An ActionFest Flick - Shame The Story Wasn't As Good As The Stunts...

Rating: 8/10 (30 January 2018)

This is an all-out actionfest. Right from the opening you've got Cruise (Ethan Hunt) holding onto the side of an aeroplane as it takes off - Bloody Nutter! This in most films would be the top stunt; this, of course, is MI so it's just your opening salvo of insaneness.
It's the story which kinda lets it down. These have now become secondary to the stunts, which I have to say are superb - and not too much CGI (except for the tech stuff, that is). Here you have a secret organisation called The Syndicate (nope they don't rig the lottery). But as "syndicate" describes a group working towards an aim, then the name is wrong as it turns out to be one man controlling his own mercenary army. I think there would have been great scope had it actually been a syndicate with many heads like the hydra.
There are a couple of holes in the story though they are minor... except for the ending... just how did the bad guy NOT think the scenario would turn out this way. Bit of a let down as he'd been ahead of Hunt and his team all through the film. In fact, the way Lane (Sean Harris) manipulates people is pretty awesome and is a good plot builder and twist creator. It's this element that keeps the story interesting. But in the end, Hunt has to overcome... it's just a shame that the ending wasn't as twist orientated as the rest of the story.
I cannot fault the direction or the pace of the film, as McQuarrie, gives the audience an atmospheric and excitement filled rollercoaster ride of a movie. He is great at filming the fight scenes and chases as well as the drama set-up acting scenes. For example the car and bike chase between Hunt and Ilsa Faust (Ferguson). When Hunt's car crashes he slows down the action to build tension... and then to build to a comical end to that scene, before revving up the torque to near maximum for the rest of the chase.
In fact, it's Rebecca Ferguson (Faust) that adds Kudos to the cast. She gives a fantastic performance as a strong-minded and deadly woman who happens to be beautiful and sexy to boot. She even has an air of secrecy and mystery to her. You are never too sure about her or her motives. This in some way is told by the story but a lot of it comes from Ferguson's portrayal of Faust. This is one actress to watch. She and her character really made this film for me. It's nice to have a new strong character as we've gotten used to the others. And to be honest when I see Cruise, Penn, Rhames, Renner and Baldwin I actually see them and not their characters as throughout the years they've become partially stereotyped. Which is a shame as it's this that lets the film down slightly. At least in MI III, the writers tried to give Ethan Hunt a deeper character, one with issues and problems - shame they didn't progress down that line.
I would happily recommend this to all lovers of Mission Impossible and action films alike. There's not much you have to do as a viewer except sit back and enjoy... hopefully you'll make it to the edge of your seat a couple of times.