Writer: Christopher McQuarrie
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Cast: Tom Cruise, Ving Rhames, Henry Cavill, Simon Pegg, Alec Baldwin, Angela Bassett, and Rebecca Ferguson
It’s been two years since Solomon Lane was captured and murderous organization, The Syndicate disbanded. Without a clear leader in place, small terror organizations have been formed, wreaking havoc across the globe. In the midst of the chaos, Ethan Hunt and what’s left of the IMF have been brought in to dismantle a band of terrorists known as The Apostles. The terrorist group is made up of former followers of Solomon Lane, who have joined forces to start a nuclear war that could rain down death and destruction on the world as we know it.
As one of the biggest films of the season, Mission Impossible does not disappoint. “Fallout” is the true sequel to 2015’s “Rogue Nation”. The film picks up two years from where we left off. Hunt is still fighting with the CIA but now has an ally in the reformed Secretary of State Alan Hunley (Baldwin). His new government nemesis is CIA bigwig, Erica Sloan (Bassett). It is Sloan who forces Hunt to partner with her favorite guard dog, Agent Walker (Cavill). The introduction of Sloan sets a new tone for the series as powerful women make a big impact in this movie. Rogue Nation introduced us to Ilsa Faust (Ferguson) who is essentially a British female version of Hunt. Faust is back for “Fallout” and as deadly as ever giving as good as she gets. She’s no damsel in distress she fights hard. In one scene she manages to free herself from bondage and knock out a villain all while saving Benji from certain death. Another addition to the franchise is Vanessa Kirby as “White Widow”, a criminal mastermind who in her first scene, pulls a dagger from her thigh high and stabs a henchman in the heart.
In addition to the femme fatales, we also get to see Henry Cavill as a tough guy. By now the whole world knows Cavill as the Man of Steel, everyone’s favorite squeaky-clean superhero. Just as Clark Kent dons specs to hide his identity, Cavill adopted a bizarre porn-stache, stubble combo to protect his superhero persona. This measure was understandable but unnecessary, Walker is nothing like a hero. He is a douchey arrogant jerk who gets under Hunt’s skin from the start. First, he nearly dies from lack of oxygen forcing Hunt to save him while leaping from a plane. Then, in one of the most intense fight scenes, Walker destroys Hunt’s laptop breaking it over a guy’s head. He would be the bumbling comic relief if he wasn’t so gigantic and menacing. Even with strategic placements, Cavill dwarfs his co-stars. His size and agility aid in creating some truly thrilling fight scenes. If you enjoy Cavill as a hero you’ll love him as a badass.
Tom Cruise was born to play Ethan Hunt. We can’t imagine any other actor putting himself through so much just to tell a story. It took an entire year to wrap up this film. This includes the seven months Tom needed to heal after fracturing his ankle leaping from two buildings. The scene when the accident occurred was left in the film. You can actually see the moment he fractures his ankle and the painful limp that follows. Cruise only waited a few short weeks before getting back to work. Instead of laying up and healing, he chose instead to run, fight, and jump with a broken ankle. For the film, Cruise also learned to fly a helicopter, which he flew solo, while in character and holding the camera. For the skydiving scene, helmets had to be specially made so Cruise could actually breathe and be seen. Cruise jumped from a plane with a cameraman over 100 times to get the perfect shot. All of the hard work has paid off. Mission Impossible: Fallout is an outstanding achievement and the best of the franchise to date.
Mission Impossible: Fallout is in theaters this Friday, July 27!