A review by Mike Shea Movie Rating: ( * * * * · ) DVD Rating: ( * · · · · )
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I could watch Red October until the men in lab coats came to take me away. I feel the same way about Clear and Present Danger and now with Patriot Games as well. Maybe it is the high tech realism, or the multiple charactors each with just the right amount of development. For some reason though, each of these movies fall apart at the end. Patriot Games is the same way. We start off with a normal guy in a normal life who gets thrown into extraordinary circumstances. We see the plot develop from the point of view of multiple charactors who only become aware of the other elements near the end of the film. The film builds and builds until it ends up with Harrison Ford and some IRA thug wrestling with an anchor on the back of a speedboat. It is this movie that finally made me decide, any action scenes with speed boats suck, period. Other than the lame ending, the movie moves along and builds just the right amount of suspense and action. The DVD is another one of Paramounts half ass jobs. The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack is the same as the laserdisc and didnt have the presence of newer films. The video was ok, but not anamorphic. There were no extras worth mentioning. I would have a real hard time recommending this one.