Having nailed each and every part of the Mission Impossible series, Tom Cruise is back again in the theatres with one of the biggest films in the franchise, Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One. P and I couldn’t control our excitement and immediately booked our tickets to view Tom Cruise and his army of geniuses at work on the very first day of the release of Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One.
And while we’re both fans of Tom Cruise, we still decided to share our thoughts about the film with our Prinkled family. So, without further ado, here’s our Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One Review!
Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One Story
Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt is back with his friends as a part of the IMF (Impossible Mission Force) to save the world from an all-powerful, unknown entity. This time, Ethan and his friends have to go after a key which unlocks the powerful entity that can control the world and bring it to its feet. However, like always, getting to the key isn’t easy but Ethan and his team are meant to go after the impossible missions. In his search for the key, Ethan runs into some old friends and enemies who he presumed to be dead and that is where things get very interesting. Gabriel, who we’ve seen in the Mission Impossible Launcher back in 1996, is back as the main antagonist in Dead Reckoning Part One.
Not just him, we see Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) also return in the latest Mission Impossible film. We last saw as her an MI6 agent in Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation. Another character from the past that shows up prominently is the infamous arms dealer Alanna Mitsopolis aka White Widow. She was last seen in Mission Impossible: Fallout, though only as a supporting character. Eugene Kitridge (Henry Czerny) is also back and is once again trying to prove that Ethan’s IMF is a traitorous organisation working against the US government.
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Now, with all these characters back in Ethan’s life and some new ones including an assassin named Paris (Pom Klementieff), he has to ensure that the key to the all-powerful, Entity, doesn’t fall into the wrong hands of someone like Gabriel. The entire film, Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One is centred around how Ethan and his old friends Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) and Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg) try to stop that from happening. Does Ethan succeed in the first part of his mission? Well, for that you’ve got to see this film in theatres only!
Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One Review
When you go to watch an action film, most of the time, the expectations in terms of story and every other element are a bare minimum. But, when you go to watch a Tom Cruise starrer Mission Impossible franchise film, you know that you’re going to get everything in the right proportions. Be it drama, action, comedy or friendship, Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One is perfectly balanced in each of those departments. Director Christopher McQuarrie along with Tom Cruise and other cast and crew members gave this one over 4 years and despite the COVID-19 shutdown and many more restrictions, delivered a masterpiece.
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The pace of the film, despite several jaw-dropping action sequences, makes space for emotional scenes as well. This is what makes it a perfectly balanced entertainer. The screenplay written by Christopher McQuarrie and Erik Jendresen ensures that each character including Hunt, Benji, Luther, Grace, Isla and Alanna gets somewhat emotional depth despite the thrilling nature of the film. And, the screenplay also makes space for innate comedy that comes in naturally through Benji, Luther and sometimes Hunt and Grace. Even in the midst of a crazy car chase in Rome, Hunt and Grace manage to make you laugh with the hilarious confusion caused by their handcuffs and the car they’re driving to escape the police as well as Gabriel’s assassin Paris.
Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One actually shows how a film is made wholeheartedly for entertainment of all types. Be it action, comedy or drama, each element is intelligently infused into the story of Ethan Hunt and his impossible mission. And, that truly makes it a cinematic spectacle!
Mindblowing Performances!
Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt brings his A-game for his fans when it comes to jaw-dropping action sequences. Be it a thrilling car chase in Rome or a crazy cliff jump from a motorbike, Tom nails every sequence with precision and perfection. Sprinting, Flying, Driving and Chasing bad guys all across the glove, Cruise somehow defies all laws of physics to give his loyal fans a cinematic spectacle in Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One. Seeing him run in alleys of Rome or fight it out with assassins or even disguise as someone else to blow our minds in this part of Mission Impossible, you get the ultimate satisfaction as a fan.
Watching him perform death-defying sequences for the pure entertainment of his fans in this one shows us his dedication as an artist. And, director Christopher McQuarrie has done a fabulous job at designing the crazy action sequences for Cruise which he nailed each time. Even after 27 years of this franchise, Tom Cruise has somehow managed to leave everyone stunned and shocked with his ability to perform some of the most lunatic stunts all by himself, just for his fans. Hats off to the man for taking the Mission Impossible Franchise to new heights and leaving fans excited for Part Two.
Talking about the villain in Dead Reckoning, Gabriel (Esai Morales) is charismatic, subtle yet menacing at the same time. His calm demeanour masked the viciousness he set out to inflict upon the world by working for The Entity. In stark contrast to the psychotic villains in the previous MI films, Gabriel certainly nails his menacing act with ease and perfection. Another reason why Gabriel was at ease most of the time was his assassin Paris (Pom Klementieff). Pom manages to go head-to-head with Hunt in a fistfight several times in the film and has a strong screen presence. Her performance certainly stands out in the last 30 minutes of the film.
While we’re discussing performances, Hayley Atwell plays Grace, a thief who inadvertently gets involved in Hunt’s mission to search for the key and what it unlocks. Atwell pulls off a brilliant act as the cunning and smart thief, who ends up biting more than she can chew. Once she discovers that Hunt will do all in his power to value her life more than his, she joins in to help him find the key. And, in doing that, she too manages to nail quite a few crazy stunts. Be it her disguising as someone else or climbing atop the Orient Express to help Hunt, Atwell manages to showcase her brilliance as a performer. Her chemistry with Cruise is also impressive and her streetsmart and witty mind is a match for Ethan and his mind games. Hunt chasing after her for the key and she escaping him each time with her wittiness also keeps you hooked till the end.
This train sequence was tricky, but the outcome made it all worth it. I can't wait for everyone to see it come to life! pic.twitter.com/z067kFLIku
— Tom Cruise (@TomCruise) July 5, 2023
In other performances, Ving Rhames as Luther and Simon Pegg as Benji Dunn are as usual remarkably good. As Ethan’s friends and team members, they are there to remind him of his objective and do their part well. And, their bickering with each other and with Ethan in crucial moments adds comedy to the pacy actioner. Other than these, Vanessa Kirby as the White Widow and Shea Whigham as the law enforcement officer hunting Ethan have small but impactful parts to play.
To sum it all up, Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One has set the bar very high for the next part. And well, we also believe that Mr Tom Cruise is going to be hellbent on delivering something even more spectacular in that. That being said, this Hollywood film is a masterclass in itself on how to deliver an engaging, entertaining and edge-of-the-seat actioner. It is a MUST WATCH in theatres so we’d suggest you book your tickets right away!
Prinkled’s Parting Thoughts:
Tom Cruise loves his fans way too much to keep them waiting for a post-credit scene. So, do yourself a favour, don’t wait up for the end credits. You can leave as soon as Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One finishes!
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