Clear and Present Danger

This third, dispiriting screen outing for Tom Clancy's CIA operative Jack Ryan has Ford's rugged protagonist promoted to Deputy Director and swiftly finding himself out of his depth on two fronts: negotiating the treacherous corridors of high office, at the same time as presidential initiative demands improved results in his war against Colombia's drug barons. The elements of the plot can be ticked off: an auto-pilot star; better playing in the subsidiary roles; and a grim determination throughout to impress us with the number of locations, aircraft and warships at the production's disposal. There's a glimmer of interest in the film's ideological contortions, but as a commercial action thriller this is inflated and sluggish.