Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol...2.5 out of 4 Skittles

Rating: 7/10 (6 September 2012)

The 4th installment of the Mission Impossible franchise is a thrilling ride from the opening scene, and unlike its predecessors its story line doesn't out think itself and topple over. Although many of the action sequences could only happen in the world of Hollywood make believe, it actually felt more plausible compared to the other moronic blockbusters such as the Fast & Furious flicks or Michael Bay's Transformers crap-o-rama. I'm not sure if that is necessarily a good thing, but at least I didn't walk out of the theater feeling dumber for watching it.
Cruise vaults himself back into the role of action film king after his recent duds Valkyrie and the snooze fest Knight and Day. Jeremy Renner follows up his Academy Award nominated performances in The Hurt Locker & The Town with a strong performance and continues his rise to the top. Paula Patton in the exact opposite role from her performance as a teacher with a heart of gold in Precious is a steamy, kick ass bombshell, and Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead & Hot Fuzz) delivers his usual dry wit laughs without taking it over the top.
I wouldn't place MI:4 at the top of my greatest movies list for the year, but it does exactly what is sets out to do. It's intense, high energy and very entertaining. Anyone who enjoyed the past Mission Impossible movies should definitely get a kick out of Ethan Hunt's latest antics, and those of you dragged to this one kicking and screaming may be pleasantly surprised.
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