Search - The Hunt for Red October on DVD

MPAA Rating: PG Content Advisory: Violence, Questionable for Children Movie Release: 1990 DVD Release: 12/01/1998 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV Edition: Dual Layered,Special Collection Audio Tracks: English, French Subtitles: English, Spanish SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 2 hrs 15 mins Studio: Paramount Total Copies: 4 Genres: Thriller, Action Thriller, Sea Adventure, Political Thriller See Also: The Hunt for Red October [Special Collector's Edition], The Hunt for Red October [Blu-ray], Hunt for Red October [Circuit City Exclusive] [Checkpoint], The Hunt for Red October [Blu-ray]

The first of several films based on Tom Clancy's "Jack Ryan" technothrillers, Hunt for Red October stars Alec Baldwin as eccentric CIA analyst Ryan and Sean Connery as Soviet submarine commander Marko Ramius. Ramius sets the plot in motion when he murders his political adviser, burns his orders, and steers his sub Red October towards American waters, hoping to defect. The CIA, aware that the Red October was about to embark on an evasive mission to demonstrate its ability to avoid detection and fire its nuclear missiles upon U.S. installations, believes that Ramius is insane, and that he plans to start World War III. To cover their own behinds, the Russians back up the CIA's suspicion. Only Jack Ryan believes that Ramius' mission is not as apocalyptic as it seems -- and it is Ryan who is assigned to infiltrate the Red October to prove his theory. The sort of film that in an earlier era would have been called a "thinking man's thriller," The Hunt for Red October ushered in a new series of Hollywood-produced post-Cold War adventure films, including 1995's Crimson Tide. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Sean Connery - Capt. Marko Ramius
Alec Baldwin - Jack Ryan
Scott Glenn - Capt. Bart Mancuso
James Earl Jones - Admiral James Greer
Sam Neill - Capt. Vasily Borodin

=The Hunt for Red October is a disappointing DVD from Paramount. The film is presented in a non-anamorphic 2.35:1 aspect ratio. While this is not beneficial, it probably does the disc a service by not further exposing the poor quality of the transfer. While the transfer still looks better on the average TV than any video, there is noticeable dirt, grain, and a "shimmering" edge-enhancement that makes the transfer subpar on closer inspection. The audio is in Dolby Digital Sound, but the submarine maneuver sequences still don't pack the punch they could with a proper digital remastering of the sound. The only supplement is the unremarkable theatrical trailer. Hopefully, Paramount will revisit this title in the future. For such a technology-heavy film, arguably the best Tom Clancy film adaptation, the possibilities for supplemental material are endless. More importantly, though, =The Hunt for Red October should stand as an example of the importance of digital remasters, not just digital transfers. The picture and sound quality are adequate, but don't show any care or concern in the presentation of the film on the DVD format. ~ Oliver Thornton, All Movie Guide