Tom Clancy’s Ryanverse series has been the source for blockbusters across various mediums, including films and video games, for over 30 years. The latest entry into the film portion of the franchise is Without Remorse, starring Michael B. Jordan.
Remorse is the story of an elite Navy SEAL who uncovers an international government conspiracy following the mysterious assassination attempt that nearly claimed his life and took the lives of his wife and unborn child.
As the first film without Jack Ryan, Remorse is something new for the Ryanverse. Can it stand with the rest of the franchise without him?
All things Remorse revolves around Jordan. He’s been the lead in several movies throughout his filmography, but sans Fruitvale Station, he’s never carried a film as required in this instance. The results aren’t perfect, but they are promising.
From a physical standpoint, Jordan checks all the boxes for an action star. He’s muscle-bound, very coordinated in his hand-to-hand combat scenes (no surprise to anyone who watched the Creed films), and comfortable with a gun. The fact that Jordan’s knack for nailing high-intensity scenes boosts those physical tools and makes him easily the best part of the film.
The flaw in his performance is the one that persists in most critiques of Jordan – the delivery of his dialogue in less emotionally charged scenes. Again, he has zero problems with immersive conveyance of raw emotions. Alternatively, Jordan would be better off reading directly from the script on camera if more nuance or subtlety is required.
Whether it was communicating with his wife or interrogating his colleagues, Jordan’s limp tone contradicts the scene's mood to the point where you wonder if he finds his character believable. It’s the same pitfall that hurt his performance in Just Mercy and it taints an otherwise good showing in this film.
The supporting cast is guilty of the same crime on a more consistent basis. Despite some solid work and extra doses of smug from Jamie Bell, they all appear to be sleepwalking through Remorse as their contributions are flat. However, that’s not entirely on them.
The blame for that problem, and Jordan’s issue to an extent, belongs to writers Will Staples and Oscar-nominee Taylor Sheridan. Staples, whose credits include 2 Call of Duty video games and the rewrite of Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation, and Sheridan, the scribe behind Hell or High Water and the Sicario movies, bring a pedigree that should guarantee an action-packed but stylish thriller.
Instead, the duo combined to produce a mess that is a shell of their previous works. In a film where suspense is a must, Staples and Sheridan put zero effort into creating it. The villain is easy to identify early with no thought whatsoever. All of the moves in Remorse are predictable to the point where every hiccup and consequence can be telegraphed well before it happens.
There are some solid, even spectacular action sequences, but they get a bit too long and unbelievable as the movie progresses – a clear sign of lacking everywhere else. The cliched patriotism motif they force pushes Remorse closer to an adaptation of Team America: World Police’s “America, F**K Yeah” or the 2012 abomination known as Act of Valor instead of a film based on a Tom Clancy creation.
With a mix of revenge and espionage, Remorse has everything to be what the Jack Ryan films were during their initial run. In Jordan, it has a star who is adept at handling the physical and emotional demands of a character equally interested in revenge and saving the world. With Staples and Sheridan, it has writers who have experience and success working in the genre.
Sadly, the script sinks all of that potential due to its inability to create mystery or puzzlement. It’s also hollow on dialogue, highlighting the Achilles heel of its star and shrinking the supporting cast to stand-ins.
Remorse is good enough to pass the time if it’s your only viewing option or you’re that much of a Jordan fan. Otherwise, you can skip this one with no remorse.
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