Surprisingly strong fourth entry

Rating: 7/10 (29 January 2012)

After Tom Cruise had a falling out with Paramount following his controversial behavior in mid 2000s from his ranting about psychiatrists and promotion of Scientology, it seemed somewhat unlikely that another Mission: Impossible film would be in the offing starring him. But in Hollywood, time heals all wounds, at least where there is money to be made. So, several years later, here is the fourth entry in the Mission: Impossible film franchise, subtitled Ghost Protocol. And, most interestingly, it is one of the better entries in the series, featuring some strong action set pieces that keep the audience on the edge of their seat at several key points in the proceedings.
Ghost Protocol finds Ethan Hunt (Cruise) in prison in Russia at the opening under mysterious circumstances. Sprung by IMF agents in a sequence that brings to mind the opening of a James Bond film, we quickly learn that Ethan is needed to help locate and stop a former Russian politician named Kurt Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist) who believes that the only way to achieve global peace is to start a nuclear war and let the survivors sort out the mess. Joined by Jane Carter (Paula Patton), Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg) and a somewhat unwilling analyst named Brandt (Jeremy Renner) who has been forced by circumstances to work with the team, Ethan finds that, after the Kremlin is bombed, that the President has "disavowed" the entire IMF by declaring Ghost Protocol, and they must work outside of official sanction to stop Hendricks from detonating a nuclear weapon with stolen launch codes. The trail for him takes them from Russia to Dubai and finally Mumbai as they race against the clock.
At first glance, you might find yourself wondering how three of the four Mission: Impossible films finds the team outside of their support system and being treated as terrorists; haven't the writers seen the other films and don't they get a little beat of wandering down the same road so many times. But, frankly, as with the ever ongoing Bond films, Mission: Impossible is less about plot and more about its action sequences, and this time the film has delivered in spades. Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol features the live-action debut of animation director Brad Bird, who helmed Pixar's hit The Incredibles, and he does a good job of assembling strong, involving set pieces that keep the audience on the edge of its seat. The standout is the middle portion, set in Dubai, where script contrivances lead Ethan to need to scale the exterior of Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building. Bird stages these scenes stunningly, really ramping up the vertigo and tension as Hunt uses glue-like gloves to climb the side of the glass windowed tower. Other set pieces in Russia and Mumbai also have zip to them, keeping the suspense solid throughout.
If Ghost Protocol has weaknesses, they are largely in the development of the villains. Hendricks and his henchman Wistrom (Samuli Edelmann) have the basic makings of some nice megalomaniacal villains, but suffer from limited screen time and some very limited depth. They serve the plot's basic need for villains, but don't really come across as the kind of visceral bad guys you love to hate. As much as the nuclear launch codes Ethan and team are chasing, they fill the standard Hitchcock position of the MacGuffin, and don't make a lasting impression on the audience.
Back for his fourth turn as Ethan, Cruise is dependable as always, giving Hunt that reserved, slightly above it all attitude that keeps him largely cool under fire, but he does have his moments when the guard is lowered and you can see him concerned about the stakes they are fighting for. Paula Patton is attractive in the role of Jane, who the script gives some more personal drive in the search for Hendricks and his cronies, Pegg delivers some welcome comic relief in the role of Benji and Renner, who has been rumored to be groomed for future Mission: Impossible films if Cruise steps down, holds his own in the action sequences, as well as providing the audience with a semi-outsider to empathize with as the circumstances consistently get higher and higher for the characters past what he is used to dealing with in his role as an analyst thrown into the action.
For the most part, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol delivers a strong, fast, popcorn munching action film that provides thrills without turning into an over-edited explosion fest that you often get from a film directed by Michael Bay. If this is what the Mission: Impossible franchise can deliver on its fourth outing, then it may have plenty of entries for years to come.