Rivitalised the Franchise, but Pales in Comparison to its Bond and Bourne Cousins

Rating: 7/10 (2 August 2018)

In many ways, Mission: Impossible III laid the groundwork for what followed. It was in production in the height of Bourne revitalising the spy genre, around the same time as Casino Royale similarly breathed new life into Bond. It took the over-the-top action of II and grounded it into something a little more gritty and emotionally affecting. It put Ethan in the retired camp, wanting to settle down with a wife and dragged back in after the death of a former trainee. Unfortunately it pales in comparison to it's cousins, who did similar but simply better. In the microcosm of Mission: Impossible though, III was somewhat revolutionary, resurrecting a franchise many had thought dead after II wasn't quite as well received as anyone would have liked. And as I said, it laid the groundwork for what followed, and there's no denying how strong Rogue Nation and Fallout have been because of it. We simply wouldn't have those fantastic action movies without III.
III carries the action focus on from II, but grounds it, and this is its greatest strength. As much as I love II, it's action scenes are over-the-top and cheesy, full of gadgetry and lacking in any intrigue. It's more like an old-school Bond movie than a Mission: Impossible movie. III brought Mission: Impossible back down, and it results in some fantastic action sequences. The opening factory rescue is stylish yet practical with lots of cool moments, and the team breaking into the Vatican to get at Davian is some of the most intriguing spy work in the entire franchise. Then there's the breakout on the bridge which throws around and batters Ethan more than ever before, not only showing his humanity as a hero, but also providing some really touch-and-go moments.
But another of III's strength is in it's character work and world building. I mean it's still a Mission: Impossible film, and expecting something truly great in this regard is unrealistic, but it does add a hell of a lot not only to Ethan as a character, but the world he inhabits as well. We finally get to see inside the IMF, and all the cogs that make it tick, from tech analysts and medical examiners to a hierarchy of management and reference to trainers and trainees. It's not just Ethan being gifted mysterious exploding mission packages from a faceless spy organisation any more. Furthermore we get to see a more mature side of Ethan thanks to Julia, his wife-to-be, and the reason why he wants to retire. It goes a long way to add some very real stakes, as well as giving Tom Cruise something to really sink his teeth into.
The opening interrogation sequence is almost pitch perfect in every way with how Tom Cruise and Philip Seymour Hoffman bounce off one another. Ethan is desperate and powerless, attempting to reason with a different kind of ticking clock, and Davian is calm, cruel, and cold. Honestly the entire movie lies on how strong these two performances are. Cruise was never going to win any awards for this, obviously, but the performance he offers proves he can carry emotional beats as well as physical ones. Philip Seymour Hoffman though, steals the limelight. Davian honestly isn't all that an engaging villain on paper. He's an arms dealer who has connections he really shouldn't, and when sleighted, he takes what ultimately amounts to petty vengeance. However Hoffman manages to elevate the character off the page into a franchise-best villain. His delivery is calm and threatening, quietly aggressive until he needs to be more forceful. The way he threatens Ethan and everyone he loves while in a position to not really be making threats, with a cool and calm demeanour as if everything he says is just everyday language, gives him such a nasty edge that you love to hate. Davian turns from a lacklustre villain into a nasty, vindictive, unfeeling asshole all thanks to Hoffman's performance alone.
But III isn't perfect, and as I said it lacks something that Bourne and Craig-era Bond manage to tap into. It's still kind of cheesy. The settling-down/romantic element of III is something I love about it in concept, and it changed up the tone of the franchise massively. And yet oft times it still feels like a sappy romance shoehorned in to a movie that is at odds with it. The happy-ever-after ending, with Ethan walking away hand-in-hand with Julia doesn't particularly help either. There's a reason why Vesper doesn't make it out of Casino Royale alive, and it's because our heroes are more interesting and engaging when they're not tied to a love interest. It's no surprise, of course, that Ghost Protocol (as far as I can remember - it's been a while) completely drops the whole thing as if it never happened.
The other thing that bugs me, moreso now than it used to, is the cinematography. This is J.J. Abrams' feature directorial debut, and he brings his television sensibilities with him somewhat. His trademark lens flare dates back to this (and possibly before), and that coupled with the Bourne trend of shaky-cam results in some messy shots. There's also a lot of close-ups, which don't help the shaky-cam, but they do add a lot of intensity and emotional claustrophobia. But what gets me now is the colour-pallet, which still looks quite television-y. It's super bright and colourful with really sharp contrasts, and while it does give it its own visual identity, it doesn't always look that great. When Tom Cruise looks like he has jaundice, maybe you should consider adjusting the colour balance a bit.
Don't get me wrong though, III is still a fine addition to the franchise, and it's probably safe to say that it was the best Mission: Impossible movie at the time. It showed a self-awareness that let you know it never takes itself too seriously, and knows exactly where it came from. It helps that there's a lot of great stuff here that's enough to overshadow the slightly irksome. Davian is simply delectable, and seeing Ethan hunt desperate and struggling really helped the franchise in the long-run. Really good action sequences helped too, of course. I give Mission: Impossible III an enjoyable 7/10, that has unfortunately been overshadowed by both its follow-ups and its cousins of the time, but is still pretty good in its own right, and it gave us Benji, so plus points there too.