As police arrive, he realizes the first gunman is dead when he is unmasked and so does the man's older brother, Sean (a pretty young but still equally evil Sean Bean), who vows revenge on Jack then and there. The family in the limo that Jack saved was the cousin of the Royal Family, Lord William Holmes (James Fox), and Jack is proclaimed a hero and eventually knighted as a result. It is assumed that the IRA is to blame, but it turns out that Sean was a member of an extremist offshoot headed up by Kevin O'Donnell (Patrick Bergin, Sleeping with the Enemy) and his girlfriend Annette (Polly Walker). Once the group breaks Sean out of prison and kill a few cops in the meantime, Jack starts to become concerned that Sean might follow through on his threat. Those fears are well-founded as Sean and the gang make an attack on Cathy, now pregnant, and Sally as they are driving on the freeway one afternoon in a nail-biting scene. Although his family survives the attack, Jack decides he must stop at nothing to prevent Sean from gaining access to his family again.
They track the underground terrorists to a camp in North Africa and a hit is initiated under the watchful eye of Jack, Adm. James Greer (James Earl Jones) and Lt. Cmdr. Robby Jackson (a pretty young Samuel L. Jackson). Watching detached military men observe through satellite imagery as people are slaughtered, no matter how much they deserve it, is deeply moving and intense. Seeing the destruction of those who have been threatening his family, Jack finally breathes a sigh of relief.
Through a twist of fate, Lord William comes to Virginia to visit Jack and his family in their home to celebrate Sally's return from the hospital following the terrible attack on her life. Its a dark and stormy evening, but the Ryan's close friends, Adm. Greer and his wife, and Lt. Cmdr. Jackson and his wife, are there along with Lord William and his entourage. But things start to get crazy when the storm knocks the lights out. Or was it the storm at all?
What follows is an edge-of-your-seat, action-packed series of events that have the men in the house working to save Lord Williams and their wives from the night-vision enabled terrorists swarming the house in the darkness, with Cathy taking things into her own hands when she and Sally are threatened by Annette. The grand finale takes to the swirling waters out past the Ryan's home in a mad speedboat chase of death.
Patriot Games still remains my favorite Clancy novel and is a great translation from the book and a fantastic action movie. While I would have hoped for more special features, the cast and crew interviews were highly entertaining and really enlightening. I had no idea Harrison Ford was so hands-on in what happens in one of his films, but I guess he's been doing this long enough to know what works and folks listen to him. Thanks to all involved, a truly wonderful action film was created and every thrilling moment shines in Blu-ray. If this one isn't already in your collection, make the jump into Patriot Games on Blu-ray.
