesting enough to put this film on my frequently viewed list. Then again, JOYSTICKS is on that list, so what do I know?

I don’t want to sound too harsh though, because RONIN is a good film. Quick pace, fun shoot-outs, great car chases, strong performances. I especially like Robert De Niro's chill performance.  I was super sad that Sean Bean's part wasn't bigger.  He's a fantastic actor and his character was the most intriguing out of everybody.

Anyway, good film and definitely worth a watch for fans of 1990's action movies.