Review of Mission: Impossible (1996) by Jaiden C — 01 Dec 2015

Mission: Impossible is a breath of fresh air in a world of generally mindless summer blockbusters that require little in the way of thought on behalf of the audience. Generally, all that is required is the decision on what size popcorn and soft drink to buy in the lobby, but in this case, the film delivers plenty of impressive visual stunts and action framed smartly around a plot that dares to move past the mundane, offering a genuinely mysterious narrative that lends both credence and importance to the action.

Unfortunately, the latter two films in the series, particularly the second, veer more towards straight Action with minimal plotting, but cinephiles will undoubtedly enjoy De Palma's somewhat avant-garde style of filmmaking found here, particularly as it is combined with elements that make it, superficially, a summer popcorn movie.