Written by: Kevin Berge
At some point, Tom Cruise is going to have to stop making these. He's already in his mid-50s. Or he'll just die on one of the Mission: Impossible sets. (Image Courtesy of: empireonline.com)
Quick Take: Mission: Impossible - Fallout is the best franchise has ever been with action that is more abundant and intense than ever before. Even relying on the action to deepen the storytelling, this is the rare adrenaline rush film that does not need strong writing to carry the narrative.
***This review will not contain spoilers beyond basic plot set-up for Mission: Impossible - Fallout. Those who have not seen the film yet can read ahead without risk.***
I'm not a huge fan of the Mission: Impossible franchise. I found the first three so boring that it took me a while to readjust to the better unnumbered films. Brad Bird's Ghost Protocol is a fun film, but it feels so far removed from the old franchise. Rogue Nation was quality mainly by relying on Rebecca Ferguson's (Life) Ilsa more than the lead Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise).
Mission: Impossible - Fallout though may have completely changed my perception on Mission: Impossible because this is far and away the most fun I have had watching any action film this year and is absolutely the most exhilarating the series has ever been.
The first MI film to have a returning director, Fallout is more or less a direct sequel to Christopher McQuarrie's Rogue Nation with the same characters returning for the most part including a plot centered on the continued potential threat of Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) with Hunt back on the case with Benji (Simon Pegg) and Luther (Ving Rhames) by his side and Ilsa in the mix.
This movie is just action set piece after action set piece, and it really works. The characters are well-defined, and the threat already well-established. The new faces all are fairly quickly established from the new CIA lead Erica Sloane (Angela Bassett) and her muscle Agent Walker (Henry Cavill) to the elusive White Widow (Vanessa Kirby).
For the most part, this is a film that reflects on the past with a fairly basic running threat of one dangerous unknown assassin at the head. Hunt tries to protect everyone around him only to be further pushed to his extreme limits especially by Walker who is around primarily because he does not believe Hunt can make the tough choices.
Hunt and Walker are the main running characters in this story for the most part, and, despite some rocky early characterization for Walker, the dynamic works thanks to both Cruise (Top Gun) and Cavill (Man of Steel). This is certainly Cavill's best performance to date.
I'm not a huge fan of the Mission: Impossible franchise. I found the first three so boring that it took me a while to readjust to the better unnumbered films. Brad Bird's Ghost Protocol is a fun film, but it feels so far removed from the old franchise. Rogue Nation was quality mainly by relying on Rebecca Ferguson's (Life) Ilsa more than the lead Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise).
Mission: Impossible - Fallout though may have completely changed my perception on Mission: Impossible because this is far and away the most fun I have had watching any action film this year and is absolutely the most exhilarating the series has ever been.
The first MI film to have a returning director, Fallout is more or less a direct sequel to Christopher McQuarrie's Rogue Nation with the same characters returning for the most part including a plot centered on the continued potential threat of Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) with Hunt back on the case with Benji (Simon Pegg) and Luther (Ving Rhames) by his side and Ilsa in the mix.
This movie is just action set piece after action set piece, and it really works. The characters are well-defined, and the threat already well-established. The new faces all are fairly quickly established from the new CIA lead Erica Sloane (Angela Bassett) and her muscle Agent Walker (Henry Cavill) to the elusive White Widow (Vanessa Kirby).
For the most part, this is a film that reflects on the past with a fairly basic running threat of one dangerous unknown assassin at the head. Hunt tries to protect everyone around him only to be further pushed to his extreme limits especially by Walker who is around primarily because he does not believe Hunt can make the tough choices.
Hunt and Walker are the main running characters in this story for the most part, and, despite some rocky early characterization for Walker, the dynamic works thanks to both Cruise (Top Gun) and Cavill (Man of Steel). This is certainly Cavill's best performance to date.
If Justice League was smart, they would have just let Superman have that sweet facial hair. He'd be way more likable with it. (Image Courtesy of: digitalspy.com)
It is a shame that Ilsa returns only to be mostly sidelined in this second outing for her character. She was the reason Rogue Nation worked, and Ferguson remains the only actor that could legitimately take up the reigns of the franchise if Cruise has to step down.
Of course, this has never really been a series about acting and storytelling. It's an action fest driven by the action hero Tom Cruise. Even if he's clearly getting a bit old to be hinting at romances with his female co-stars (who are at least 20 years younger), he still comes reliably as an action star even with the action ramping up even more.
There are so many incredible scenes in this film that is hard to even pin down a few as the best. From car chases through narrow streets to frantic helicopter fights in the mountains, this movie is an adrenaline rush with serious credit to McQuarrie (Edge of Tomorrow).
The sudden breakout director late in his career has a way with making scenes standout. It's breathtaking to behold often while also giving weights to the characters. There's a lot of depth to the action that has been lost in other movies of this kind including earlier films in this same franchise.
Fallout may not be a deep, complex story, but it is the best action movies I have witnessed in years through sheer action set pieces. It is not often a movie franchise hits its stride in its sixth outing, but MI has never been a typical franchise.
Few movies this year will be better than Fallout, and even less will be as exciting. If McQuarrie wants to stay on and continue this story even more, he should be allowed to do so because his connection with Cruise to second to none.
Of course, this has never really been a series about acting and storytelling. It's an action fest driven by the action hero Tom Cruise. Even if he's clearly getting a bit old to be hinting at romances with his female co-stars (who are at least 20 years younger), he still comes reliably as an action star even with the action ramping up even more.
There are so many incredible scenes in this film that is hard to even pin down a few as the best. From car chases through narrow streets to frantic helicopter fights in the mountains, this movie is an adrenaline rush with serious credit to McQuarrie (Edge of Tomorrow).
The sudden breakout director late in his career has a way with making scenes standout. It's breathtaking to behold often while also giving weights to the characters. There's a lot of depth to the action that has been lost in other movies of this kind including earlier films in this same franchise.
Fallout may not be a deep, complex story, but it is the best action movies I have witnessed in years through sheer action set pieces. It is not often a movie franchise hits its stride in its sixth outing, but MI has never been a typical franchise.
Few movies this year will be better than Fallout, and even less will be as exciting. If McQuarrie wants to stay on and continue this story even more, he should be allowed to do so because his connection with Cruise to second to none.
