REVIEW COLLECTION: “Mission: Impossible” Part 2--From Director McQuarrie

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Mission: Impossible—Rogue Nation (2015) 

By the time the Mission: Impossible film series got to a fifth installment, two things became central. The first is that the franchise became as well-known not so much for Tom Cruise’s star power, but more so for his daring and dangerous stunt work. The 2015 follow-up, Rogue Nation, opens in spectacular, death-defying fashion with Ethan Hunt literally hanging outside an A400M aircraft as it takes off. Without a doubt, this is arguably the craziest stunt that Cruise has ever done in his career. (“One of these days,” Hunt is told, “you are going to take it too far.”) 

But it’s not the only sequence that physically tests Ethan and his team this time around, as they track down the head of a merciless organization known as the Syndicate (a regular adversary in the original 1960s TV series) that knows and rivals the secrets of the Impossible Mission Force. (Returning players include Simon Pegg as Benji, Jeremy Renner’s Brandt, and Ving Rhames’ Luther.) They also have to steal a disk of financial and international information via an underwater security vault (Cruise set a record at the time for holding his breath underwater for over six minutes), outrun pursuing adversaries in a high-speed chase on motorcycles (a first since the 2000 sequel), and determine the loyalties and motives of a mysterious British agent (Rebecca Ferguson made an impressive and strong franchise debut as Ilsa Faust), all while trying to stay one step ahead of the Washington committee and CIA agents who shut them down and are on their trail. 

Rogue Nation was released in a year that saw the spy genre make a big screen comeback, thanks to the latest installment in the James Bond series (Spectre), as well as Guy Ritchie’s adaptation of the ’60s TV show The Man From U.N.C.L.E. There are also many clever homages to Alfred Hitchcock, not least of which includes an Italian opera sequence where Ethan and Benji intervene an assassination attempt (recalling The Man Who Knew Too Much). The way Hitchcock described suspense in the early-1970s (using the “bomb under the table” analogy) certainly applies here, considering a moment where there’s a literal ticking time bomb. Ferguson could even pass for a Hitchcock leading lady or as a Bond girl. 

The presence of the aforementioned terrorist organization—supposedly against the system that created them—creates simultaneous action that is sometimes literally operatic, as well as a sense that nobody is safe. (Sean Harris’s chilling Solomon Lane has a curious scowl and voice, similar to Tom Hardy’s take on Batman’s opponent Bane.) On the flip side, Hunt and his team demonstrate dedication and determination in bringing their opponents down, not to mention the loyalty they have for each other and their willingness to do what they can for each other. Both reveal some surprising revelations and unexpected motives. 

The second central element here was the direction of Christopher McQuarrie. The former Oscar-winner (who penned The Usual Suspects) previously co-wrote the Cruise-led projects Valkyrie and Edge of Tomorrow and directed the movie star in Jack Reacher. This film (and series moving forward) would not have been possible without McQuarrie. Nor without J.J. Abrams’ team at Bad Robot, or Asian companies Alibaba and the China Movie Channel. It ranks as one of the best in the series, if not the best. The stakes are raised even higher with this one, both physically and psychologically, while the suspense, thrills, and character arcs are genuine and gripping. It feels like it could be their “last mission,” while leaving the door open for future ones. Hang on! 

Mission: Impossible—Fallout (2018) 

I wonder what comes first when the Mission: Impossible movies are being made: the stunts or the story. When it was initially released, I viewed 2018’s Fallout as an immersive action-adventure that upped the ante of its predecessors with larger, more practical, and more ambitious set pieces and stunt work. In retrospect, this sixth M:i chapter represents a culmination of everything this series has been building on since 1996–or, more accurately and arguably, since the 2006 threequel. The film’s teaser trailer even gave clues that Ethan Hunt’s mission work (and days) may be coming to an end—and not just physically taking a toll on him. As one character asks, “How long before a man like that has had enough?” 

Set two years after the events of Rogue Nation, Ethan Hunt and his team are tasked with tracking down a mysterious alias that’s leading countless Syndicate followers before they get their hands on three plutonium devices and use them for global nuclear destruction. (Wait, haven’t we seen this before?) Taking them from Paris to London to Kashmir, Fallout features subtle callbacks to each previous installment, from the 1996 opening to rock climbing and motorcycle chasing. Even a car chase through the streets of Paris recalls the unforgettable chase sequence from The French Connection. While this marks Christopher McQuarrie’s second “mission” (a first for the series), this sixth movie has a distinct look. 

The filmmaking has gotten bolder and more skilled, the tone is as operatic as it’s ever been, and the storytelling and scale are a symphony of sight and sound, thanks, in part, to Lorne Balfe’s epic, haunting, and encompassing score. Key sequences (filmed in IMAX) include a dangerous HALO jump from 25,000 feet in altitude, and an insane helicopter chase. And buckle up tight for a slam-bang bathroom brawl, in which Henry Cavill’s imposing and mustached Walker (a radical performance from the Man of Steel actor, around the same time as the initial Justice League fiasco) clocks his arms like shotguns. (By the way, Cruise really broke his ankle while filming a rooftop jump during a foot chase, a shot that made it into the final cut.) 

As convoluted as they can get (another possible callback to the original movie), the drama, stakes, and character arcs in Fallout remain grounded, complex, and dynamic. All the actors really bring their A-game and present diverse layers of skill, emotion, and complexity, including IT wiz Benji (Simon Pegg, who brings both intellect and wit), hacker Luther (Ving Rhames, the general voice of reason), MI6 agent Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson, displaying both conflicting objectives and mutual respect), and even an imprisoned (and bearded) Solomon Lane (which gives Sean Harris an almost entirely different but more active role and slightly improved but still chilling vocal delivery). Franchise newcomer Vanessa Kirby is both charismatic and lethal as arms dealer the White Widow (channeling Vanessa Redgrave’s Max from the 1996 original). And while she only has a few minutes of screen time, Angela Bassett’s CIA director Erica Sloan owns her scenes like a boss (even when she references the IMF as “old guys in rubber masks playing trick-or-treat”). Fallout even brings back the story of Ethan and his ex-wife Julia from the third movie, giving Michelle Monaghan a more mature and proactive role, and showing just how far they’ve come. 

Some of these characters are haunted by past actions and past lives. With parallels to Homer’s The Odyssey (in terms of striking imagery and arcs), the film’s subtitle refers to the challenges and consequences of good intentions—namely, the significance of one life over millions. The same applies to moral dilemmas, including how one defines “freedom.” There are also themes of masters and servants, free will, and trust. “Your mission, should you choose to accept it,” Lane ponders, “I wonder, did you ever choose not to?” Even with all the technical logistics and challenges—and apparently coming up with some of it as they go, not to mention hoping for the best—Cruise and McQuarrie and company still managed to craft a thoroughly engaging and gripping experience for the moviegoing audience. I now understand more (and am convinced) why many people highly rank Fallout. It certainly goes all-out. 

Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning (2023) 

Unpredictable and uncertain. That was the state of movie theatres during the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic after we entered the 2020s. It then became a question of when or if theatres would ever reopen, and if audiences would ever flock to them again. Leave it to Tom Cruise, Christopher McQuarrie and company, on a mission to help keep that unparalleled cinema-going experience alive with (what initially was) the first part of a two-film finale in the long-running spy series that is Mission: Impossible. Released one year after Cruise’s record-breaking sequel Top Gun: Maverick (which filmmaker Steven Spielberg personally commended for bringing audiences back to cinemas), Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning Part One also shares a few similarities with Denis Villeneuve’s first of two film adaptations of Frank Herbert’s sci-fi novel Dune. Both respective parts could’ve been filmed back-to-back, until it was decided to put all eggs into the basket that was the first chapter before proceeding to the second. 

This particular mission involves Ethan Hunt and his team (always great to see Benji, Luther, and Ilsa) searching for a rogue AI machine and a dual set of keys, as well as the answer to what exactly they unlock. Meanwhile, there’s a “global race” for control over these items, with Ethan and company trying to stop it before it falls into the wrong hands (i.e., killing it versus controlling or weaponizing it). The ominous Entity, which uses and manipulates technology and other/personal information, challenges the concepts of power (too much for one person to handle) and reason, as well as what is real and what is true. The narrative, meanwhile, has motifs of “ghosts” (representing past lives and past actions, including a cold-hearted adversary from Ethan’s, played by Esai Morales), choices (i.e., “choosing to accept,” choosing lives over one’s own), and role playing (recalling Ilsa’s words in Rogue Nation, as well as the idea of “playing God”), as Ethan contemplates what this particular, race-against-the-clock mission will cost him and his team. 

Those on their trail include US Intelligence agents (led by Shea Whigham and Greg Tarzan Davis) and a lethal assassin (Pom Klementieff). Henry Czerny’s CIA director Eugene Kittridge (from the inaugural Mission in 1996) also makes a return in this story (“I understand you’re upset”). And now that Fallout gave Ethan and ex-wife Julia’s story a proper and respectable closure, Dead Reckoning introduces a new potential love interest in Grace (Hayley Atwell), an expert pickpocket who gets caught up in the middle of the central mission. Like Cruise, Atwell has a compelling dynamic, as well as an impressive range of skills, wit, and vulnerability. She and Cruise share some incredible action sequences, including a terminal where a nuclear bomb has to be diffused (it’s always a nuclear bomb, isn’t it) and running through a speeding train. Certain, thought-provoking plot points involve a sense of survivor’s guilt, with characters questioning why their lives were spared. As one character recites, “We live and die in the shadows for those we hold close and for those we don’t meet.” 

Dead Reckoning takes practical filmmaking to another level, and not just for this series. (Keep in mind, most of this was shot during COVID.) In a plot where anything could happen, the scale keeps getting massive and epic, the stunts keep getting more ambitious and dangerous (including Cruise and Atwell driving a Fiat 500 while handcuffed; a brutal, knuckle-bound alley brawl intercut with a sword dual; or that now-famous bit where Cruise drives a motorcycle off a cliff in, supposedly, the Austrian Alps), and the stakes and tensions are high (if far-fetched). The filmmakers even made a bold and experimental move in presenting three to four set pieces (including a Russian submarine, and a desert chase in Abu Dabi) within the first 30 minutes—before the opening credits roll. Lorne Balfe’s grand and haunting score is one of this film’s greatest strengths, and may just be the best film composition in the franchise by far. It helps expertly balance action, thrills, humor, and high stakes, not to mention a brilliant sound design, and visual effects that get numerous physics down to a tee. Even if these elements seemingly don’t always hit the mark, they certainly stir every emotion, making this a phenomenal moviegoing experience that keeps things fresh and exciting—a testament to everyone involved. It’s as much (if not more) about substance as there are pyrotechnics. 

It’s a pity that Dead Reckoning was overshadowed by the dual release of Barbie and Oppenheimer one week after its initial release. Not to mention the actors-writers strikes later that summer (which, ironically enough, centered partially on the use of AI in the industry). It's an underrated installment that should be reevaluated. With deep theology, thematic weight, surprising redemptive arcs, and even some general revelation about old lives and new ones (including who Ethan was before he joined the IMF, and who Grace was before all this), Dead Reckoning really keeps you on the edge of your seat. It’s intense, gripping, and a slight improvement over the ending of Fallout (which, I thought, kind of played it safe). Plus, its cliffhanger will get you excited for the next movie. It’s exhilarating.