Product: Mission: Impossible (1996)
Rating: 3.0
A pretty enjoyable flick, even if not Tom Cruise's best.
I grew up watching the original Mission Impossible series on TV with Peter Graves as Jim Phelps and Leonard Nimoy as a member of the cast. A generation later, this movie has a decidedly different flavor, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. With Tom Cruise leading the cast as Ethan Hunt, and supported by the likes of Jon Voight, Vanessa Redgrave, Jean Reno, and Emilio Estevez (with too small a role, in my opinion), this one has plenty of star power.I don't want to get into an exposition of the plotline, since it's more than a little twisted -- but in a good, suspenseful way. There's plenty high-tech superspy gadgetry, although the portrayal of various routine technologies like email was a little goofy. The action scenes are sporadic but generally well done, with the exception of some obviously physics-defying liberties in the special effects for the final chase scene. Overall, though, the effect is modestly credible and, more importantly, immensely entertaining. Yes, I've seen better work from Tom Cruise, but so what. This is a decent movie that's worth the investment of a few bucks and a couple hours.