 |
| Courtesy of Paramount |
Nowhere is that more evident than in Mission: Impossible – Fallout. It’s the sixth entry in a franchise that launched in 1996 and has spent more than two decades crafting inventive, terrifying ways to almost kill Tom Cruise. It’s the second in a row written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, and he somehow manages to sustain the insane levels of adrenaline and tension-breaking humor that made 2015’s Rogue Nation one of the series’ best installments.
Fallout begins with special agent Ethan Hunt (Cruise) and his teammates (Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg) botching an operation that allows terrorists to get their hands on nuclear material. Soon, Hunt learns a former adversary (Sean Harris) is behind the theft and he’s helping a mysterious protégée execute a plan to detonate the nuke in a location that would guarantee maximum casualties.
As if tracking down this enigmatic villain wasn’t hard enough, Hunt finds himself under the watchful eye of a CIA handler (Henry Cavill) who has been ordered to kill him if he deviates from their mission. Of course the plan goes haywire almost immediately, thanks to an erratic contact (Vanessa Kirby) and the reappearance of an old friend (Rebecca Ferguson).
Fans of the Mission: Impossible franchise know to expect a ludicrously complex plot, but that’s not why audiences keep showing up. We love these movies because of the jaw-dropping action and Cruise’s dedication to performing all the stunts he can himself.
That directly connects to one of McQuarrie’s greatest strengths as a director: shooting these sequences in creative ways that also make it abundantly clear Cruise is doing these insane feats for real. He’s not sending in a stuntman and he’s not standing in front of a greenscreen with wind machines blowing his hair.
Yes, that’s him doing a HALO jump from the back of an airplane. Yes, that’s him driving a motorcycle – sans helmet – through busy Paris streets. Yes, that’s him flying a helicopter and mountain-climbing in a finale so intense that my teeth hurt for hours afterward because my jaw was clenched so tight.
Cruise is the big draw here, but he surrounds himself with a killer supporting cast. Rhames (the only other actor to appear in all six films) and Pegg demonstrate terrific chemistry in their scenes, and I’m happy to see Ferguson back after her incredible, star-making turn in Rogue Nation. But perhaps the most memorable performance comes from Cavill. He (and his much-publicized mustache) is charismatic, dryly funny and an imposing presence in his many action sequences. His character is a perfect foil for Hunt, approaching similar objectives from different angles.
I’m not sure how much longer the 56-year-old Cruise can keep making these action extravaganzas without causing himself grievous bodily harm. (In fact, Fallout had to shut down for seven weeks because he shattered his ankle jumping across rooftops in London. But the sequence made it into the movie because he somehow managed to pull himself up and run out of frame without screaming in agony. You can’t say the man isn’t committed to his craft.)
However, I’m keep watching them as long as he’s still up for it. The Mission: Impossible series has surpassed the James Bond franchise as the pinnacle of the spy genre, in terms of both quality and entertainment. I know that’s a bold, possibly heretical statement, but I stand by it.
Mission: Impossible – Fallout is rated PG-13 for violence and intense sequences of action, and for brief strong language.
Grade: A-
Comments
Post a Comment