8 More Films That Clearly Ended With World War 3

8. The Hunt For Red October (1990)

The Hunt for Red October, Jack Ryan's first literary and cinematic adventure, features the defection of veteran Soviet naval officer Marko Ramius to the United States. Ramius is the captain of the new submarine Red October, which features a 'caterpillar drive', making it invisible to sonar. Ramius leaves Russia to manoeuvre with another submarine, commanded by his former pupil Tupolev. However, on the way, he and his first mate plan to make their way to the United States, using their caterpillar drive to avoid detection by Russian patrols led by Tupolev. CIA analyst Jack Ryan (he'll appear again on this list, god bless him) is the only one to discover Ramius' plan and works furiously to convince American officials that the Soviet captain is not on his way to launch a nuclear attack on the U.S. He is successful, and the USS Dallas makes a rendezvous with Red October. Ramius is granted asylum in America and is nearly on United States soil when Tupolev's sub catches up with them. Ramius evacuates the crew of Red October and concocts a plan with Ryan; the two of them destroy Tupolev's sub with its own missile and escape to America. The crew of Red October, unaware that Tupolev was present, believe it was their own ship that was destroyed, and presumably report this to their superiors in Russia. Ryan believes all is well, and Ramius plans to quietly retire someplace in the U.S. backcountry. However, they are overlooking one crucial fact: the Soviet military was clearly aware that Tupolev was pursuing the defecting Ramius, and would be very interested in discovering why they had lost a submarine so close to American soil. Would the Soviet Union really not question the disappearance of their sub, captained by a rising star, that was on a mission that would take them into American waters? Not only would America be EXTREMELY unhappy with the Soviets breaching their territory, but the Soviets would also not be thrilled with America taking possession of Russia's most advanced sub and (to the best of their knowledge) destroying Tupolev's ship. Jack Ryan wasn't as brilliant as everyone seemed to believe; instead, his plan would have led to the explosive conflagration of World War III.