The Plot: Ethan Hunt (Cruise), once again, is up against a world-scale threat in the form of The Syndicate, a terrorist group led by Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) who is hell-bent on causing—what else?—destruction. (In a parallel universe, they would form a partnership with SPECTRE of James Bond fame.) Trouble is: even the CIA doesn’t believe the Syndicate’s existence and eventually Hunt, going solo after the IMF is disbanded, must chase after Lane with the help of old friends—Ving Rhames as Luther Stickell, Simon Pegg as Benji, Jeremy Renner as William Brandt—and one mercurial agent, Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson).
The Great: Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation, the fifth installment of one of the long lasting spy franchise in movie history, is basically the “Ethan Hunt / Ilsa Faust Show”, with the latter became the prime mover of the plot and, along the process, just like Imperator Furiosa before her, steals the spotlight by kicking some serious butt on her own. (Though she seems to be trained in the Black Widow School of KickAsser-y what’s with all her deadly thigh action.) So thank heavens for Mr.Cruise to finally letting a woman shines in the M:I franchise—despite Maggie Q and Paula Patton strong presence in previous sequels they usually ended up getting shot in the end and so practically incapacitated for further action scenes.
But here, he lets Ferguson join in the fun, taking down one of the serious baddie in a heart-pounding knife fight and even saving Hunt’s live twice! Sure, there is still the requisite sexiness—including the mandatory leg slit—and her character isn’t exactly original—it’s kind of an homage to noir’s femme fatale and, for contemporary references, resembles the slinky Anne Hathaway’s version of Catwoman/Selina Kyle in The Dark Knight Rises. But nonetheless she carried the bulk of the movie together with her superstar co-star. In fact, for me, M:I 5 is made even more watchable with Ferguson’s regal bearing, classy accent (she’s Swedish, though), and smoldering yet expressive eyes.
The Action: Writer-Director Christopher McQuarrie (Jack Reacher) really knows how to handle his action—and kudos to Paramount for keeping all of the other masterful and exciting action from the trailer, except for the, oh you know, where our indestructible leading man is holding on for dear life on the side of an airborne plane. The opera scene is truly an example of great direction and even greater choreography, and the underwater scene, though truly tense, one can’t help thinking of Gravity in another setting. The scenes in Casablanca, Morocco, reminded me even more of how Ferguson resembles Ingrid Bergman. Just sayin’…
The So-So: Other than Ilsa Faust, unfortunately the other actors are kinda sidelined: Renner is mostly stuck in Langley, Rhames is mostly behind a laptop, only comic sidekick Pegg gets some action but that’s not a lot (his role is kind of like a damsel-in-distress, really). Alec Baldwin who plays CIA Director, Alan Hunley, is only there to be antagonistic towards the IMF and nothing more (save for the end), while Sean Harris is effectively creepy (and rodent-like) as the big baddie.
5 Stars
The Great: Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation, the fifth installment of one of the long lasting spy franchise in movie history, is basically the “Ethan Hunt / Ilsa Faust Show”, with the latter became the prime mover of the plot and, along the process, just like Imperator Furiosa before her, steals the spotlight by kicking some serious butt on her own. (Though she seems to be trained in the Black Widow School of KickAsser-y what’s with all her deadly thigh action.) So thank heavens for Mr.Cruise to finally letting a woman shines in the M:I franchise—despite Maggie Q and Paula Patton strong presence in previous sequels they usually ended up getting shot in the end and so practically incapacitated for further action scenes.
But here, he lets Ferguson join in the fun, taking down one of the serious baddie in a heart-pounding knife fight and even saving Hunt’s live twice! Sure, there is still the requisite sexiness—including the mandatory leg slit—and her character isn’t exactly original—it’s kind of an homage to noir’s femme fatale and, for contemporary references, resembles the slinky Anne Hathaway’s version of Catwoman/Selina Kyle in The Dark Knight Rises. But nonetheless she carried the bulk of the movie together with her superstar co-star. In fact, for me, M:I 5 is made even more watchable with Ferguson’s regal bearing, classy accent (she’s Swedish, though), and smoldering yet expressive eyes.
The Action: Writer-Director Christopher McQuarrie (Jack Reacher) really knows how to handle his action—and kudos to Paramount for keeping all of the other masterful and exciting action from the trailer, except for the, oh you know, where our indestructible leading man is holding on for dear life on the side of an airborne plane. The opera scene is truly an example of great direction and even greater choreography, and the underwater scene, though truly tense, one can’t help thinking of Gravity in another setting. The scenes in Casablanca, Morocco, reminded me even more of how Ferguson resembles Ingrid Bergman. Just sayin’…
The So-So: Other than Ilsa Faust, unfortunately the other actors are kinda sidelined: Renner is mostly stuck in Langley, Rhames is mostly behind a laptop, only comic sidekick Pegg gets some action but that’s not a lot (his role is kind of like a damsel-in-distress, really). Alec Baldwin who plays CIA Director, Alan Hunley, is only there to be antagonistic towards the IMF and nothing more (save for the end), while Sean Harris is effectively creepy (and rodent-like) as the big baddie.
5 Stars