Tom Clancy's Without Remorse

 Without Remorse

Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse starring Michael B Jordan, Lauren London, Jodie Turner-Smith, Guy Pierce, and Jamie Bell was released over the weekend on Amazon Prime to poor critic reviews yet favorable fan reviews. It is a story about John Clark, a Navy Seal, whose mission in life is to get revenge on those who murdered his wife and unborn child.

I feel fortunate that I have not read the book. It seems those who did were very disappointed with the movie because the screenplay writers make have been very liberal in their use of the creative license. I actually enjoyed the movie though. It is clear from the production quality that the studio did not nickel and dime the budget. 

Michael B. Jordan carried this film. He hoisted it on his broad, chiseled shoulders and pushed through some of the cliched nuances that we would expect from a Tom Clancy-inspired film. Now did he do enough to take this across the finish line to start off a new franchise? That remains to be seen. They have laid the groundwork for a sequel. If they did do another version of this, would I watch it? Absofreakinglutely. 

I enjoyed Without Remorse. Michael B. Jordan gave a solid performance. The action sequences were pretty entertaining. The storyline is to be expected as it is based on a Tom Clancy novel. Although they did try to put a more modern spin on it. They also tried to touch on some racial issues and bring out issues with how our veterans are treated in general. People seem to glamorize being a veteran while taking for granted the real hardships that they have to deal with after coming back from combat. 

John Clark and members of his team were just trying to get their life on track after serving when fate would derail their plans by claiming the simple lives they were trying to build. I appreciated the pacing of the film throughout. Did I mention how much I enjoyed the action sequences? The acting overall was on point. I enjoyed seeing Lauren London on screen. 

Without Remorse B-

SPOILERS AHEAD

John Clark played by Michael B. Jordan was pretty one-dimensional. He had some great scenes like the one in the prison when he was ready to take his L like a king. I needed him to have a touch more depth. They did attempt but it fell short. Aside from being a man bent on revenge, we did not get as much as I would have liked from the writing. They showed that he was a soldier with a strong moral compass at the beginning when he got into with Ritter but did not explore that further. Jordan did well with showing his sadness for his loss but again, they dropped the ball on that too. I enjoyed the character but would have liked a little bit more exploration into establishing his character and growth. 

Pam Kelly played by Lauren London was lovely all around. Though her role was small, it was impactful. I especially loved at the end when she was talking to John about heaven. I felt like it was more poignant for the actress because it was almost as if she was channeling emotions from losing her love in real life. 

Karne Greer played by Jodie Turner-Smith was a complete badass. I do not know how many women are even in the Navy seals but I darn sure no they do not have a sister leading a team. Nevertheless, I enjoyed her presence on a couple of levels. I appreciated Greer’s strength and steadfastness throughout the film. I also found it interesting that as the only other black female in the film she had John’s back and best interest even when he did not care for his own wellbeing. This seemed parallel to how black women are in the community. 

Robert Ritter played by Jamie Bell was a pure asshole. Bell did a great job of conveying about much of an asshole he was and convincing me as the viewing to dislike him. However, he was so much of a puppet that he did not see how he too was being played. How does someone like that come to run a department? I can only hope that his experience had led him to be a better person for future movies. 

Thomas Clay play by Guy Pearce was typical. I enjoy Guy Pearce but they really should have cast someone else if they did not want us to figure out that he was actually the bad guy. Whenever I see Guy Pearce in a movie, I automatically assume he is going to be the bad guy. Definitely, predictable turn of events. However, I will say that Pearce did a great job of being a sniveling politician