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| photo courtesy of denofgeek.com |
Ethan Hunt returns for
the electrifying sixth installment of the Mission:
Impossible series, Mission: Impossible
— Fallout. Tom Cruise plays Hunt, an IMF agent tasked with keeping three
plutonium cores out of the hands of a radical terrorist group known as the
Apostles. But Hunt’s mission goes awry, allowing the Apostles to acquire the
plutonium. Now it’s up to Hunt, his team of highly-skilled operatives (Ving
Rhames, Simon Pegg), and their CIA babysitter (Henry Cavill) to recover the
weapons before the Apostles—or any other interested party—can put them to
devastating use.
The Mission: Impossible movies are somewhat
more fanciful than your average espionage thriller these days. On one hand,
they keep things grounded by depicting the challenges of an ever-changing
geopolitical landscape… and on the other, people can be fooled by rubber masks,
allegiances can shift twice or thrice in one scene, and players in the
intelligence community still don’t
recognize Ethan Hunt’s face. But the later Mission:
Impossible films (revived in 2011) have changed the game, pushing the
envelope with crazy stunts, practical effects, and gripping action set pieces. It’s
audacious spectacle, as much as any slippery spycraft, that draws audiences to
the theaters for the newer films.
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| photo courtesy of bbc.com |
Fallout,
the second M:I film directed by
Christopher McQuarrie, distills all the good things about the series’ legacy
into one delightfully chaotic package. Easily the best installment in the
series, it features many of the spy-movie fixtures we’ve come to know and love,
accompanied by some of the most stunning visuals of any recent blockbuster. If
you’re a fan of the espionage genre or action-heavy fare, you won’t want to
miss it.
Ghost Protocol
(2011) has the Burj Khalifa climb, Rogue
Nation (2015) has the airplane stunt, and Fallout has… several to choose from. Plenty of action movies share Fallout’s blitzkrieg pace, moving from
one set piece to the other with barely any time to recuperate in between. But
few of those movies’ set pieces are as consistently memorable and exciting as
the ones in Fallout.
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| photo courtesy of bbc.com |
It’s not just the size
and scope of the action sequences—though the climactic helicopter showdown is a
sight to behold—it’s the visceral quality that McQuarrie brings to the action
this time around. Two scenes stand out in this respect: the bathroom fight
(already making waves around the internet) and an extended car chase sequence
around the halfway point. Considering how many iterations of those action movie
elements we’ve seen time and time again, Fallout
is remarkable for making them feel genuinely dangerous.
From a plot standpoint,
Fallout depends upon many of the
conventions of the genre. No one will be surprised to know that the movie includes
a car chase, a bomb count-down, and a rubber mask fake-out. Where Fallout distinguishes itself is the
thematic undercurrent that informs the action. Because (for the first time in
franchise history) Fallout serves as a
direct sequel to the preceding installment, the story carries with it
overarching emotional stakes that a one-off mission simply can’t produce. For
Hunt, this mission has personal implications, and therefore it merits the
audience’s real investment. Of course, as in many action movies, Fallout struggles to carry the theme
through all three acts, but it succeeds enough to make an impression.
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| photo courtesy of digitalspy.com |
The crux of the matter has
to do with guilt and responsibility. Hunt feels culpable for the failures he’s
made and the lives he has put at risk. He also questions whether he can continue
to function as an agent in a more morally complicated environment. As others
around him become jaded and fail to appreciate the value of a single human
life, Hunt has to hold his line. Interestingly, Fallout’s conclusion on the matter would be more at home in a Harry Potter film than a modern spy
thriller; here, it is precisely Hunt’s human empathy that gives him an edge,
rather than an ability to adapt to morally questionable techniques.
A few more things bear mentioning.
Even apart from its impressive practical stunt-work, Fallout is stunning to look at. Fallout
doesn’t need great cinematography, but McQuarrie and Rob Hardy give it great
cinematography anyways. And I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge another
enjoyable performance by the series’ ensemble cast (including series veteran
Rebecca Ferguson and newcomer Angela Bassett). Cruise always entertains, but
here Cavill steals the show. He gives (arguably) his best performance to date…
and yes, that’s including Superman.
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| photo courtesy of vulture.com |
FINAL VERDICT: Tom
Cruise may be getting old, but Mission:
Impossible — Fallout proves that the series has never been more at the top
of its craft.
TRAILER
Watch the trailer here.
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| photo courtesy of hindustantimes.com |
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