Review of Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015) by Andrewmakatsari — 04 Aug 2015

Mission Impossible Rogue Nation is a combination of everything great that made the original stand out as a deep,intriguing spy-espionage film,while also taking elements of more streamlined,adrenaline-fueled action that made Ghost Protocol equally important and satisfying.The result of this rather riksy mixture,is the best Mission film to date.

Rogue Nation works on many levels,from action to story to characters to pacing,writeer/director Chris McQuarrie ,manages to craft a brilliantly compelling story,about family,friendship and how far will the already established team go to protect each-other in the tough circumstances that they're put into,loyalties get put to the test ,whilst character interactions are handled with incredible amount of care and emotion ,thanks to terrific performances from the entire cast of IMF members and some great writing to back it up.The main reason why these films is that the team always feels essential to delivering the emotional punch that it should and here it works extremely well.Tom Cruise is one of the most reliable action stars today,not only will he deliver death-defying authentic stunts(i mean seriously the guy attaches himself to a plane and flies with it hanging on the wing,8 times)he continues to be the same enigmatic and highly intelligent Ethan Hunt that we've known and loved for so many years now,yet here Cruise is at his most dangerous and most vulnerable,his will to constantly rush into these deadly situations is cleverly addressed here and becomes the main emotional point ,which brings the whole team to care about their riskiest companion.Simon Pegg as Benji gets more to do ,and his scenes with Cruise are some of the most hilarious and most sad really,Jeremy Renner and Ving Rhames have smaller roles as Brandt and Luther ,but the script still gives them a few scenarious were you do feel their need to be there.ALec Baldwin on the other hand provides a nice intimidating touch to the whole film.Who surprised me the most was Rebecca Ferguson as British secret agent,working undercover in the villainous syndicate.She is the female equivalent of Ethan and kicks just as much ass,while having a really feminine look and attitude as well,she's charming,polite and meaningful.Last but not least,Sean Harris was actually really good as the main antagonist of the film,as a leader of a powerful rogue organization,his methods are cold and calculated,his nature is motivated and creepy,a true match for Ethan and the IMF,a great improvement over Ghost Protocol's villain whose motivations were unclear and felt like the worst part of the film.

Director Christopher McQuarrie has only directed 3 films previously,The way of the Gun(which was a poor start to say the least)his first team-up with Cruise in Jack Reacher(which I really enjoyed)you must think the action would be serviceable at best,well,it is anything but serviceable it's astonishing,every single action set-piece feels riveting and leaves you breathless by the end of it.The best thing is that the planning and the execution are both masterfully crafted.Listening in on how to breach an underwater safe,with no oxygen tanks ,rewiring 3 security disks,while also having to dodge and avoid a mechanical coolant-arm,just in time to clear the security pass for another one of the team's members,is nerve-racking,and the execution of it completely lives up to the intense organizing.Aside from that the films has THE BEST motorcycle chase i've seen in films,a perfect use of practical effects and a handful of stylish directorial tricks such as POV shots ,make going at 120mph ,avoiding traffic ,while being held at constant gunpoint a pure roller-coaster,without railing to hold onto.An opera house assassination has some superbly choreographed fight sequences too,the characters full use of the constantly shifting environment makes for a fight that's more about wit than fists and shows just how much McQuarrie pays attention to detail to enhance the combat experience and make it something more than a well-shot fist-leg bumps.Yet what's most surprisingly welcome is that McQuarrie sticks to a rather quiet and intimate final act,showcasing that the battle between Ethan and Solomon,is more intellectual than physical.Fortunately though Ferguson manages to fend off and win in a fantastic knife-fight scene that had my pulse pounding ,and made me understand that women can wrap their legs up on you in not-so-fun ways too.

Filled with spectacular action,amazing characters ,a rich detailed plot that cleverly flips genre conventions and cliches on their head and finds new ways to reintroduce them in new ways,while still mainting heart and soul and family at it's course,Mission Impossible Rogue Nation is my favorite Mission film yet,huge props to McQuarrie for keeping the franchise on the roll and not letting it run out of steam and five movies in ,it's hard to believe but...................