roguebaird FREDDY FORSYTH has come up with a storyline which will suit the mood of the West's suspicions about Putin's Russia. Forsyth installs a nasty guy as the Ruski president who wants to return the country - not so much to Stalin's Communism but more to Hitlerian Fascism. In fact, his Political Manifesto could have come straight out of Mein Kampf rather than Marx. And, the loon has the latest weapons of biological destruction to achieve the ethnic cleansing pogrom of the Russian Federation. American mercenaries connive with the Russian Prez to realise his fanatical, genocidal dream, but then enter Dirty Dancing's Pat Swayze...and,yep,things get really down and dirty. He's a former US operative-turned-drifter,Jason Monk, who is enlisted by the British Government to see what the Russians are up to. As a corny sidebar, Swayze's character who is no Monk (!)has sired a Russian beauty Elena (played by the gorgeous Marta Kondova) on his previous missions to the former Commie state. Hardman Swayze does a passable job in setting out to defeat the evil Russians. But young unknown actress Marta Kondova steals the flick as his nubile, 18-year-old Russian daughter Elena who helps dad root out the terror threatening her beloved Mother Russia.

Mat-Dark I didn't read the book, actually I never really read a book these days. But judging by what you said about it not being like the book, it might be disappointing for you and all the other readers. I rated this mini series based on the acting and how good the storyline was. It was a good mini series and throughout the film, you always want to see what happens with the Villain at the end.The storyline is great and you always want to find out more. I certainly got into this film quite a lot and like I said, I wanted to see how it all ended up. Patrick Swayze was excellent as usual in this and anyone who takes a film based on acting and storyline and not comparing it to a book, you should check it out.

Robert W. I am still hanging on there for Patrick Swayze. A huge fan, always have been and always will be even if it's just hanging on to the hope that Johnny Castle will get another great role and if it's straight to video for him than so be it...I still think he's great. Icon is an absolute B movie if not because of the budget for any other reason. It must be rated with the fact that it is a "B" movie in mind. That being said Icon is a decent little flick with some definite highs and some definite lows. I am quite confident that with a different director and a different screen writer (perhaps Frederick Forsyth himself) this film could have been done very very well. If nothing else Icon is a great Russian film. I have not seen any other film that embraces modern day Russia with a great respect and treats it as good as a political thriller in the US would treat America. The story is good enough although a little confusing at times with some scenes that are unnecessary and a little complex, most notably the opening scene which I am still a little confused about.Patrick Swayze takes the lead role as Jason Monk, an under cover operative, who is former CIA and is coaxed back into Russia with the promise of being reunited with his estranged daughter who he hasn't seen she was a little girl. It still pains me to see Swayze look so old in the face but the guy can still move, he is in great shape and plays the action role just fine. His acting is a little campy at times but it really is the writing and the film that is at best B quality. He certainly shines in the role (I thought) and I think Jason Monk is a marketable character for sequels but they have a lot to change. The supporting cast in the film is also quite notable. Joss Ackland as the reclusive Presidential candidate General Nikolayev is good in his scenes and very convincing as a Russian dignitary, Patrick Bergin is fantastic as the evil "Icon" of Russia who wants the Presidency and is behind the plot to poison different races of Russians in Hitler style. He's cold and calculating but very personable and believable. Steven Spiers is also great as Swayze's friend and partner Viktor. He's lovable and you are drawn to him but he's kind of underused in the sidekick role. Michael York, who unfortunately is best known as Austin Powers' boss Basil plays Swayze's boss and you can't help but remember him as Basil which kind of ruins his role. Jeff Fahey also does a great job as the sleazy America Political spinner who helps Komarov get elected. Annika Peterson plays the main female lead Sonija Astrov and she does a good job too, as good as Swayze does. She handles action well and her and Swayze have decent chemistry. All of them play Russian quite well and I know many complain about the cheesy accents and the fact that barely anyone actually speaks Russian when they would in reality but it's a movie that has to be done in English so to me it was just a matter of assuming they would be speaking Russian normally but in order for us to watch the movie without subtitles...it's English. The cast is absolutely not the issues with the film but rather the reason to watch it. The film style of the film immediately reminded me of another low budget series which I have really enjoyed the "Left Behind" series which coincidentally enough director Charles Martin Smith played a part in the third installment. He wasn't right for this film and I don't think he knew how to properly piece together the story. There was no need for the film to be in two parts or to be as long as it was. Much of the story could have been cut down. Sometimes the sound editing was dead awful as well. Watching characters' mouths move and be out of sync with the words was annoying at times...annoying enough for me to mention it. Or it's the fault of screenplay writer Adam Armus who has a tendency to drag out films (ie: King Solomon's Mines...also a Swayze masterpiece.) When it's all said and done it's not so bad. It's worth watching, maybe not all at once, but a little at a time but it's put together with a very low budget. The special effects and stunts aren't bad but it seemed like the production of the film and the DVD got some poorly budgeted effects which does effect your experience. It's a shame it wasn't better handled because the ideas and possibilities are there. Just not fully realized. 6/10

Matthew Kresal Fans of the novel will more than likely be disappointed. But if you are interested in seeing a decent spy thriller, I recommend this. The cast is good and its got high production values.The cast is a good one. Patrick Swayze fits the role of Jason Monk perfectly and bares quite a resemblance to the character in the novel. Patrick Bergin and Ben Cross are excellent as the villains. But the best acted part in the film has to go to Micael York for his role of Sir Nigel Irvine. Joss Ackland also gives a good performance as the underused Russian General turned presidential candidate.Also on the plus side,the production values are high. The action sequences are good and exciting. The locations look real and are obviously not faked and the score is one of the best i've heard recently for TV movies.Ont he downside, the film's plot and its length are a downside. Most of the novel is scrapped and the great Black Manifesto is replaced (for the most part) by a virus. The addition of Monk's daughter and the female FSB agent are also added on to the novel's plot and are often irrelevant to the main part of the story. The plot is highly unbelievable and the duologue come in the tons in this film and winds it down several times.SPOILER! : The biggest flaw is the ending. The novel featured Komarov's and his army launching an attack on Moscow leading to a battle that would have been great on screen Instead it is replaced by simply having Komarov chased out by protesters and being shot by monk. An anti-climactic ending if there ever was one.Despite these flaws, Icon is still watchable and, while not faithful to the novel, is a decent spy thriller.