RADICAL ROCK’S REVIEW – MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 4
My, what a long fuse you have
Or
Gone like a fart in a sandstorm
Let’s get this out first. My mother’s last name is Phelps. She’s still pissed at Tom Cruise for vilifying then killing off Jim Phelps in the first Mission Impossible movie. I didn’t like it either, but have since come to the personal understanding that it wasn’t Peter Graves’ Mr. Phelps that got croaked. It was Jon Voight’s substantially inferior Mr. Phelps that turned out to be an asshole. Different Jim Phelps. The name was just a coincidence.
Had to get that off my chest. There. Now we can begin.
Do not go to this action movie if you don’t like action movies. Seems like a Zen, Yogi Berra-ish thing to say, but there is really not much else to see this movie for. It really is just pure action. And, that’s by design. The story is pure McGuffin. The thinnest of excuses (a rogue Russian wants to start WW3? Never heard that one before!) is simply a reason for Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt to jet around the world and do Pilates hanging outside the tallest building in the world. The action is over the top exciting, including the best chase scene I’ve seen since Casino Royale. This is not Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. You don’t go to this movie to enjoy the intrigue. You buy a ticket, sit down with a trough of popcorn and watch OMG moment after OMG moment unfurl. And, yes, I saw it in IMAX. And, it was the best hunk of sensory overload I’ve had in a long while. The other major ingredient in this movie is its humor. Even with imminent nuclear destruction, personal revenge and a large body count, this movie keeps the tongue stuck in the cheek. It’s got a great sense of humor without really becoming a comedy. Remember the first time you saw True Lies? Yeah, it’s like that.
Without the accent.
The cast has a ball with what they’re given to do. Tom Wilkinson‘s turn as Ethan Hunt’s boss du jour is just a don’t blink McGuffin moment. If you’ve seen his part in the trailer, that’s about it. Hurt Locker star and Hawkeye-to-be Jeremy Renner portrays the baddest non badass badass I’ve ever seen (that’ll make sense when you see the movie). You add a female lead (Paula Patton) who is avenging the murder of her love, the comic relief (Simon Scotty Shaun Wee Hughie Pegg) from a previous MI movie and a really bad guy with a hot chick assassin, and you’re pretty much done. That said, let’s face facts. There are no really intriguing or original character studies here. This is NOT Merchant Ivory. Most of what’s said is just there to set up the next bit of action.
Just as the Bond movies have scaled down the gadgets, this movie has decided to bring them back to the forefront. THANK YOU. I personally always loved the Bond gadgets, and have missed them. Remember how he had a watch that would print out a message in text? How Sci-Fi is that!?! Straight from the future of 1995! Just like that, the gadgets in this movie are inventive yet you believe the technology is almost there. In some cases just outside our reach. Even the contact lenses.
This movie was a nice little Christmas present. Or Hannukah, or Ramadan, or Kwanzaa, or whatever Tom Cruise celebrates (Overlord Grahr Day?). Rollercoaster, edge of your seat action that puts a big smile on your face.
Prime’s Bottom Line – I think I’ll call it McGuffin Improbable 4 from now on.
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