MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE Series Refuses to Lose Momentum with ROGUE NATION

Rating: 8/10 (23 July 2016)

I am truly impressed that we're now five movies deep into the MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE franchise and it's still going strong. It's even more impressive that, with the exception of the shallow MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE II, this series has never disappointed me. The only other franchise that comes to mind that managed this sort of sustained quality after five films would be the 007 series. As much as I love James Bond, I've got to admit that Tom Cruise and his Impossible Mission Force are giving them a run for their money. Despite being the fifth movie of the series, ROGUE NATION demonstrates that they've got no intention of slowing down with the introduction of a new, far-reaching enemy that will no doubt give strife to the organization for years to come. Since the events of GHOST PROTOCOL, Ethan Hunt (Cruise) has been hunting for evidence of the existence of a shadow organization known as the Syndicate. Right as he receives confirmation of its existence, he receives word that the CIA has grown tired of IMF's antics and the global destruction it leaves in its wake and they've officially shut it down. Unwilling to abandon his pursuit of the Syndicate, Hunt goes rogue and recruits help from his few remaining IMF friends who've been absorbed into the CIA: Benji (Simon Pegg), Luther (Ving Rhames), and Brandt (Jeremy Renner). Closing in on the head of the Syndicate, Hunt must team with a dangerous double agent (Rebecca Ferguson) he's not sure can be trusted.
One of the coolest elements of this M:I films is how each movie so far has had a different director at the helm, bringing their individual styles to the series while remaining true to what audiences love (gadgets, insane stunts, the perfect blend of action and comic relief, etc.). After Brad Bird's GHOST PROTOCOL (still my favorite of the franchise), Cruise brought in writer/director Christopher McQuarrie, whom he'd recently teamed with on the equally awesome EDGE OF TOMORROW. Bird and McQuarrie seem to have similar styles, so GHOST PROTOCOL and ROGUE NATION are closest stylistically in the series and I'm not complaining. The movie also continues with a recurring theme in modern espionage movies where government oversight and accountability have made classic spy work obsolete so the hero has to go off on his own. It shares this in common with the Daniel Craig era 007 films. Admittedly, I'm getting a little tired of the trope (at least KINGSMEN avoided it) but the movies are fun enough that I'm still forgiving of it. It would be nice, though, if the next M:I film would function as a straight up IMF mission sanctioned and supported by the organization where Hunt can have access to all of its resources. It would be the perfect time since the movie (sharing some more in common with 007, specifically SPECTRE) introduces an arch-nemesis for the IMF in the form of the Syndicate, or the "anti-IMF" as Benji calls it. It opens a lot of possibilities.
ROGUE NATION successfully delivers on everything you could possibly want from an M:I movie. The action is, as usual, turned up to 11. That famous stunt of Tom Cruise hanging from the side of a cargo jet that was all over the promotional materials happens in the film's cold open, leaving you to wonder how they could possibly top that in the remaining two hours. Tom Cruise is just as crazy as ever, performing his own stunts and absolutely owning the character. Cruise has had a prolific career at this point but I really feel Ethan Hunt is his defining character. He loves these movies and it comes through in the final product. The consistently funny Simon Pegg has a larger role than in any of the previous M:I adventures with Benji finally getting some real time in the field as Hunt's partner in crime and the film's comedic relief. Luther and Brandt are relegated to comparatively minor roles for the first half of the film this time, and the team is instead filled out with Rebecca Ferguson's Ilsa Faust. Faust is disarmingly beautiful and every bit as lethal as Hunt; the question is where her loyalties lie. She saves Hunt's skin a few times but she's also in deep with the Syndicate and its leader, Solomon Lane (Sean Harris). Lane has a lot in common with Philip Seymour Hoffman's villain from MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE III; they're both soft- spoken sociopaths (Lane never speaks above as raspy whisper) with an army of assassins at their disposal. Lane is a criminal mastermind and Harris plays him as unnervingly creepy and always a moment away from eliminating anyone he deems expendable.
Fans of the M:I series are in for a treat. ROGUE NATION continues the high level of blockbuster excitement we've come to expect from Cruise and his team. While it wasn't as consistently engaging as the superior GHOST PROTOCOL, it's right up there with the original film in terms of entertainment. I wouldn't mind returning to some of the more subtle espionage of that first film, I'm not going to complain as long as the M:I series keeps kicking all manner of butt.