I enjoyed the film and the book, both were very accurately realistic. Seeing the rule James Scott Bell put forth (above), “Develop your characters fully and set them in the story world where their values conflict with each other” made me think about this film in particular, but also the genre.

Thorough research (done by Tom Clancy) was the difference between a fun story and a first rate, gripping thriller. In this case (and the other books and films with Clancy’s authorship) technology and trade craft (the means of espionage) are characters in the story.

Red October, the submarine, while an inanimate object, was at conflict because its standard mission was to be a stealthy nuclear weapons platform; yet in the story it uses its stealthy characteristics to make the escape. Likewise, the US sub that was sent to bring Red October in, was an attack submarine, specifically designed to destroy subs like Red October; and in fact was originally sent out with that specific mission.

The key human characters all have similar conflicts too, and those conflicts are realistic because of the amount of research he put into developing them. Clancy talked with his insurance clientele, mostly Navy and Marine Corps personnel, to get a real feel for what they did and how they felt about their jobs and the enemy.

It really points out how detailed research helps develop characters and exposes you to their world, where you can set up the conflicts that can become a gripping story.