Yesterday, thanks to my good friend Spencer Cohen, I had the enormous honor of attending the Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation red carpet premiere in New York City. It was a surreal experience lining up in the middle of Times Square, receiving free movie memorabilia such as shirts, sunglasses, hats and a poster. I actually had the opportunity to talk to Jeremy Renner and JJ Abrams very briefly and get autographs from Christopher McQuarrie and Abrams. After the red carpet event where we were able to get up close with the cast of the movie, we were sent to the AMC Empire on 42nd street where we were all treated to popcorn, soda, and a free screening of the film in IMAX. This was a magnificent and memorable experience which I will not soon forget. And thankfully, that applies to the movie too.
Picking up a few years after the events of the last film in the franchise, we find Ethan Hunt and the IMF team going up against the mysterious Syndicate. They must also contend with the opposition they are receiving from the CIA. With few resources, and not many they trust, Ethan and his team must take on forces which they do not fully understand.
What I love most about the Mission Impossible series is that it doesn't oversaturate itself. There is only a movie released every 4 to 5 years, and when the films do come out, they aren't hastily assembled. They're well written, magnificently choreographed, relevant to the technology and fears that surround society at the time. They're all great films, and they don't come around often enough for you to grow tired of them.
Rogue Nation is a classic spy versus its own resources tale where the protagonist must contend with multiple forces attempting to bring it down, and it thrusts our cast into a whirlwind adventure where the edge of the seat is the only place you want to find yourself. The story never lets you drift away. There are moments when you are positive you know it will happen one way, and soon a wrench is thrown in to the mix. You never know where it's headed, and all for the better.
The stunt work in this film is absolutely incredible. The imaginative crafting of such unbelievable fights and feats is only made much more enthralling by the knowledge that they were accomplished in real life with out the aid of CGI. When you see Tom Cruise holding on to the side of an airplane as it takes off, you will feel as though you are on it with him, because it's so authentically majestic.
Cruise gives yet another focused and stellar turn as our hero Ethan Hunt. What makes this role so uniquely his is how his character has aura about him in which all and nothing are revealed at the same time. You don't know whether he is crazy or brilliant, and that speaks to the duplicity with which Cruise sets off on his course.
While it's obviously Cruise's film, it would be nothing without it's magnificent supporting cast. Simon Pegg's charming comic relief mixed with his never ending loyalty make him a joy to see brought to life. Jeremy Renner's cavalier attitude which makes him integral to the Avengers carries over to this film. Ving Rhames doesn't have a large part, but he also plays an essential role. Alec Baldwin is a new addition, believable in his quasi-antagonism but devoted to his intentions. And finally, Rebecca Ferguson is a new face, but one which I hope to see more of as she is an enigma unto herself. You never know where she lies. And that's all part of the fun.
See this movie. See it in IMAX for the plane scene alone. But see it. It's classic action filmmaking and it's a never ending dose of adrenaline.
A
Outstanding trailer, the MI series rocks!
ReplyDelete