2002, 2 hr 10 min., Rated PG-13 for violence, disaster images and brief strong language. Dir: Phil Alden Robinson. Cast: Ben Affleck (Jack Ryan), Bridget Moynahan (Dr. Cathy Muller), Morgan Freeman (Bill Cabot), James Cromwell (President Fowler), Liev Schreiber (John Clark), Ciaran Hinds (Russian Pres. Nemerov), Philip Baker Hall (Defense Sec. Becker), Ron Rifkin (Sec. of State Owens), Bruce McGill (National Security Advisor Revel), Alan Bates (Dressler).

Watching The Sum of All Fears, some parts I thought, "Hey, that's good." Others, I curled my lip and moaned, "Eh, that's tripe." And trust me, you'll know what I'm talking about and will roll your eyes as well. So, I guess you could say I was mixed. I'm a Tom Clancy reader, the author of the book which the movie is based on as part of the Jack Ryan series. This kind of movie is usually right up my alley, so perhaps that is a reason I didn't like it as much as I would have wanted.

I like Ben Affleck as an actor and a person (at least by what I've seen in interviews), but I don't like him as Jack Ryan. I still yearn for Alec Baldwin (yes, even I squawk when I think of that) from his work in The Hunt for Red October, which is by far the best Clancy adaptation. Baldwin is even better than Harrison Ford, one of my favorite actors, and thus I apologize, Mr. Ford.

Always a plus is Morgan Freeman, who exudes stability and professionalism in every role, and James Cromwell, who is way past "That'll do, pig," but still great as the President with a knack for the honor code of tit-for-tat.

I hope that in using special-special secret forces agent John Clark in Sum of All Fears in a pretty important role, that Clark (played by Liev Schreiber, and played well) will get his own flick based on one of Clancy's books on the character. He's very cool under fire and a warrior with a talent for intelligence gathering as well as kicking butt in a way even James Bond would study. Not sure if Clark is much for the gambling and skirt-chasing, though.

Cute, the nuclear dealer is watching "Antiques Roadshow" and people who are excited to find stuff like rare clown dolls in their closet that are worth $50, while he just found a bomb worth $50 million. Won't get that in the attic behind the Monet.

You might know the work of the director, Phil Alden Robinson, from Field of Dreams, except in this case he follows a different plan: "If you destroy it they will come." I can't say that Robinson caught the same essence of magic here, as it feels too much like a conventional action thriller, with characters that are crudely developed and situations that call for more reality. Too many scenes reminded me of Dark Helmet in Spaceballs: "Evil will triumph, because good is dumb."

The flick unfolds a tidbit at a time, piecing everything together at a slow pace. Robinson doesn't mind it being a little complicated, yet still falls into some Hollywood clich�s, such as a slow-motion run through a street on fire, something implausible that you'd expect to only see in popcorn fare like Independence Day or any Jerry Bruckheimer summer filler. Although I do give the filmmakers a lot of credit for having the guts to nuke an American city in a post-9/11 movie, because some of the "good" scenes I referred to earlier are the aftermath. Then again, so are many of the "bad," so I'm still mixed.

It's a shame the bad guys had to be turned Arab nuts into Neo-Nazis. Seriously, when was the last time anyone heard from those guys and actually worried about them? The audience is smart enough to accept that our enemies nowadays are in the Arab world, notably Islamo-fascists, not a bunch of white supremacist extremist Europeans. Why change the script to avoid PC protests? Or did I just answer my question?

The ending seemed rushed. We needed a slower pullout, maybe a wide shot of the events to settle the audience's stomach from the climax. It gave me an unfinished feeling.

What does it all add up to? The flaws seem to outweigh the good, so I won't be making a special trip back to see it, and won't buy the DVD in six months, either. Would I recommend it? Eh, I dunno. If you've seen everything else at the theater, sure. If you haven't seen About a Boy or Insomnia or Star Wars or Spider-Man, then see those first. If you've seen them or aren't interested, then take in Sum of All Fears with a lukewarm recommendation.