Summary
The latest entry in this franchise is a lot – although sometimes more really is more.
It’s getting close to 30 minutes into the seventh Mission Impossible film before the title drop, giving us the dopamine hit of Lalo Schifrin’s iconic theme music. That we’ve already had three action set pieces by this stage is indicative of the sheer scale of Christopher McQuarrie’s MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: DEAD RECKONING, and that ‘Part One’ is there to remind us of that from the start.
Following a mysterious incident that sends a Russian stealth submarine to the bottom of the ocean, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) receives his next mission from IMF. He’s to retrieve one half of a key from his ally Isla Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) in the Namib desert. Faust also has a $50 million bounty on her head. Yet this is only the tip of a very large iceberg.
It seems there’s a powerful AI known as The Entity that has become self-aware, infiltrating intelligence networks, and making it impossible for them to trust anything. So, it’s a good old MacGuffin chase for the other half of the key, which might contain the secret to stopping the Entity. Hunt teams up with old friends Benji (Simon Pegg), Luther (Ving Rhames), and new ally Grace (Hayley Atwell), a thief who gets caught up in the chase.
At an estimated US$291 million, it is one of the most expensive films ever made. Yet it feels practical and natural at every turn, a continuation of Cruise’s commitment to analog filmmaking in the broadest sense, with every dollar and cent evident on screen. Indeed, it doesn’t feel coincidental that in the midst of strikes and furors over the implications of AI on the entertainment industry, the fictional enemy is a “Godless, stateless” technological entity.
Case in point is the first major post-credits action sequence, set inside Abu Dhabi International Airport. In some ways, it’s old school spycraft as we watch various players – including everyone’s favourite disgruntled government worker Shea Whigham – play pass the parcel (or hide and seek if you prefer). Yet the tension is tangible, and the stakes are raised by the Entity making it difficult for anybody to verify the reality of what they are seeing. It sets the tone for the mammoth film, ensuring we white-knuckle our way through the entire 163 minutes.
This motif continues to play out in stylish fashion on the streets of Venice, where Hunt and Grace are on a chase through alleys and canals. At one point, Hunt has an intense alley fight with French assassin Paris (Pom Klementieff), a fine addition to the franchise. Similarly, the chief (human) antagonist Gabriel (Esai Morales) goes head-to-head with Faust on a bridge. The juxtaposition of the two fight scenes makes for one of the tensest moments on screen. At least, that is, until we get to the gobsmacking climactic sequence set aboard, on top of, parachuting towards, and falling out of the Orient Express.
With the stunning backdrop of Switzerland, this murderous ride on the iconic train is Agatha Christie as interpreted by Justin Lin. Of course, it’s a Tom Cruise Film™ so there are some spectacular stunts, and one jaw-dropper in particular. You’ve probably seen the clips already, but watching Cruise jump off a clip on a motorbike breathlessly keeps the spirit of Jackie Chan’s heyday alive. Yes, that’s really Cruise – and he reportedly did the stunt six times in one day.
MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: DEAD RECKONING – PART ONE continues the 2023 trend of slicing narratives in half, following Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and Fast X in dropping Part One of a longer story. While it’s not necessarily a trend this reviewer is fond of, McQuarrie’s film never feels anything less than a complete entity, and leaves us quite literally hanging on for whatever the finale holds next year.
2023 | USA | DIRECTOR: Christopher McQuarrie | WRITERS: Christopher McQuarrie, Erik Jendresen | CAST: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Henry Czerny | DISTRIBUTOR: Paramount | RUNNING TIME: 163 minutes | RELEASE DATE: 8 July 2023 (AUS), 12 July 2023 (US)
