With "Mission: Impossible - Fallout," McQuarrie is determined to show his work, creating an extended climax that will likely blow audiences away. The rest of the movie isn't bad either, with Tom Cruise and the IMF unit continuing their impressive cinematic hustle for a new adventure that's the most bruising to date, and the most cohesive in years.
Forced to choose between protecting partner Luther (Ving Rhames) and protecting the world, Ethan (Tom Cruise) makes a decision that loses control of a three plutonium orbs, allowing them to reach the black market. Eager to correct the situation, Ethan wants to pursue the plutonium to France, but the CIA is keen to keep an eye on him, putting August (Henry Cavill), a top enforcer, into play, joining Benji (Simon Pegg) as the race begins to charm arms dealer White Widow (Vanessa Kirby) into giving up the goods. In league with a terrorist group known as The Apostles, White Widow requires delivery of imprisoned anarchist Solomon (Sean Harris) to make a deal, forcing Ethan to confront his sense of moral duty as he plans to relinquish control of his archenemy to maintain world order. Standing in his way is Ilsa (Rebecca Ferguson), with the MI6 agent also concerned about Solomon's status, mixing it up with the IMF as they try to prevent the creation of three nuclear devices in control of a man who's looking to redefine world order.
"Rogue Nation" opened in a huge way, with Ethan sprinting into action as the IMF gang infiltrated an airfield, trying to prevent an Airbus A400M from taking off. Of course, this left the leader hanging on the side of an ascending airplane, with Cruise pulling off an amazing stunt for an eye-popping introduction, maintaining his reputation as an actor who embraces danger to create frightening thrills for his "Mission: Impossible" series. "Fallout" doesn't attempt the same scale, keeping things low-key as McQuarrie examines the extremes of Ethan's responsibilities, fighting to balance the protection of his squad and the preservation of life on Earth, facing The Apostles, a collection of well-trained mercenaries who are determined to use the plutonium orbs to generate mass destruction, inspiring change through catastrophe, feeding their religion of chaos, celebrating Solomon, their god. "Fallout" doesn't mess with bigness for quite some time, finding McQuarrie more invested in a spy game this time around, giving weight to Ethan's work as a superhero for the cause, caught between his need to protect the individual and pledge to save the world.
"Fallout" takes some time to get up and running, but it showcases a more confident McQuarrie, who struggled with balancing the enormity of "Rogue Nation" with its primary hunt, resulting in a dazzling but lopsided film. The next chapter in the "Mission: Impossible" saga is more confident and fully realized, finding McQuarrie trying to work up a sophisticated scenario of threat for the IMF gang to untangle, but also stepping carefully to keep the audience invested, stopping the feature on occasion to underline exposition and clarify character connections. McQuarrie also tries to slip in a few twists and turns along the way, but his puzzling isn't advanced, with eagle-eyed viewers likely realizing the full reach of The Apostles before Ethan does. Still, the director seems newly energized to make his mark on the "Mission: Impossible" world, making a direct sequel to "Rogue Nation" that keeps Solomon in play, with the anarchist delighting in any chance he receives to keep his appointment with doomsday, determined to watch Ethan suffer for his failures.
"Fallout" is a sleeker production, utilizing stunning cinematography and a driving score to slowly increase pressure, while the screenplay does a fine job with escalation, gradually increasing the urgency of the mission as it visits a few countries, selling the globetrotting atmosphere of the franchise. The film's centrepiece action sequence takes place on the streets of Paris, with Ethan, playing the part of a terrorist, tries to locate and reacquire Solomon for bargaining purposes, speeding, sprinting, and leaping all over the city while McQuarrie feels out his "French Connection" fandom. There's also a memorable fight inside a nightclub bathroom -- a scene that makes the most of Cavill's August, who's positioned as a major complication in the story, but never quite settles anywhere interesting. He's better with blunt power, and "Fallout" has its share of violent encounters and massive sequel moments, but McQuarrie doesn't get carried away. The human element of Ethan's world remains, dealing with the seductive qualities of the White Widow and his unease around Ilsa as she figures out what team she's playing for.
"Fallout" is appealingly performed by most of the cast with Cruise his most battered and bewildered here, still giving the role everything he's got, which remains a quite a lot, even 22 years after he took command of the franchise. McQuarrie is also newly inspired, trying to make up for the limp of "Rogue Nation" by creating a powerful showdown finale that's timed with a ticking clock and features battling helicopters in the middle of Kashmir. It's a vertigo-inducing doozy, and a helluva way to bring the movie to a close, offering pure nail-biting spectacle that also acts as an apology in a way, with McQuarrie making sure ticket-buyers exit with their bells rung. Directors don't have a habit of sticking around the "Mission: Impossible" franchise for very long, but it would be something to see McQuarrie return to duty for a third picture, just for the chance to watch him try to top his work in "Fallout." That's going to be the real mission: impossible.
Forced to choose between protecting partner Luther (Ving Rhames) and protecting the world, Ethan (Tom Cruise) makes a decision that loses control of a three plutonium orbs, allowing them to reach the black market. Eager to correct the situation, Ethan wants to pursue the plutonium to France, but the CIA is keen to keep an eye on him, putting August (Henry Cavill), a top enforcer, into play, joining Benji (Simon Pegg) as the race begins to charm arms dealer White Widow (Vanessa Kirby) into giving up the goods. In league with a terrorist group known as The Apostles, White Widow requires delivery of imprisoned anarchist Solomon (Sean Harris) to make a deal, forcing Ethan to confront his sense of moral duty as he plans to relinquish control of his archenemy to maintain world order. Standing in his way is Ilsa (Rebecca Ferguson), with the MI6 agent also concerned about Solomon's status, mixing it up with the IMF as they try to prevent the creation of three nuclear devices in control of a man who's looking to redefine world order.
"Rogue Nation" opened in a huge way, with Ethan sprinting into action as the IMF gang infiltrated an airfield, trying to prevent an Airbus A400M from taking off. Of course, this left the leader hanging on the side of an ascending airplane, with Cruise pulling off an amazing stunt for an eye-popping introduction, maintaining his reputation as an actor who embraces danger to create frightening thrills for his "Mission: Impossible" series. "Fallout" doesn't attempt the same scale, keeping things low-key as McQuarrie examines the extremes of Ethan's responsibilities, fighting to balance the protection of his squad and the preservation of life on Earth, facing The Apostles, a collection of well-trained mercenaries who are determined to use the plutonium orbs to generate mass destruction, inspiring change through catastrophe, feeding their religion of chaos, celebrating Solomon, their god. "Fallout" doesn't mess with bigness for quite some time, finding McQuarrie more invested in a spy game this time around, giving weight to Ethan's work as a superhero for the cause, caught between his need to protect the individual and pledge to save the world.
"Fallout" takes some time to get up and running, but it showcases a more confident McQuarrie, who struggled with balancing the enormity of "Rogue Nation" with its primary hunt, resulting in a dazzling but lopsided film. The next chapter in the "Mission: Impossible" saga is more confident and fully realized, finding McQuarrie trying to work up a sophisticated scenario of threat for the IMF gang to untangle, but also stepping carefully to keep the audience invested, stopping the feature on occasion to underline exposition and clarify character connections. McQuarrie also tries to slip in a few twists and turns along the way, but his puzzling isn't advanced, with eagle-eyed viewers likely realizing the full reach of The Apostles before Ethan does. Still, the director seems newly energized to make his mark on the "Mission: Impossible" world, making a direct sequel to "Rogue Nation" that keeps Solomon in play, with the anarchist delighting in any chance he receives to keep his appointment with doomsday, determined to watch Ethan suffer for his failures.
"Fallout" is a sleeker production, utilizing stunning cinematography and a driving score to slowly increase pressure, while the screenplay does a fine job with escalation, gradually increasing the urgency of the mission as it visits a few countries, selling the globetrotting atmosphere of the franchise. The film's centrepiece action sequence takes place on the streets of Paris, with Ethan, playing the part of a terrorist, tries to locate and reacquire Solomon for bargaining purposes, speeding, sprinting, and leaping all over the city while McQuarrie feels out his "French Connection" fandom. There's also a memorable fight inside a nightclub bathroom -- a scene that makes the most of Cavill's August, who's positioned as a major complication in the story, but never quite settles anywhere interesting. He's better with blunt power, and "Fallout" has its share of violent encounters and massive sequel moments, but McQuarrie doesn't get carried away. The human element of Ethan's world remains, dealing with the seductive qualities of the White Widow and his unease around Ilsa as she figures out what team she's playing for.
"Fallout" is appealingly performed by most of the cast with Cruise his most battered and bewildered here, still giving the role everything he's got, which remains a quite a lot, even 22 years after he took command of the franchise. McQuarrie is also newly inspired, trying to make up for the limp of "Rogue Nation" by creating a powerful showdown finale that's timed with a ticking clock and features battling helicopters in the middle of Kashmir. It's a vertigo-inducing doozy, and a helluva way to bring the movie to a close, offering pure nail-biting spectacle that also acts as an apology in a way, with McQuarrie making sure ticket-buyers exit with their bells rung. Directors don't have a habit of sticking around the "Mission: Impossible" franchise for very long, but it would be something to see McQuarrie return to duty for a third picture, just for the chance to watch him try to top his work in "Fallout." That's going to be the real mission: impossible.