By James Pearson on
I’ve never been a big fan of The Mission Impossible franchise. I know, I know for some this is a treasonous thing to be saying but it’s true. I’ve never found myself truly engrossed in the films, often floating to my phone (if able to, of course never in the cinema!) when I found the movie to be ‘dragging’. This newest, and supposedly last, entry into the franchise does continue this trend, but there was a lot more here that I enjoyed than there has been in the past. Taking my personal opinions away however, the movie is pretty good. It manages to wrap up plotlines, even connecting the film back to many of the previous entries, truly giving it the ‘finale film’ feeling. The plot wasn’t too convoluted, the characters and acting were top tier and the action set pieces (despite a little over the top and outlandish) were expertly done and kept me and the rest of the audience I was with on the edge of our seats.
Let’s start with the positives. As always Tom Cruise once again proves why he’s the face of the franchise. Performing jaw-dropping and in this movie quite literally death defying stunts that not only push the limits of practical filmmaking, but the limit of its audience imagination. (No spoilers but I’ll say one word, Submarine. Once you watch the film you’ll know what I mean.) The film’s tension builds effectively, with Ethan Hunt racing against time to stop a rogue AI from triggering global catastrophe, a fear that many have in an age where AI is growing in power and popularity giving the film an eerie sense of almost realism. But Cruise is not the only star in this movie. Borrowing a pinch of the cast from the ever growing cast of the MCU, one of this movie’s strengths is its supporting cast. From Hayley Atwell and Pom Klementieff who bring energy to the story, and the action sequences - especially a breathtaking biplane stunt - or the regal Angela Bassett, are all undeniably thrilling. And of course it wouldn’t be a Mission Impossible movie without Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames, who both continue to play two of cinema’s most beloved characters. And I have to end this section with a shout out to the film’s composers Max Aruj and Alfie Godfrey. This movie’s score was a delight to listen to, and definitely did a lot of the heavy lifting when other aspects failed.
speaking of failed aspects… Now come the negatives which, in my opinion, are hard to ignore. The film’s nearly three-hour runtime feels excessive, causing even me to begin wishing for the movie to end and I enjoy a good movie or TV binge session. With long stretches of exposition slowing the pace of the film the countdown within the film doesn’t feel as threatening as intended, giving the whole film the sense of dragging its own feet. While the AI-driven plot is timely and is written well, some plot points do feel like the believability was ignored in favour of the wow factor. From planes, to submarines (as said earlier, again go watch the film and you might agree with me) to bombs, many of these aspects often go one step too far and bring you out of the movie. The Movies are called ‘Mission Impossible’ but I feel this movie finally pushes the envelope too far by giving Tom Cruise one mission that truly was impossible, and that I feel ruined the excitement of the movie as rather than being excited to see how he gets out of it, you are just rolling your eyes. Then there’s the ending. Again, without giving too much away it felt very anticlimactic for the end of a franchise, and more like a footnote at the end of this chapter, leaving the door open for a return later down the line. Which is fine but again takes away from what the movie was originally presented as.
For a ‘Mission: Impossible’ fan I’d say this is a pretty good movie. It wraps up storylines, keeps all that the movies are famous for but adds more, has great looking action and stellar set pieces. But for a regular movie goer (such as myself) I can see where it falls flat. With unrealistic action scenes that confuse you rather than get you invested and an ending leaving you wondering what’s next rather than reminiscing of what was, not to mention a length that results in you definitely needing a toilet break (I and many others in my cinema did), I can see these choices testing the patience of anyone, even the most dedicated fans. If you’re here for the spectacle, it delivers - but don’t expect a flawless send-off. Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning is still in cinemas now. And if you want to refresh your memory on what came before, films 1 to 6 can be streamed now on Disney Plus, with number 7 (‘Dead Reckoning’) available to stream over on NETFLIX.