Reaches New Lows...Impossible is Right.

Rating: Null/10 (16 December 2000)

I didn't really like this. While I am a fan of the first M.I., and of the Die-Hard type flix in general-I know, as in every genre, it HAS to be believable on its own terms. And this frankly wasn't. I didn't buy the motorbike stunts-be it the infamous Tom Cruise footdrag at 80 or all the weaving in and outta traffic or the big time Milli-Vanilli chest bump(if you have seen this you know what I mean!) that happens when they both go catapulting off their bikes right at one another, mid air. Followed by a real long, drawn out Matrix style fight on the beach.
Why is it that the baddies fire 100's of Uzi rounds, can't hit Tom as he runs right across open space in front of them-but whenever he pulls his 9MM or whatever, in two shots he kills two guys, third shot hits a tankard of explosives which is conveniently placed right behind the now dead baddie, etc. Everything that possible can go Boom(cars, bikes, drums, etc) does go boom here. It's goofy.
Unplotted plot, takes the Ebola virus and mixes in the Notorious angle. Thandie Newton should eat something. Cruise does his stunts well but sleepwalks through it all. The baddie is James Bond level. Ving Rhames is OK but that is about it. (I think I saw him play a similar role elsewheres, come to think of it...)
Don't even get me going with the fake masks(Tom is 5-7 by the way, the villain is def. taller), and the incoherent plot.
Try again? Hopefully with more emphasis on the Writing, though as this did yank in more than 200M at the box office, that's not too likely, $ is the only incentive that Hollywood has nowadays.
** outta ****. Check out any of the Die Hards or Face Off if you wanna better example of this kinda flick....