Movie Monday - Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Tom Cruise is still crazy! If you thought his performance in The Edge of Tomorrow was a sign that maybe he was getting back into his old acting game, you were wrong. Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, the fifth of Cruise's MI series, takes advantage of the fact that Cruise is totally batshit crazy.
The film starts off with a bang in an action sequence that would make any Bond film jealous, but it begins with the supporting cast from the previous film: Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol excluding Ethan Hunt. We’ve got Simon Pegg’s character, Benji Dunn, Jeremy Renner’s William Brandt, and the fifth reprisal of Ving Rhames’ Luther Stickell. Cruise's out-of-nowhere entrance scored a laugh from literally everyone in the theater. It wasn’t just because he ran, and it wasn’t just because it was so random. It was because it was Tom Cruise running, in his signature upright sprint. That, and how it was shot, layered a bit of comedy into what would otherwise have been straight badass action-hero fare.
Paramount Pictures
As if aware of the tone shift and wanting stay stay firmly grounded in action-genre, the movie accelerates in a way that is even more memorable than the rest of the Mission: Impossible films. The IMF, or Impossible Missions Force, is under scrutiny by the US government and, specifically the Director of Central Intelligence, played by Alec Baldwin. They claim that the IMF is too irresponsible and lacks oversight despite its ratio of success in past missions – even if you include blowing up half of the Kremlin a success, according to Baldwin’s character. As a result, the IMF gets absorbed by the CIA indefinitely while they investigate the IMF’s past activities. Meanwhile, a rogue organization believed to be only a myth, the Syndicate (really? So original…), has reared its ugly head in challenge to Ethan Hunt’s investigation. With the two events coinciding Hunt is sent on the run and becomes a wanted man on the CIA’s list while he tries to expose the Syndicate. Ethan Hunt’s motives and sanity are called into question when the CIA starts asking its own questions about the Syndicate, and this is where the film embraces the Bag-of-Cats level of crazy that is Tom Cruise. They make no effort to hide his eccentricities (if that’s what you want to call it) and in fact work those traits into the character, making us believe that Hunt is paranoid that the Syndicate exists and is making every effort to counteract the IMF, and is possibly even behind a number of international incidents worldwide. It even works with how he’s gotten progressively worse over the years from the first M:I all the way up to Ghost Protocol. It’s as if Screenwriter and Director, Christopher McQuarrie, wrote in Hunt’s paranoia to compensate for Cruise’s own personality traits.
Paramount Pictures
Luckily Hunt ends up captured with femme fatale Isla Faust, played by Rebecca Ferguson, who adds yet another great supporting character to the mix to complete our cast of likeable, competent, and just plain fun to watch characters to surround the lead. The ensemble is the film's greatest strength. Each of the supporting actors performs more than satisfactorily and the writing reinforces their performances really well.
The action sequences are also nothing to scoff at. There is a chase scene at the end of the second act that leaves you gripping your seat and waiting because maybe, just maybe, a rogue band of Warboys with Polecats and lances will come chasing after everyone else and suddenly the movie will turn into Mad Max. The film features a number of adrenaline pumping moments, a plethora of suspenseful scenes, some fun gadgets ranging from smartphone skeleton keys to musical instrument sniper rifles, and a fascinating game of tactical espionage chess between Hunt and the main antagonist.
Paramount Pictures
There aren’t many flaws here to speak of outright; the only one that stands out to me is sheer runtime, a result of the pacing slowing a little between action sequences. There were probably some scenes that could have been cut to make it a more streamlined experience, but not everyone is George Miller and two hours and fifteen minutes is forgivable. It's not Fury Road, but MI5 will easily take its place among the year’s top action films ahead of Terminator: Genisys, Spy, and Furious 7. I can only imagine a few films that have or might top it (Kingsmen) so I can definitely feel good about recommending it. I give it a 4 out of 5.
Hey, we're trying a new scoring system! Check it out below and in future reviews.
1 - This movie is so bad that it's not even fun to make fun of. I want my time back. 2 - This movie is horrible, but you can make your own fun with it. 3 - This movie had its moments, but if you're not hyped about seeing it, you're not missing much. See it if you've got nothing better to do. 4 - This movie was good, and we recommend it. 5 - Stop what you're doing right now and see this movie ASAP on as big of a screen as possible.