Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One

Remember that classic MI scene where they broke in at CIA, and Cruise was hanging from the ceiling using wires? It's not a huge setpiece, but that scene is a nailbiting example of ingenious problem solving.

In 'Dead Reckoning' there's none of that. Here it's keys changing hands every 10 minutes that is suppose to pass as suspense. And of course the only true selling point: the stunts performed by Tom Cruise.

But I want and expect more than that.

A large part of the film is devoted to people sitting or standing in a room, explaining what the plot is. Endless talking and explaining. We are told in several scenes the same information we just heard. Worst one is Benji, who is merely there to repeat things for someone in the cast, to make sure everyone in the audience knows what is going on. That is sloppy writing. One of the biggest no-no's as a screenwriter is resolving to "so what you are saying is, that..." info sharing. Benji does this all the time. And he is as incompetent as usual. And he is supposed to be a part of a small and unique team that is saving the world? Really?

I hope MI:8 isn't just another Tom Cruise stunt reel where it looks like they make the story up as the go along, as long as all marks are checked in the end (running, face swapping, dealing with heights etc), and where character development takes a backseat. Bigger is not always better. And the action ALWAYS has to serve the story, not the other way around.

While this movie maintains the stunning action sequences and stunt work, the rest of the movie is severely lacking. Despite the development of the characters from previous movies, they feel very thin and hollow in MI 7. The pacing of the film and writing are quite peculiar. It almost feels hacked together in a messy way. The previous movie managed to create compelling characters, with moments that clearly defined them and made them standout from one another. In this iteration, they feel like rote action movie characters without distinguishing characteristics. The previous movie also managed a sense of whimsy through the writing and cinematography that was completely absent from MI 7. This general tone and pacing was perhaps my favorite aspect of MI 6, so for it to be missing this time around felt like a huge step backwards for me.

Overall, the movie just felt a bit bizarre. Almost like an AI wrote it or something. I seriously hope the next one tries to get closer to the tone of MI 6.

The latest Mission: Impossible film is a part one of two story but finishes in a satisfying way rather than annoying and you won't feel hard done by.

It's another great big screen action film that we've come to expect. It feels huge the whole time however I must say I while the set pieces were stellar, the hand to hand combat scenes were not great and a big step down from the last film (Fallout).

Thebeginning is slow with a lot of expository being dumped (more than you'd usually see) but once it gets going it is pretty nonstop.

This is a good chapter and Haley Atwell shines but it is nowhere near my favorite of the series.

7/10

Mi rankings

Mi6 Fallout Mi3 Mi4 Ghost Protocol Mission: Impossible Mi4 Rogue Nation Mi7 Dead Reckoning part one.

Just saw this one in a theatre, and boy... what an adrenaline rush it is. The latest Mission Impossible features some of the most incredible stunts ever put to camera. The story is absolutely exhilarating and continues to bring new life to a veteran movie franchise. The sheer scale of this movie is epic, and with every twist and turn of the movie, you cannot help but marvel at the incredible sets used to bring this movie to life. Such a movie begs to be seen on the biggest screen possible where you can truly feel the grandeur of the film. Tom Cruise has once again delivered one of the best movies of the year, and I cannot recommend that you see it enough!

All of the instalments in this franchise are very wellmade, highly entertaining, decently fun, and always tries to invent more and better stunts. There is also nothing wrong cinematically, and the directing is excellent. This is definitely worth the money, but I still feel like this is lacking, something is missing, there is no soul in this movie.

Partly I think it is the acting. Not from Tom, and Harley is amazing as everything she does. But the rest feel like they are just there. Partly it is the ending, which I did not like. There is no cherry on top, no cliffhanger. The movie sort of just ends. Another thing that bothers me is that the chase scene and adrenaline inducing events are there to entertain yes, and oh boy do they deliver, but I also feel like that is their only purpose. This is almost like watching Fast&Furious, only less crazy and better acted.

I do highly recommend this movie, and if you liked previous instalment's you will love this one. And the action is insanely good at times. However this movie did not do it for me. Time to end this franchise because clearly the people involved have started to get bored with it, and so have I.

7/10 and a good very entertaining movie, but hollow and soulless. If it wasn't for a couple of action scenes I would not remember a single thing about this movie in a couple of days.