Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan-Ghost War review: John Krasinski returns with half-baked spy thriller that never finds its footing

John Krasinski returns as CIA analyst Jack Ryan in the spy thriller film Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan: Ghost War. The movie serves as a continuation of his hit Amazon Prime Video series, which officially premiered worldwide on May 20. Helmed by Andrew Bernstein and produced and co-written by Krasinski, it follows the story of Ryan, who is pulled out of office and back into the field to track down a rogue black-ops unit that was shut down years ago. All hell breaks loose when revelations start to surface in front of Ryan.

Plot of Jack Ryan: Ghost War

The scene begins with Jack Ryan, who is having the time of his life by joshing and working a civilian job, being approached by his friend James Greer, who is now the CIA Deputy Director. After being asked to collect a package in Dubai by his friend, he reluctantly goes, accompanied by his former colleague Mike November, where he meets a distressed Cooke, who hands him a cigarette pack and warns Greer he needs help before he is shot.

The shooter turns out to be Liam Crown, and later the Ryan and his colleague are being taken into custody by MI6 officer Emma Marlow. After confrontation, Greer reveals to Ryan, Crown is a part of Starling, a brutal black-ops program which was created by Greer and Cooke after 9/11 and is believed to be disbanded. The CIA director, Elizabeth Wright, meets with Chief of MI6, Arnold, in Whitehall. CTSFOs find bombmaking materials in an old Starling safehouse, but Ryan realises it is a distraction revealing the car which the CIA director is sitting in detonates.

Crown demands that Greer return the intel Cooke obtained on Starling. Ryan lies to Crown and says he left it in Dubai. Spear is revealed to be working with Crown. Ryan, Marlow and November return to Dubai and, with help from his former CIA colleague Patrick, determine where Cooke planned to transmit. After a massive showdown in Dubai, Crown is killed.

What works?

In the Jack Ryan: Ghost War, John Krasinski's portrayal of Jack Ryan has been done well. He slips into character effortlessly, bringing his signature likeability and strong moral centre to the screen. Apart from Krasinski, other characters have also delivered their performances perfectly.

In addition, the movie throughout has delivered plenty of slick, globetrotting action, car chases and espionage sequences.

What doesn't work?

The spy thrillers relied on brains over bullets, delivering stories filled with mole-hunting, betrayal, and mind-bending betrayals. The genre produced several definitive classics built entirely around relentless twists, turns, and paranoia. Characters rarely show their true intentions, using false identities and red herrings to keep the audience and each other guessing until the final act. The overall plot of the film plays it safe and lacks the deeper political tension of the television series. The shift from the TV show to film results in a loss of the franchise' signature intelligence analysis and character-driven stakes.

The runtime of the film leaves little room for long-term character arcs or evolving plots. Key returning players and new additions, like MI6 officer Emma Marlow, felt underutilised in the film. The scenes of Dubai to London back and forth failed to capture the dark, gritty edge of the cities they portray.

The central premise, which revolves around a syndicate of rogue agents and covert conspiracies, relies on well-worn spy thriller clichés that lack fresh surprises. In a few scenes of the film it felt the script leaned heavily on dialogues explaining and telling the audience about a character's motivations or stakes rather than showing them through natural drama.

Final verdict

Jack Ryan: Ghost War is sleek but delivers familiar espionage tension and features solid chemistry among the cast; the narrative feels thin and overly formulaic, playing out more like an extended TV episode than an essential franchise. Overall, it serves as a smooth action movie you can binge-watch if you want a laid-back one.