Mission Impossible: Fallout

The “Mission Impossible” franchise can be considered to be a sort of anomaly in Hollywood. It’s weird to see that it’s a franchise that continues to implement clever writing and energetic action set-pieces that leave you hanging off the edge of your seat. Somehow, the filmmakers have figured out how to create an action franchise that is consistently smart, dynamic, and filled with clever turns around every corner. While I wouldn’t call it the best in the franchise, I wouldn’t argue with anyone who says it is. But at the very least, “Mission Impossible: Fallout” proves once and for all why “Mission Impossible” is the most consistent and engaging action franchise of the 21st century.

2 years after the events of 2015’s “Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation,” IMF Agent Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his tech-savvy partners-in-crime Benjamin “Benji” Dunn (Simon Pegg) and Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) fail to retrieve nuclear devices in Berlin, with a terrorist group called The Apostles now in possession of them. Now Hunt and his team must join forces with CIA Agent August Walker (Henry Cavill) and try to once again save the world. But this time around, visions and faces of Ethan’s past have now come to haunt him and he now must fight against demons, both within himself and out in the world.

If this premise sounds simple enough, then clearly you’ve never seen a single “Mission Impossible” film. But just because the story isn’t simple, doesn’t mean it isn’t engaging. Writer/Director Christopher McQuarrie makes sure to bring the audience along for the ride by having them situated in the predicaments of Ethan Hunt and his fellow teammates, because much like any other “Mission Impossible” film, something goes terribly wrong and thus the agents must come up with a better solution and an effective escape plan. It makes it feel as though the movie acts like a really engaging and addictive puzzle filled with riddles and the character must solve them in order to save their skins.

But unfortunately, while some of them do work, some twists or plot-points don’t really feel properly entangled with the cleverness of the rest of the story, in the sense that they are either predictable or not as exciting. There’s one twist in particular ¾ of the way in the movie which I did figure out within the first 15 minutes of the movie, and that was kind of disappointing. Though some of the other twists you can tell because of your knowledge of the previous entries, they’re nonetheless still exciting to watch unfold and you still get a kick out of it.

But in between these moments of espionage and intrigue, you have maybe some of the most visceral, captivating, and all around adrenaline-pumping action set pieces you’ll see in any of these films. From an exhilarating car chase in Paris to a brutal fisticuffs brawl in a bathroom, which is one of my favorites of the series, Christopher McQuarrie understands how to properly choreograph and shoot his action sequences and get the audiences invested, and many times exhausted from the adrenaline pumping through you. His expertise in action gets to the point where he can either bring to life scenes as small and contained as close-quarters fist fights and shootouts and/or as grandiose and epic as a chase between two helicopters.

But much of this action wouldn’t be nearly as impressive, nor fun, without the use of stunt work that I can say with the utmost confidence is on par with the stunt work performed in 2015’s “Mad Max: Fury Road.” Though I’m probably not the first person to say that, it’s still very true. As you’ve seen in the promotional material, Tom Cruise gets to jump out of a plane. That’s not CGI. That’s very real, and it’s even more impressive when you realize that it’s an entirely single take. McQuarrie expertly makes certain that each and every action set piece makes the audience feel on the edge of their seats.

Though the action, tension, and stunt work are to be truly commended, one thing that surprised me was the way McQuarrie treated the character of Ethan Hunt. For most of the series, Hunt has been treated as your favorite secret agent who can perform impossible stunts and constantly saves the world. That’s not a bad thing whatsoever, but it can be improved upon. But with “Mission Impossible: Fallout,” Ethan Hunt gets a chance to feel like more than an agent. He’s someone who’s greatest strength, as well as his greatest flaw, is his willingness to abandon and/or compromise the mission if it means saving someone’s life, and this film perfectly embodies that ideology of his.

The supporting cast, for the most part, also help bring the story to life and have a lot to offer together. While they remain in the sidelines for the most part, Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames continue to offer plenty of humor and humanity as well as be trustworthy compatriots to Ethan Hunt. Much like in the last film, Rebecca Ferguson’s femme fatale persona of Ilsa Faust continues to add to the intrigue and complications within the narrative while also providing her own engaging action sequences. Henry Cavill’s character of August Walker is described as “the hammer” in the movie and it definitely shows. Cavill’s physique as well as his calm, calculating performance allows for him to act as a fun juxtaposition to the character of Ethan Hunt. But other than that, there isn’t much in Cavill’s character to make him a worthwhile addition to the cast. But he’s still really fun to watch in the end.

Overall, “Mission Impossible: Fallout” proves exactly why “Mission Impossible” is the most consistently clever, thrilling, and heart-pounding action franchises of the century. Tom Cruise continues to push himself to the limit and offer up even more of what came before. The twists and story elements don’t quite live up to the previous entries, notably 2011’s “Ghost Protocol” and 2015’s “Rogue Nation,” they still provide for plenty of intrigue and complexity to at least get you to smile. While in some ways it’s a step down from the previous two films, “Mission Impossible: Fallout” nonetheless pushes the franchises forward in other ways as well, and that’s something to get excited about.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb49-oV0F78&t=1s&w=585