Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol

Saw this at a London IMAX press preview screening.

Clearly JJ Abram's mission impossible, should he choose to accept it, is to lead a talented team to resurrect a declining franchise and re-ignite it with renewed vigour and a very high dosage of fun and entertainment.

I'm glad to say, mission highly accomplished.

Brad Bird's first time direction of real actors (must have been a shock when they talked back at him) exhibits the same zestful energy and fun that we got from his animated films such as The Incredibles. Though not with the subtlety of his Iron Giant but this is Mission Impossible, so we cant expect that kind of subtlety here.

Story is outrageously OTT and thats how it should be for a franchise that violently throws plausibility out of the window with much deliberation. Not much else to say about the story apart from the fact that it can easily be translated into a Bond movie. We're in that kind of villainous territory here and it is fun.

The action sequences are inventive, relentless, fun and tense. Some scenes are filmed in IMAX format and when seen on an IMAX screen, are breathtaking and immersing.

As well as Brad Bird's energised and retro direction, the cast really sparkles too. Cruise rocks as an action stunt hero. In fact more so now than he ever did. His traditional self stunt work in this series continues to impress particular in his skyscraper scenes. There is also more playfulness and assuredness in a role he has now worn into nicely. Simon Pegg gets a delightfully big promotion to join Hunt's team making us laugh throughout the movie. And Paula Patton adds an elegant sexiness to the MI team missions. Another new addition to the team, Jeremy Renner also gels smoothly into the squad.

This film has drastically rejuvenated the franchise that I now highly anticipate further adventures of Ethan Hunt and his new vibrant team, equally or even more so than the next James Bond movie.

The first one was well made, but got boring. The second tried too hard to be cool. The third one was great, but the style was too jarring. The fourth one said: "screw it, let's just have some fun" and everyone else followed its lead.

Ghost Protocol might be the most rewatchable movie in the franchise (it's certainly the one I've rewatched the most). Its creative set piece, amazing stunts, likeable team, fast pace and perfect runtime make for an endlessly rewarding viewing experience.

It's a bit dissapointing that Luther only got a cameo at the end, but making Benji a field agent was one of the best desicions made in the series. The villain is the most boring in the franchise, but this is arguably the first MI movie to really focus on the whole main team and not just Ethan Hunt and I love it for that.

With its first three entries, the franchise was clearly trying to find its identity. Here, they finally found it, and I love it.

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol is filled with edge of your set thrills executed with great performances, visual splendor and great direction all thanks to Brad Bird!

Mission: Impossible 4 Ghost Protocol captivated me to the core leaving me eager to relish it even in 2023. I wonder how astounding and exquisite the experience would be to watch such contents in 4D!

The movie's inception with a gripping prison break set the tone for a non-stop thrill ride considering we get an idea this is something big. The exhilarating momentum reached its zenith during the iconic Burj Khalifa scene which was marvelously shot! It's still one of the greatest scenes in the world of Cinema!

Tom Cruise's brilliance and the surreal work on the Burj, including the elevator sequence, left me in awe. Simon Pegg's resourcefulness and humor in action movies added a delightful charm.

The film's action and adventure never failed to entertain ensuring there was never a dull moment. The thrill remains intact, making it a delightful re-watch. I eagerly await more MI movies, hoping to watch one in 4D!

The undercover unit comes back into action with several fine spectacular scenes . The crack undercover agent Ethan Hunt(Tom Cruise) is again called back into action by IMF staff , his assignment is a crucial mission to take some nuclear artifacts . The outfit formed by stalwarts specialists (Paula Patton , Simon Pegg ,Jeremy Renner) execute a dangerous operation in the Kremlin , Moscow . But the IMF is shut down , forcing the President to invoke Ghost Protocol , when it's implicated in the bombing of the Kremlin , causing Ethan Hunt and his new team to go rogue to clear their organization's name . Meanwhile, Ethan and his undercover bunch try to discover who set them up . Ethan and his group pursue the main suspect , Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist) , to Dubai where carry out dangerous capers .

This energetic movie packs unstopped action , hair-raising suspense , exciting thriller , frenetic pursuits and lots of violence . Well made high-tech hijinks and full of breathtaking set-up with impressive images . Tom Cruise performed the sequence where Ethan Hunt scales the outside of the Burj Khalifa tower himself without the use of a stunt doublé , the Burj Khalifa tower is the tallest building in the world , it is the Armani Hotel Dubai , the first hotel designed and developed by Giorgio Armani . During the filming of production, Tom Cruise did the majority of his own stunts including the skyscraper sequences to show the audience it was actually him ; this would allow director Brad Bird to have more capabilities with camera angles & not having to hide the fact it is a stuntman doing the stunts . The film contains an interesting as well as twisted story in flamboyant treatment , worth two hours'time, written by Josh Appelbaum & André Nemec and based on the vintage characters by Bruce Heller . Lalo Schifrin's classic score television is again well reused here , at a much higher decibel level and adding a stirring soundtrack by Michael Giacchini , fitting perfectly to action . Fascinating and luxurious cinematography by excellent cameraman by Robert Elswit . As usual, Tom Cruise co-executive produced , along with J.J. Abrams , Josh Appelbaum , Bryan Burk , David Ellison , but not the usual Paula Wagner ; in fact this is the first Mission: Impossible film not to be produced by herself . The motion picture was compellingly directed by Brad Bird , though this is his live-action directorial debut . He's a successful producer , writer and director with a lot of hits such as ¨Ratatouille¨ , ¨Iron Giant¨ and ¨The Incredibles¨ . Rating : Better than average and well worth seeing . The tale will appeal to Tom Cruise fans and unstop action movies fans. The film made $693 million at the box office worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing installment in the franchise ; it also surpassed War of the worlds (2005) to become Tom Cruise's highest grossing film as of 2012.

Other installments from this popular and successful series are the followings : ¨Mission : Impossible¨ by Brian De Palma with Tom Cruise , Ving Rhames , Jon Voight , Henry Czerny , Kristin Scott Thomas , Vanessa Redgrave Emmanuel Beart , Jean Reno ; ¨Mission : Impossible II¨ by John Woo with Dougray Scott , Thandie Newton , Richard Roxburgh ,John Polson , Brendan Gleeson ; ¨MI 3¨ (2006) by J. J. Abrahams with Philip Seymour Hoffman , Ving Rhames, Maggie Q, Jonathan Rhys Meyers and in preparation ¨Mission : Impossible V¨ (2015) by Christopher McQuarrie with Jeremy Renner , Simon Pegg , Ving Rhames , Rebecca Ferguson , Sean Harris , Alec Baldwin and , of course , Tom Cruise .