Caffeinated Clint
The new “Mission : Impossible” movie is fabulous…according to critics who’ve been lucky enough to catch the film before it’s global launch next week.
While most of the films in the long-running series have been well-received, there has been the odd blemish on the Tomato-meter like John Woo’s abysmal “Mission : Impossible II”. While “Mission : Impossible III” also got good notices, it wasn’t a booming success – likely due to star Tom Cruise’s waning popularity at the time. The most recent entry in the series, “Mission Impossible : Ghost Protocol” snared some of the best reviews from critics and favourable audience feedback when it hit theaters in 2013, reigniting the passion for the brand and returning it to the top of the ‘most lucrative franchises’ list.
“Rogue Nation”, written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie (“Jack Reacher”), is said to encompass a terrific, intricate script and storyline, has a funner villain than previous installments, and a scene stealing co-lead performance (she apparently has just as much screentime as Cruise) by Rebecca Fergusion.
EW says, “Like all Mission: Impossible films (of which there’s yet to be a dud), it’s not so much about the outcome as it is the breathlessly thrilling journey Cruise takes us on to get there.”
Variety says, “If the robust commercial performance of 2011’s “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol” made a follow-up inevitable, then luck turns out to be very much on the side of this unusually spry and satisfying fifth entry, which finds the surviving members of the Impossible Missions Force trying to neutralize an insidious global threat, while struggling to convince their skeptical overlords that there is such a threat to begin with. The result is an existential quandary that writer-director Christopher McQuarrie negotiates with characteristic cleverness and a sly respect for the sheer durability of genre; at once questioning and reaffirming the pleasures of cinematic espionage, this is the rare sequel that leaves its franchise feeling not exhausted but surprisingly resurgent at 19 years and counting”.
The Verge says, “There’s an air of levity interspersed between the scuffles – a self-awareness that made Brad Bird’s entry (2011’s Ghost Protocol) so compelling – which carries over for the most part here. Cruise nails these moments, projecting at times both confidence and incredulity that he survived yet another precarious situation.”
Cinema Blend says, “Rogue Nation is a ride. It accepts the gauntlet thrown down by Brad Bird’s Ghost Protocol, staging hugely impressive set pieces while furthering a stronger story that makes better use of Ethan Hunt’s entire MIF team… it’s incredibly fun. It annoys me that I have to phrase it this way, but the fact that the Mission sequels continue to improve film after film – from M:I 3 to Ghost Protocol to this – is impossible. And yet, it’s happening, so why not enjoy the experience?”
Crave Online says, “Although Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation is the fifth film in this long-running series, it is also the first unequivocally great one. Christopher McQuarrie’s entry may not amount to much more than popcorn entertainment, but it is fantastic popcorn entertainment because it finally gets the balance just right… And it is a solid foundation on which to build a film that repeatedly screws with its heroes, and screws them up good. McQuarrie’s screenplay can’t let a moment go by without finding some new way to make Ethan Hunt’s life harder.”
Radio Times says, “Expertly building on the renewed energy injected into the Mission: Impossible franchise with 2011’s Ghost Protocol, this fifth episode roars along like a sleek, well-oiled machine. Sure, it’s much the same recipe as before… But under director Christopher McQuarrie’s keen eye and casual aplomb, which adds enormous likeability to the seamless events no matter how outlandish, Rogue Nation keeps the pulse pounding and the plot machinations breakneck without sacrificing laughs or nonstop excitement.”
