The word wow was created for films like Mission: Impossible – Fallout, the sterling sixth entry in the franchise led by Tom Cruise. It’s thrilling in all the right ways, inventive in many others, and the perfect summer blockbuster film. If you were worried the franchise might be showing its age, let me assuage your fears, it’s fantastic.
Fallout finds Ethan Hunt at his most desperate. He’s captured the leader of the Syndicate but after a mission gone wrong, it seems like that won’t matter. Plutonium that could power three nuclear bombs is in the wind and the IMF (Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg) have to get it back. Complicating manners are Walker (Henry Cavil), the CIA’s hired man, who has to join the team and Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) who seems to have a mission of her own. As the clock starts ticking on the mission, the stakes rise and alliances begin to fall apart.
When all things are said and done, and we look back on movie history, Tom Cruise will have to be among the pantheon of the stars of the modern era. He is at his Tom Cruise-iest here, giving us epic action but also not skimping on showing us a bit of his range as a dramatic actor (I want him to do a juicy drama so bad, but will have to settle for glimpses for the time being). He’s perhaps able to be so great in this movie because he gets to play off a wonderful supporting cast. The sly charm and physical brutality of Henry Cavil has been used to great effect in many films, and McQuarrie knew what to do with him here. Cavil plays his role with an ease that alludes him in his more famous blockbuster role and almost walks away with the movie. For a franchise that seems all about the men, the women get some ample screen time and great moments, especially Vanessa Kirby, whose broker character seems tailor made for her acting talents. Rebecca Fergusson, the most memorable part of Rogue Nation, brings a surprising amount of heart to the proceedings given her history and still kicks major ass.
Every actor got at least one standout moment, yet these never felt like they took away from the momentum because the script of Mission: Impossible – Fallout is so sharp. This movie manages to be logical even as people cross and double cross each other, tight enough to move the set pieces, and is also incredibly funny, with many of the series’ long running gags present and accounted for.
Every element from the acting to the script to the technical aspects are all handled masterfully by Christopher McQuarrie. As the first director to return to the franchise, and the one who directed one of it’s least memorable entries, McQ, as he is called, had a lot riding on this movie. From the first moments, he makes his mark on the franchise and continues to do so throughout the movie. His eye for action might be unmatched and you MUST see this movie on the biggest screen possible to pay witness to the incredible action direction he’s doing (the Imax sequences are breathtaking).
There’s nothing more to say about this film other than Mission: Impossible – Fallout is the summer blockbuster we dream about seeing and is worth every penny.