Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)

Rating: 9/10 (17 June 2012)

A fourth instalment in a patchy series comes out and makes itself the best. Ethan Hunt is back on the case, ready to take part in another mission, that involves nuclear weapons and Russians. What's most important here are the action sequences. Unlike the recent fad of shaky cam and confusing action, Paramount with with Brad Bird to direct, only previously familiar with animation films. This is what makes him so successful, you wouldn't be doing shaky cam with animation. Instead, Bird cares about framing and being able to focus on every individual action. The scenes are clear and oh so memorable. Whether it's a humorous prison escape scene or a foot chase through a sandstorm. The best part being the climbing of the tallest building in the world. It really does rack up the tension, and continues to introduce complications that must be overcome by a team. Although still the point man, Cruise shares a lot of the great action with his co-stars. Peggis the obvious comic relief, but he isn't unimaginable as a field agent. Patton and Renner are both given emotional hooks to give them something to do and focus on between the action. I was also very happy that the film knows it's a fun spy movie at heart, so we do get outrageous gadgets, the kind that used to make Bond movies fun. Exciting, fun, with enough character moments for the downtime, this is a wonderful action movie.