Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One

This is a film that defines the term “entertaining”.

Sure, the movie runs 2 hours, 43 minutes, but I’ll predict that you won’t care. Director Christopher McQuarrie has brought us a film that will grab your attention from beginning to end.

I strongly feel that Tom Cruise has become a Hollywood legend. Along with having starred in Brian De Palma’s first Mission film (1996), he helped the movie industry survive the pandemic with Top Gun: Maverick (2022).

Here, he resurrects his role as Ethan Hunt, a superspy out to keep the world safe. Uniting with his old friends Luther (Ving Rhames) and Benji (Simon Pegg), he is on a mission to find The Entity, an artificial intelligence that can dominate the world. He needs to find two keys to complete his mission.

While he has to battle Gabriel, a villain played by Esai Morales, what elevates this film above the recent Indiana Jones film are some magnificent female performances and some incredible special effects.

Hayley Atwell plays Grace, a criminal who joins forces with Ethan to use her pickpocket skills to good advantage. Rebecca Ferguson appears as Ilsa Faust, who is romantically involved with Ethan. In one of the films powerful moments, Ethan has to choose who faces death, her or Grace.

Also keep an eye on Vanessa Kirby as the White Widow and Pom Klementieff as Paris. They both play active roles in trying to thwart Ethan’s attempt to locate The Entity. Also, keep in mind Ms. Klementieff’s role as Mantis in this years Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

The special effects elevate Mission above such films as the last Indiana Jones. Ignoring the sad fact that Ethan is never injured despite violent encounters, his stunts where he parachutes after driving his motorcycle over a cliff and crawling back to safety as a train dangles over a canyon help elevate this film to a gigantic box office hit.