The Reel Review
Tom Cruise is back as Ethan Hunt, the leader of a team of stealth (and often rogue) super-agents, in this seventh outing in the popular action/adventure franchise. This time the team is trying to save the entire planet from sentient artificial intelligence that is hellbent on destroying humanity. Yes, the backstory to 1984’s The Terminator has begun.
Working from one of the strongest screenplays in the 27-year film franchise, Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One is loaded with fun twists and surprises and a totally insane number of frenetic car chases and stunts, even by Tom Cruise standards. It also cleverly pokes fun at itself. A terrific Hayley Atwood (Agent Carter, Captain America: Winter Soldier) is his major foil this go ‘round, with Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames and Vanessa Kirby all reprising their roles. Esai Morales and Pom Klementieff (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2) appear as the human villains working for the AI.
The only real fault with Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One is its length. Just shy of three hours, it is at least 30 minutes too long. But the quick pacing, that iconic, earworm of a score and just enough silliness – i.e., masks that can be created in minutes from a silver suitcase with just a puff of smoke – make the sequel from co-writer/director Christopher McQuarrie a fun, massively entertaining ride.
REEL FACTS
• With a budget of $291 million, this is the most expensive Mission Impossible film ever made and the most expensive film of Tom Cruise’s career.
• Ving Rhames is the only supporting cast member to appear with Tom Cruise in all seven films. Now as CIA Director Eugene Kittridge, Henry Czerny is the first actor to reprise his character from the first film.
• This film confirms that Vanessa Kirby’s White Widow character is the daughter of illegal arms dealer Max Mitsopolis, played by Vanessa Redgrave in the original Mission Impossible 27 years ago.
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