Patriot Games is a 1992 American spy thriller film that was directed by Phillip Noyce and is based on Tom Clancy’s novel of the same name. It is a sequel to the 1990 film The Hunt for Red October, but with different actors in the leading roles, Harrison Ford starring as Jack Ryan and Anne Archer as his wife. James Earl Jones is the lone holdover, reprising his role as Admiral James Greer. The cast also includes Sean Bean, Patrick Bergin, Thora Birch, Samuel L. Jackson, James Fox, and Richard Harris.

The film premiered in theaters in the United States on June 5,1992 and spent two weeks as the No. 1 film, grossing $178,051,587 in the worldwide box office business. The next installment in the film series, Clear and Present Danger, also starred Ford and Archer.

The Film Itself (3.75/5):

Patriot Games is your routine, run of the mill good guys vs bad guys loaded with heavy weaponry film, that it certainly makes for an easy guilty pleasure. While it’s not my most favorite of the Jack Ryan films, it’s on that allowed for my wife and I to sit down and enjoy a mindless venture. Feeling somewhat like an Indiana Jones (especially toward the end) film, this movie takes the original story from the novel and waters it down quite a bit as there is a lot that was left out.

Picture Quality (4.5/5):

Offering a pretty noticeable difference in visual presentation over its previously released Blu-ray counterpart, Patriot Games provides its viewers a presentation that’s high in textural qualities, and thick and consistent grain. Feeling much more real than previously watched releases, the difference in quality with this release is noticeable right from the get go. The utilization of Dolby Vision was simply “okay” with this release. Some of the colorization feel slightly washed out with this movie, however there are other parts of the palette that pack a stronger visual punch. The blacks offer a crisper, more newfound depth, which can certainly be respected.

Audio Quality (4/5):

Unfortunately, the 4K UHD copy of Patriot Games comes packaged with the same exact Dolby TrueHD 5.1 mix that was previously made available on the 2008 Blu-ray copy of the movie. The audio track does provide its viewers an absolutely powerful, lossless experience that absolutely roars through home theater systems. While it’s not as immersive as it could have been with the inclusion of the surround channels, or even the elevation aspect, the track packaged with this release is clean. The recognition of the viewers in relation to the screen was noticeable as the transitions from channel to channel were clean, and the dialogue was clean and clear, allowing for everything to be heard without having to adjust the volume levels as the movie progressed.

The Packaging (4/5):

Patriot Games comes packaged in the Jack Ryan: 5-Film Collection. This collection is packaged in a ten-disc, extra thick amaray case that contains the 4K UHD discs of all of the films within, as well as the standard Blu-ray copies of all of the films advertised within. While there are no DVD copies of the films included with this bundle, there is a digital copy redemption pamphlet that contains the necessary codes to add the five movies to collections for the various streaming platforms. There’s also a slipcover that’s been provided that has the same artwork that’s also been provided on the case art.

Special Features (2/5):

The 4K UHD release of Patriot Games provides its viewers with no new special features in comparison to its previously released counterpart. Unfortunately, the UHD disc doesn’t include any special features at all, and the content that is included is made available on the included Blu-ray disc. Included with this release is:

Disk 1 No Additional Features

Disk 2 Patriot Games Up Close Theatrical Trailer



Technical Specs:

Video

Codec: HEVC / H2.265

Resolution: 4K (2160p)

HDR: Dolby Vision + HDR10

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1, 2.35:1

Original Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1

Audio

English: Dolby Digital 5.1

Czech: Dolby Digital 2.0

German: Dolby Digital 5.1

Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1

French: Dolby Digital 5.1

Italian: Dolby Digital 5.1

Japanese: Dolby Digital 2.0

Hungarian: Dolby Digital Mono

Polish: Dolby Digital Mono

Portuguese: Dolby Digital Mono

Russian: Dolby Digital 5.1

Subtitles

English, English SDH, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, Arabic, Cantonese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Korean, Malay, Mandarin (Simplified), Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Swedish, Thai, Turkish

Runtime

Original Film: 117 Minutes

Final Thoughts:

Overall, I was happy to sit down and revisit Patriot Games as it has been quite some time since I’d last seen this movie. The 4K UHD version offers a significantly better visual presentation over its previously released counterpart. The audio track is the same exact one that’s been previously provided, which is a shame that they didn’t really take the time to put any kind of additional attention into. The special features are pretty sparse, almost practically nonexistent; but the ones that have been provided were certainly appreciated. If you’re considering this release for your collection, I’d definitely recommend grabbing it if you don’t already have the previously released Blu-ray copy of the collection. The Jack Ryan 5-Film Collection is available on 4K UHD today.

Note: This Blu-ray was sent to us for review. This has not affected our judgement or editorial process in any way. Please contact us if you have any questions regarding this process.