Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One

From the 4th episode, Mission Impossible is one of the great spy action series, where every new episode is a big action feast, and I was expecting Reckoning to be one of the movies of the year. Even though it's a great show, I thought it was a bit slower compared to Fallout and Rogue Nation, which I think are a level above. Tom Cruise is still in great form and there's one amazing stunt, the craftsmanship is again of a high standard, and the film is definitely a lot of fun, but there are a few little things that slightly detracted from the absolute experience. I don't find the AI theme all that dazzling or interesting, and I'm a little bothered that it will continue into the finale, but I'll probably have to put up with it. Gabriel is a weaker villain than the previous ones the franchise had and doesn't even have much scope, I felt like there were fewer high tech gadgets and there were definitely fewer contact fights (the bathroom fight with Henry Cavill still resonates in my head, no such satisfaction here). The chase in Rome is cool and thanks to Fiat it's very fresh and original (it doesn't have the same feel as the motorbike chase), but the finale on the train is excellent (the scene where Cruise has to change from carriage to carriage is one of the best sequences of the whole series, that was a really cool eye candy moment), so even though I have a few minor reservations, it's still a great blockbuster that's worth seeing in the cinema, but when I compare it to this year's action movies, both John Wick 4 and Extraction 2 were surprisingly more satisfying. 8/10. (26/07/2023)

The echo of the 90s, sending postcards about villainous AI through a time machine, sometimes appears to have the upper hand over the audience, but do not be lulled by the admitted stupidity, because the running scout Cruise and McQuarrie send it uncompromisingly into the present. It's not about WHAT, but HOW. Seeing a film that layers action scenes with stunt attractions, as well as plot twists of "good guys vs. bad guys vs. (other) bad guys," is an absolute delight for the audience. If Fallout is an amusement park of action entertainment, Dead Reckoning is the top form of creative concentration. Venice may be an early peak, but the climax of the episode with the trains, when the appreciation of the second part of the game "Uncharted" is realized, ultimately closes it off as the peak of this year's popcorn entertainment and easily parks this part of the film series behind the unattainable Rogue Nation. (04/12/2023)

Hunt vs Hall 9000 round one. Basically a tie between the sheer technical brilliance and perfection of each action sequence with a dated and clunky script that is perhaps supposed to be a homage to the old (Roger Moore) Bond films or something. The golden rule is, stick to what you know and what you're good at, and Christopher McQuarrie overestimated himself this time and showed that he doesn't understand computers at all, otherwise he wouldn't have written such a piece of garbage. I'm not saying it doesn't work for the average person, it's just that for IT people it will be like scraping your fingernails on a blackboard in places. He can still salvage a few things in a sequel, but no one can take away his English-speaking Russian submariners and theatrical speeches about deleting oneself in cyberspace. He can still move and offer an interesting twist, but it's as if he's started to care about the Tom crap instead of the story. Otherwise, everything we're used to works. The actresses are fine. Hayley Atwell clicked with Cruise whether she's stuck on him in Rome or when they're talking on the train. Beautiful locations and beautiful shots. Tom is starting to look old though. One more episode and then it would be nice to kick off the Extreme Old Man series. (17/07/2023)

HE’S RUNNING AGAIN, at a nice heroic pace, knees right up (yeah, right Tom, we know you're an eternal youngster, you don't have to keep reassuring us so blatantly). The film itself is a succession of good action sequences, glued onto a stupid skeleton that seems to have fallen out of a spy movie from the 60s, the ones that were so beautifully parodied later. I found the concept of the Entity utterly ridiculous. (12/10/2023)

The collaboration of the McQuarrie-Cruise duo is a well-established brand promising a modern take on old-school action in an edgy, thrilling and adrenaline-fuelled setting, and that is absolutely true this time as well. Many things could be praised, but the best way to describe it is that even though we've seen chases through ancient buildings in a small car or action in an out-of-control train countless times, the way it is paced, plotted and delivered here is both breathtaking and riveting in a way that will make you sweat your shirt off from the sheer dodging and clenching of fists. A genre film that defines (though does not redefine) the genre to the core. Too bad about the apparent lack of closure and the bland villain. Hats off and pure enthusiastic curiosity about where they want to take it in the finale. (08/07/2023)