The Hunt for Red October [Special Collector's Edition]

Director: John McTiernan John McTiernan

Overview

"This reissue, a ""Special Collector's Edition,"" of The Hunt for Red October is a vast improvement, in every way, over the initial release. For starters, the widescreen image (framed at 2.35:1) is anamorphic this time, and the transfer has never looked better. Granted, some grain is evident, especially early in the film, but it's never intrusive. The distinct color patterns are far more clear and the detail more exact. Equally, the blacks are very strong and solid. Also an upgrade is the sound. The earlier disc had a 5.1 Dolby Digital track, but this one includes that and a new DTS track. While the Dolby Digital track is good, the DTS version is noticeably stronger. Basses are deep, and surround effects are utilized in just the correct moment. As for supplements, while this disc is far from supplement heavy, it offers far more than the original disc. Along with the theatrical trailer, also on the first DVD, there is a fine half-hour documentary, covering many elements, from the story to the visual effects. As good as it is, it really begs for more. Also included is a commentary track from director John McTiernan. Despite significant gaps, he does offer some interesting insight into the production, but simply doesn't cover enough ground. Maybe not a perfect disc, this one is such a step up from what was offered initially that it's difficult to find anything to complain about."

Product Details

Release Date:	05/06/2003
UPC:	0097360564044
Original Release:	1990
Rating:	PG
Source:	Paramount
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, DTS 5.1-Channel Surround Sound]
Language:	English
Time:	2:15:00
Sales rank:	4,099

Special Features

Closed Caption;Commentary by Director John McTiernan; "Beneath the Surface" -- New cast & crew interviews; Theatrical trailer; Widescreen version enhanced for 16:9 TVs; Dolby digital; English 5.1 surround; English DTS surround sound; French stereo; English subtitles; Spanish subtitles

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Sean Connery	Marko Ramius
Alec Baldwin	Jack Ryan
Scott Glenn	Bart Mancuso
Sam Neill	Capt. Borodin
James Earl Jones	Adm. Greer,Skip Tyler
Joss Ackland	Andrei Lysenko
Richard Jordan	Jeffrey Pelt
Peter Firth	Ivan Putin
Tim Curry	Dr. Petrov
Courtney B. Vance	Seaman Jones
Timothy Carhart	Bill Steiner
Fred Dalton Thompson	Adm. Painter
Daniel Davis	Capt. Davenport
Larry Ferguson	Chief of the Boat
Tomas Arana	Loginov
Ned Vaughn	Seaman Beaumont
Ronald Guttman	Lt. Melekhin
Michael George Benko	Ivan
Artur Cybulski	Diving Officer,Diving Officer
Sven-Ole Thorsen	Russian COB
Michael Welden	Kamarov
Boris Krutonog	Slavin
Christopher Janczar	Andrei Bonovia
Don Oscar Smith	Helicopter Pilot
Rick Ducommun	Navigator C-2A
George H. Billy	DSRV Officer
Reed Popovich	Lt. Jim Curry
Andrew Divoff	Andrei Amalric
Peter Zinner	Adm. Padorin
Tony Veneto	Padorin's Orderly
Ray Reinhardt	Jodge Moore at Briefing
F.J. O'Neil	General at Briefing
David Sederholm	Sunglasses
John Shepherd	Foxtrot Pilot
William Bell Sullivan	Lt. Cmdr. Mike Hewitt
Gates McFadden	Caroline Ryan
Louise Borras	Sally Ryan
Denise E. James	Stewardess,Actor
Kenton Kovell	Actor
Pete Antico	Seaman
Mark Draxton	Seaman
Anatoliy Davydov	Officer #1
Ivan G'Vera	Officer
Radu Gavor	Soviet Seaman
Ivan Ivanov	Soviet Seaman
Ping Wu	Soviet Seaman
Herman Sinitzyn	Soviet Seaman
Vlado Benden	Konovalov Seaman
George Winston	Konovalov Seamen
Ben Hartigan	Admiral (Briefing)
Robert Buckingham	Admirals at Briefing
John McTiernan Sr.	Advisor
Stellan Skarsgård	Capt. Tupolev
Amanda Mackey Johnson	Actor
Mark Rodney	Actor
Peter Jason	Actor
Tony Peck	Lt. Comdr. Thompson
Tom Fisher	Seaman
A. Lyles	Advisor #1
Basil Poledouris	Composer

Technical Credits

Larry Ferguson

Donald Stewart

David Shaber

Robert Garland

John Milius

John McTiernan	Director
Larry Ferguson	Screenwriter
Donald Stewart	Screenwriter,Screenwriter
Mace Neufeld	Producer,Director
Larry DeWaay	Executive Producer
Amanda Mackey Johnson	Casting
Charles Picerni Jr.	Stunts
Jerry Sherlock	Executive Producer
Scott Squires	Special Effects
David Shaber	Screenwriter
Al Di Sarro	Special Effects
Robert Garland	Screenwriter
John Milius	Screenwriter
Terry Frazee	Special Effects
Scott Anderson	Special Effects

Editorial Reviews

A contemplative thriller by early 1990s standards, The Hunt For Red October was the first movie based on the successful Jack Ryan novels of Tom Clancy. Robbed of much of the book's Cold War appeal by the time of its release, the movie was nonetheless embraced by American audiences; it was among the ten highest-grossing movies of 1990. It would be director John McTiernan's third major action hit following Predator and Die Hard, and he manages to maintain a high excitement level for the film's 134-minute length. Ultimately, Red October's success might have been due to the sex appeal of stars Alec Baldwin and Sean Connery. This would be Baldwin's first big-budget hit; for Connery, it continued the career upswing that had begun with The Name of the Rose and The Untouchables. Baldwin declined to reprise the Ryan role; Harrison Ford would play the character in Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger.

Conceived before the author, an insurance agent, had ever set foot on a submarine, it is "a tremendously enjoyable and gripping novel of naval derring-do," according to Washington Post Book World critic Reid Beddow. The book contains descriptions of high-tech military hardware so advanced that former Navy Secretary John Lehman, quoted in Time, joked that he "would have had [Clancy] court- martialed: the book revealed that much that had been classified about antisubmarine warfare. Of course, nobody for a moment suspected him of getting access to classified information." The details were actually based on unclassified books and naval documents, Clancy's interviews with submariners, and his own educated guesses, the author asserts. Admitting that "neither characterization nor dialogue are strong weapons in Clancy's literary arsenal," Richard Setlowe in the Los Angeles Times Book Review nonetheless expressed an opinion shared by other reviewers: "At his best, Clancy has a terrific talent for taking the arcana of U.S. and Soviet submarine warfare, the subtleties of sonar and the techno-babble of nuclear power plants and transforming them into taut drama."

Gale Research

Breathlessly exciting….It may be the most satisfactory novel of a sea chase since C.F. Forester perfected the form.
—The Washington Post

Reid Beddow

The plot is coherent, the reading easy and the matrix of encompassing detail almost frighteningly genuine. Mr. Clancy has done a terrific job describing the deadly cat—and—mouse game played by submariners.
—The Wall Street Journal

John R. Alden