Review of Mission: Impossible III (2006) by Mitchell B — 15 Aug 2015

Mission Impossible 3 is probably by third favorite of the franchise behind the first movie and Ghost Protocol. It has the best action behind MI2, the best villain of the entire franchise, a great darker look and tone, and the only film to actually be about Ethan as a character. I'd say it's one of the more underappreciated entries of the franchise.

The story is as follows. Ethan Hunt and his team are assigned to stop our main villain from getting his hands on this thing simply called the Rabbit's Foot. However, when the villain kidnaps Hunt's wife Julia he and his team are then forced to go steal the Rabbit's Foot himself to get her back.

There's a lot that works in this movie. First of all it actually feels like a Mission Impossible films again. They even brought back the iconic theme. The characters are back in character again as well.

The villain played by Philip Seymour Hoffman is probably the best villain of this franchise though that isn't say a lot. This is mainly to do with Hoffman's great performance because on paper he's really just another generic villain. If it wasn't Philip Seymour Hoffman playing him he'd probably be just as forgettable as the villain in Ghost Protocol.

I love the look and feel of the film as well. Look-wise and tone-wise this is probably the darkest of the films with the first one being a close second. I also like how this film actually dives more into Ethan's character than what we've seen before.

I feel like this film is actually about Ethan this time. He's the main character in all of them but in the rest he's just the guy who goes in to solve the mystery and beat-up the villain. There's never been an installment where they actually go into Ethan's past and personal life. The Indiana Jones films eventually did that and even James Bond is now doing it. This film doesn't do it either but I like how this film is about choosing between his life as a spy versus his happy relationship with his with Julia which plays a key role by the second half.

The action is great. This film probably sports the best action scenes of the franchise after MI2. The production values are, as always, on point.

The cast is decent. Tom Cruise and Ving Rhames are on their A-game like always. However, while the other members of the team this time around are passable, none of them really standout. Compared to the films after this the team is rather weak though better than the one in MI2. I like how the main girl (besides Ethan's wife) is a total badass but they don't draw any attention to it like in other films. I like that.

Overall, MI3 is a great thrill ride. Anyone who is a fan of Mission Impossible should enjoy this film on some level. It's not the best in the series but definitely worthwhile.