Most critics take to this as a sturdy, intelligent submarine thriller that keeps a complicated plot clear. The praise gathers around John McTiernan’s direction: his taut set pieces, his patient crosscutting between the Soviet boat and American intelligence, and the spatial clarity that lets a talky story move like an action film. Sean Connery’s commanding Soviet captain is the performance singled out most often, with Alec Baldwin’s nervier Jack Ryan close behind, and several admire its handling of the language barrier between crews.
The dissent is small but sharp, and the spread is wide: ten warm reviews, none lukewarm, two cold. Time Out finds the attempts to give the characters lives beyond the plot perfunctory. The New York Times calls it unconvincing and lazy, with punches pulled and effects that fall short, while Empire says the handling of Russian dialogue and heavy exposition sink the first ninety minutes before the action arrives. Later reassessments run warmer than the original notices.