Product: Mission: Impossible (1996)
Rating: 3.0
Decent Action but Implausible for Fans of the TV Series
The idea of bringing the television series Mission Impossible to the big screen seemed at once to be one a long time in finally coming and one to be viewed with some trepidation by those fans loyal to the millieu of the series.Mission Impossible does not disappoint with its action, but its plotline stands rather simply as a betrayal and vengeance formula, and worse, one rather implausible to the legions of fans of the television series. Without giving away too much of the plot, a most trusted member of the Impossible Mission Force betrays his team and country for ... money. Though the nature of the betrayer makes for a much greater indignity at his crime, it leaves fans of the series feeling as if the film simply lops off its head to begin anew, discarding the roots that made the movie itself possible.Tom Cruise still delivers an excellent performance as a slick and capable member of the IMF, and fans of action films will certainly enjoy this picture. However, if you feel more than an inkling of loyalty to the series, perhaps you should skip to the second film, which in the end has much more the feel of Mission Impossible than does this movie.