The Hunt for Red October

Under the able direction of action film virtuoso John McTiernan (Die Hard), Tom Clancy's runaway bestseller makes a smooth transition to celluloid. Sean Connery is characteristically commanding as Captain Ramius, in charge of the Soviet sub "Red October"--a huge nuclear submarine with a new propulsion system that makes it virtually undetectable by sonar. When "Red October" suddenly makes for the continental U.S., CIA analyst Jack Ryan (Alec Baldwin) proposes that Ramius is defecting. But then the Soviets wire a message that Ramius is a renegade intending to attack the U.S. Who is right? While the politics are a bit elementary, the gripping action runs ramshackle over any intellectual reservations one might have. Not all action films transfer well to video, but McTiernan, using the claustrophobic setting of a submarine to his advantage, liberally peppers his film with close-ups, lending a pulse pounding immediacy to the proceedings. Highly recommended. (R. Pitman) [DVD Review--June 17, 2003--Paramount, 135 min., R, $19.99--Originally released in a bare bones edition in 1999, John McTiernan's 1990 thriller looks good and sounds fantastic in this "special collector's edition" release that also boasts a couple of solid extras: McTiernan's informative, if rather technical, commentary track, and the 29-minute "making of" mini-documentary "Beneath the Surface." Bottom line: If you missed this the first time around on DVD, you will definitely want to add this spruced-up version, very affordably priced at $19.99.] [Blu-ray Review—Aug. 5, 2008—Paramount, 135 min., PG, $29.99—Making its first appearance on Blu-ray, 1990's The Hunt for Red October features a great transfer and a 5.1 TrueHD soundtrack. Blu-ray extras are identical to the previous DVD release, including director John McTiernan's informative, if rather technical, commentary track, and the 29-minute 'making of' featurette 'Beneath the Surface.' Bottom line: a contemporary classic thriller that has never looked or sounded better.]