Unlike the last chapter in the franchise, the opening of Mission: Impossible- Fallout does not feature Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt in the middle of a monumentally daring task. He's not jumping on an airplane or climbing the tallest building in the world. No, Fallout cuts right to the chase, catching up with Hunt as he learns the details of his next mission, while simultaneously informing us of what exactly has transpired since the capture of Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) at the end of 2015's Rogue Nation. We learn the task at hand, the dangerous players involved, and what could happen if it all goes wrong. To be fair, it's a lot of exposition right off the bat, and I was slightly amazed that writer/director Christopher McQuarrie (who was also at the helm for the fifth installment in the series) chose to start this high-octane sequel with such a giant info dump.
Trust in McQuarrie. Fallout may begin with a massive amount of story details, but it immediately puts its foot on the gas for 147 breathtaking minutes. On paper, this sequel resembles the other recent chapters in the series in just about every way. The cast is stacked with veteran performers, the stunts are outlandish and awe-inspiring, and the mission is, well, impossible. But from the economical opening scene to the final crescendo of death-defying madness, McQuarrie's aims with the latest Cruise extravaganza are notably different this time around. Fallout is an exercise in total action, a film that shatters the limits of big-screen combat in ways that feel novel and exciting. It is both straight-forward and operatic, blunt and positively dazzling. It features compact storytelling and unexpected poignancy. And even with a runtime well beyond the blockbuster average, it is brilliantly efficient.
If you thought the comparisons to Mad Max: Fury Road would be hyperbolic in nature, they certainly weren't. This is one of the best action movies of the decade, and maybe the finest film of the year thus far.
Solomon Lane may be in prison, but the master terrorist is far from done with Ethan Hunt. As the film begins, we learn that Lane's Apostles have stolen a large amount of plutonium, enough to create three nuclear bombs and wipe major cities off the face of the planet. Hunt's responsibility is to recover the substance in Berlin along with IMF team members Luther (Ving Rhames) and Benji (Simon Pegg), but things don't quite go as planned. Ethan has to decide between taking the plutonium and saving Luther's life- and if you know the secret agent, his choice is clear. The plutonium is loose, and the IMF has to find it before the world comes undone.
This time, the IMF won't be alone. Director Hunley (Alec Baldwin) vouches for Ethan's determination, but CIA operative Erica Sloan (Angela Bassett) needs an insurance policy. In this case, the insurance is August Walker (Henry Cavill), a hulking figure with the blunt power of a superhero. Walker joins Hunt, Benji, and Luther on their quest to find the plutonium, one that takes them across the globe and forces them into increasingly challenging situations. Along the way, Hunt and company will cross paths with Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), the British intelligence agent and former Lane associate. Everyone from Walker to Faust is playing some kind of game, but who can Hunt really trust? And how does he know that he isn't playing exactly into Lane's hand?
The core story is far from useless in the grand scheme of Fallout; that's simply not true. When you're in the heat of the moment in the theater, each new plot development feels so fresh and invigorating, sending you full speed ahead into the next action scene. The story itself is mostly about the pursuit of the plutonium, but McQuarrie is smart enough to add twists and nuances to each beat, many involving double-crosses, switched identities, and a powerful underworld leader known as the White Widow (Vanessa Kirby). It's intricate, smartly written stuff, a complex web of character motivations and potentially dangerous ambiguity.
Still, the story is not what lingers. When you walk out of that theater, you're not thinking about the careful plotting or the narrative surprises. No, your mind and your rapidly beating heart are fixated on the sheer adrenaline rush of practical stunts and meticulous action, so perfectly crafted that the whole bloody thing is flat-out unforgettable. Even as McQuarrie impresses with his deft twists and snappy dialogue, this new Mission is so thoroughly hypnotic on a cinematic level that everything else feels secondary. The filmmaker displays an uncommonly strong knack for commanding and manipulating the emotions of the viewer, constantly pushing and pulling in new directions. By the film's climax, McQuarrie had me enthralled, susceptible to each new twist and every character's brush with death. Beyond its practicality and tangibility as an extended action piece, Fallout possesses a wonderful strain of showmanship, landing its punches with forceful gusto.
But those action scenes! The simplicity and graceful precision of McQuarrie's storytelling works in the film's favor, but it also helps to have such staggering displays of action bravado. And yet once again, something feels different this time. Where other Mission films have felt like glorified stunt shows with their stand-alone acts of madness, Fallout distinguishes itself by barreling forward like a runaway freight train, rarely giving the audience a chance to consider what's about to happen. In the vein of Fury Road, each action scene bleeds into the next, adding real momentum to the proceedings. The vertigo-inducing HALO jump quickly gives way to the brusque and vicious bathroom fight, which leads to the cafe shootout, which leads to the Paris mayhem, and so on. It makes the runtime fly, and it's actually easy to forget how much McQuarrie has packed into a single film.
Fallout's action is virtually never-ending, and it's easy to imagine some audience members getting exhausted by the sheer magnitude of it all. But when each scene is such a masterfully crafted piece of high-wire genius, you won't have time to feel tired. This is a special kind of experiential cinema, the kind that leaves you shaken and breathless. While there is a musical score, done excellently by Lorne Balfe, the film often presents its set-pieces in an immersive manner, opting for the roar of engines and gunfire over operatic tones. Or maybe there was music and I just didn't notice it. That's how real Fallout feels, how intense and raw things get in the film's best moments.
Through it all, McQuarrie has a great core of characters to rely on. The Mission: Impossible franchise has steadily built a solid troupe of performers, allowing them to create strong characters with the goal of sneaky emotional moments. The finale packs a punch, and the grounded nature enhances the feeling that anything could happen at any moment. Heroes don't usually die in blockbusters, but this time, I wasn't so sure. In my mind, Ethan Hunt, Ilsa Faust, Benji Dunn, and Luther Stickle could have perished at any moment, permanently altering the landscape of the series. That sense of real danger keeps the film unpredictable at every turn, which is another compliment to McQuarrie and the writers. But it's also a credit to Cruise, Ferguson, Pegg, and Rhames- they've created vulnerable, interesting characters that we've come to love. That's no small feat.
There's really only so much I can say about Fallout. I can throw every superlative in the book at McQuarrie's film, but it can't begin to describe the experience. Just see it. This is propulsive, visceral action cinema, rooted in real-world tensions, yet still smart enough to avoid self-seriousness. It's the best Mission: Impossible movie, and it's the rare blockbuster that lives up to the astronomical levels of hype. Even if you can't use your MoviePass, what Cruise and McQuarrie have made is well worth your $15.
It's an absolute roller-coaster of a masterpiece. But the time it ends, you'll just want to go for another spin.
THE FINAL GRADE: A+ (10/10)
Images: Paramount/IMDb
Poster courtesy of Paramount
If you thought the comparisons to Mad Max: Fury Road would be hyperbolic in nature, they certainly weren't. This is one of the best action movies of the decade, and maybe the finest film of the year thus far.
Solomon Lane may be in prison, but the master terrorist is far from done with Ethan Hunt. As the film begins, we learn that Lane's Apostles have stolen a large amount of plutonium, enough to create three nuclear bombs and wipe major cities off the face of the planet. Hunt's responsibility is to recover the substance in Berlin along with IMF team members Luther (Ving Rhames) and Benji (Simon Pegg), but things don't quite go as planned. Ethan has to decide between taking the plutonium and saving Luther's life- and if you know the secret agent, his choice is clear. The plutonium is loose, and the IMF has to find it before the world comes undone.
This time, the IMF won't be alone. Director Hunley (Alec Baldwin) vouches for Ethan's determination, but CIA operative Erica Sloan (Angela Bassett) needs an insurance policy. In this case, the insurance is August Walker (Henry Cavill), a hulking figure with the blunt power of a superhero. Walker joins Hunt, Benji, and Luther on their quest to find the plutonium, one that takes them across the globe and forces them into increasingly challenging situations. Along the way, Hunt and company will cross paths with Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), the British intelligence agent and former Lane associate. Everyone from Walker to Faust is playing some kind of game, but who can Hunt really trust? And how does he know that he isn't playing exactly into Lane's hand?
The core story is far from useless in the grand scheme of Fallout; that's simply not true. When you're in the heat of the moment in the theater, each new plot development feels so fresh and invigorating, sending you full speed ahead into the next action scene. The story itself is mostly about the pursuit of the plutonium, but McQuarrie is smart enough to add twists and nuances to each beat, many involving double-crosses, switched identities, and a powerful underworld leader known as the White Widow (Vanessa Kirby). It's intricate, smartly written stuff, a complex web of character motivations and potentially dangerous ambiguity.
Still, the story is not what lingers. When you walk out of that theater, you're not thinking about the careful plotting or the narrative surprises. No, your mind and your rapidly beating heart are fixated on the sheer adrenaline rush of practical stunts and meticulous action, so perfectly crafted that the whole bloody thing is flat-out unforgettable. Even as McQuarrie impresses with his deft twists and snappy dialogue, this new Mission is so thoroughly hypnotic on a cinematic level that everything else feels secondary. The filmmaker displays an uncommonly strong knack for commanding and manipulating the emotions of the viewer, constantly pushing and pulling in new directions. By the film's climax, McQuarrie had me enthralled, susceptible to each new twist and every character's brush with death. Beyond its practicality and tangibility as an extended action piece, Fallout possesses a wonderful strain of showmanship, landing its punches with forceful gusto.
But those action scenes! The simplicity and graceful precision of McQuarrie's storytelling works in the film's favor, but it also helps to have such staggering displays of action bravado. And yet once again, something feels different this time. Where other Mission films have felt like glorified stunt shows with their stand-alone acts of madness, Fallout distinguishes itself by barreling forward like a runaway freight train, rarely giving the audience a chance to consider what's about to happen. In the vein of Fury Road, each action scene bleeds into the next, adding real momentum to the proceedings. The vertigo-inducing HALO jump quickly gives way to the brusque and vicious bathroom fight, which leads to the cafe shootout, which leads to the Paris mayhem, and so on. It makes the runtime fly, and it's actually easy to forget how much McQuarrie has packed into a single film.
Fallout's action is virtually never-ending, and it's easy to imagine some audience members getting exhausted by the sheer magnitude of it all. But when each scene is such a masterfully crafted piece of high-wire genius, you won't have time to feel tired. This is a special kind of experiential cinema, the kind that leaves you shaken and breathless. While there is a musical score, done excellently by Lorne Balfe, the film often presents its set-pieces in an immersive manner, opting for the roar of engines and gunfire over operatic tones. Or maybe there was music and I just didn't notice it. That's how real Fallout feels, how intense and raw things get in the film's best moments.
Through it all, McQuarrie has a great core of characters to rely on. The Mission: Impossible franchise has steadily built a solid troupe of performers, allowing them to create strong characters with the goal of sneaky emotional moments. The finale packs a punch, and the grounded nature enhances the feeling that anything could happen at any moment. Heroes don't usually die in blockbusters, but this time, I wasn't so sure. In my mind, Ethan Hunt, Ilsa Faust, Benji Dunn, and Luther Stickle could have perished at any moment, permanently altering the landscape of the series. That sense of real danger keeps the film unpredictable at every turn, which is another compliment to McQuarrie and the writers. But it's also a credit to Cruise, Ferguson, Pegg, and Rhames- they've created vulnerable, interesting characters that we've come to love. That's no small feat.
There's really only so much I can say about Fallout. I can throw every superlative in the book at McQuarrie's film, but it can't begin to describe the experience. Just see it. This is propulsive, visceral action cinema, rooted in real-world tensions, yet still smart enough to avoid self-seriousness. It's the best Mission: Impossible movie, and it's the rare blockbuster that lives up to the astronomical levels of hype. Even if you can't use your MoviePass, what Cruise and McQuarrie have made is well worth your $15.
It's an absolute roller-coaster of a masterpiece. But the time it ends, you'll just want to go for another spin.
THE FINAL GRADE: A+ (10/10)
Images: Paramount/IMDb
Poster courtesy of Paramount
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