Maybe the best of the series

Rating: 8/10 (3 August 2015)

Just like the film, I'm going to start off running for this review. Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation is a really good movie! Think what you will about Tom Cruise off the screen. On the screen he is a pure and exciting action star, and even at the age of 53, man can he run.
This film is a good example of why we go to the movies, to be entertained but not at the expense of dulling our brain. The newest installment of Mission Impossible shows us that Hollywood blockbusters can be more than mindless action flicks that require viewers to turn there brains off to enjoy. Rogue Nation, written and directed by one of my favorites Christopher McQuarrie, is remarkably well written, and even exceeds that accomplishment with its concise delivery. The Mission Impossible series has been slandered for being convoluted, which is very accurate, but McQuarrie takes this franchise to the next level by having elements of complexity in its stories while maintaining clarity.
MI5 starts out to the thrilling scene that has been highly advertised, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) jumping and hanging onto an airplane while it takes off. This sets the tone for a film with many memorable action set pieces the franchise is praised for and sometimes gets lost in. One of the biggest refreshment of this film was the strong story around the set pieces that demanded much of the attention. Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol from 2011 was a let down in the series for me, which I know is contrary to popular opinion but I really liked MI3, and part of that was the investment that was lacking in the story. The impressive set pieces took center stage which made me lose interest in why they were doing these stunts and missions, Rogue Nation had no such problem. The plot of the again disavowed IMF attempting to take down a highly trained and dangerous Syndicate was not only strong, but shockingly enveloping and intriguing for a crowd pleasing Hollywood film. This is almost solely to McQuarrie's ability to get the audience to not only like the characters on screen, but have a deep care and affection for them that makes you care about the story and where it is going.
The highlight of Rogue Nation: Ethan Hunt finding his female equal in Ilsa Faust, played brilliantly by Rebecca Ferguson. In a year of strong female characters (particularly Charlize Theron in Mad Max) Ferguson's Faust takes home gold. Which is saying something because I love Theron in Mad Max: Fury Road. What a wonderfully complex character and performance. This is Ferguson's breakout film, and my goodness did she breakout. The concrete, and the layers on top of the plot are all focused around this character and her intentions. While Ethan Hunt is caught early in the film by The Syndicate, Faust helps him escape and saves his life many times, and you still somehow don't know where her alliances lie. With the writing of McQuarrie and the superb acting of Ferguson, you are transfixed on what is going on in the story because it will tell you what her motives our. Best side character in a series that is filled with great supporting character (Simon Pegg as Benji in particular).
The only thing in this film that didn't work for me was during one of the action set pieces, McQuarrie got a little bit lazy and had Ethan Hunt make a mistake, that frankly his character would never make and hasn't made in the first 4 movies. He did this to provide Ilsa Faust the vehicle to save Hunt, which is an interesting twist in this series, but was poorly executed and set up. Minor set back but would of liked that scene to be more well done and conceived.
The fifth installment of Mission Impossible could very well be the best so far. The action is exhilarating as you would expect, but what a gloriously written character driven story. Ferguson steals the show from Cruise, even though he is excellent as well, with a dynamic portrayal of an even more dynamic character which drives this story. To many times in recent years you see women placed in similar places in movies and it feels forced and ineffective. But with Theron earlier in the year and now Ferguson, writers and directors have shown that they can incorporate and center an action movie around a strong and interesting female character.