Abrams Goes Heavy On The Action And Lite On The Spy.

Rating: 7/10 (18 May 2006)

Ethan Hunt has finally settled down with his soon to be married girlfriend. When he is told that his former trainee is in trouble he decides to go on a rescue mission to help save her. Unfortunately she dies during the rescue and Hunt is on the "hunt" for the man responsible for her death, which leads him into a tangled web of deceit and a dangerous weapon known as the RABBITS FOOT.
J.J. Abrams is the creative mind behind such hits as Alias and Lost. Both of which have a massive cult following. Now Abrams takes his stab at the big screen with the third installment in the spy franchise Mission:Impossible. Abrams take on the franchise is leaps and bounds over what Woo offered, but falls short of De Palma's original. Abrams goes heavy on the action and lite on the spy.
Some may think that Woo destroyed the series, I don't think this is true, but nevertheless, Abrams is trying to revive it by kicking it into overdrive. While watching MI:III, I kept asking myself, is this suppose to be a spy flick? Every single movie in this series differs from the other, even if Abrams does take notes from both. Mission Impossible is a good way to start the summer blockbuster movies, but one would of expecting a little bit more from it's hype.
First of all, it does have a lot of action. This is a perfect example for edge of your seat entertainment. The action never lets up, and it's actually enjoyable to watch. The bridge scene was impressive, but you can tell right away that the entire scene plays like an episode out of Alias. For some reason Abrams always must have the transportation vehicle get attacked for the person inside of it. Can we get another way of getting this person Abrams?
Cruise manages to keep his cool in this movie, I was surprised that he didn't start killing people in the name of Scientology. With the help of the supporting actors, the cast makes MI:III somewhat believable, but what's with the lack of Hoffman? Abrams, you have a good actor in your back pocket, he gives you a great performance, as usual in Hoffman's case, but you use him for 15 to 20 minutes. The film also under uses Fishburn and Pegg, who is the comedic relief.
What's the Rabbits foot? We're never told, or seem to care either. PLot twists, yes, but why? The film would have made more sense if it just stuck with it's basic course, does every film need to throw in a twist to shock the viewer? A bomb inserted in the head? Even if it was written before Alias, we see used in Alias before, so we basically know what's going to happen.
Abrams does showcase some talent, and he can only improve. With more concentration on his characters then he can surly become one of the heavy hitters in Hollywood. Abrams has a keen eye for action and pulls out all the stops here. MI:III is a good start for action movies, it sets the bar for others to follow. If you're able to leave your brain at the door and sit through some bad dialogue, such as Humpty Dumpty Sat On A Wall...then enjoy a great action movie.