Reviews

Mission:Impossible III

Traditionally filmgoers dread the sequel.  The sequel always draws up fear that our favorite film has been bastardized into a shadow of its former self, merely for the sake of raising the almighty dollar.  So in that sense by the time you get around to a third, the well of creativity has run very dry and you have just moved into to idiot town for plunking down your money to see Johnny Movie star save the world in the most ridiculous way.

After seeing ”MI: 2” I had this same fear, because, now, a fine action/espionage film was turned into a huge idiot-fest by a fallen director.  Now to make matters worse, our star of this franchise has gone completely bat shit crazy.  Despite the factor of J.J. Abrams (creator of TV’s “Lost” and “Alias”) moving into the director’s chair, confidence was not very high in this installment.  I couldn’t be more pleased to tell you now that I was so wrong about this movie.

First off, we must remove ourselves from today’s entertainment headlines and remember why people enjoy movies, even ones with Tom Cruise in them.  We like to be thrown into an exciting world where we get to live vicariously through the hero/heroine we see on the screen.  On the other hand we do not wish to be insulted, nor have our suspension of disbelief tested in ways that the most gullible person would have to step back and take pause.  Second, for those of us who are fans of J.J. Abrams’ work we must put our faith in him to deliver a fine product as he as done in the past.  Fans of “Alias” will definitely know what I am talking about, and this movie will certainly remind you why you enjoy that show so much.   You enjoy it because you like your action/spy films to have fluid and highly suspenseful action, superb dialogue, character development, and most of all . . .heart.

J.J. Abrams has injected a tremendous amount of heart into this dying franchise.  The indestructible Ethan Hunt is made to be vulnerable.  The addition of Michelle Monaghan, playing Ethan’s fiancée Julia, was an important character to make this impervious action hero finally seem human.

The film starts in a rather unusual way.  We see a captured and beaten Hunt being interrogated by the fantastic Phillip Seymour Hoffman, in front of Julia.  As the seconds count down to the imminent demise of Ethan’s beloved we see so much emotion from Cruise.  We also see exactly why Hoffman was such a great pick as the vile Owen Davian.  Davian is an arms dealer with a high understanding of revenge.  Ethan and his IMF team (including Ving Rhames once again as Luther and rounded out by Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, whom you may know from “Velvet Goldmine”, and newcomer Maggie Q) kidnap Davian to prevent the sale of an unknown bio weapon know only as the Rabbit’s Foot.  After a harrowing escape, Davian begins to exact his revenge on Hunt.  It is from here Ethan’s professional and personal life takes a downward spiral very quickly.  Julia is kidnapped, Ethan is considered rogue and worst of all, to save Julia, Ethan must work for Davian.  I dare not reveal anymore about the plot than I already have.  Though there is a predictable twist or two there are some great moments within that I would not want spoiled for myself, so I’ll be nice.  The film also features some fine performances from Billy Crudup as Ethan’s handler and the compelling Laurence Fishburne as the current IMF director.  Also, what Abrams work would not be complete without some cameos of his former alum Kerri Russell (“Felicity”) and Greg Grunberg (“Alias”).  As a matter of fact, Grunberg has been in every one of Abrams shows that he has created in one way or another, so being an Abrams fan I was satisfied with seeing him in his given cameo.  Russell on the other hand plays a very believable fellow agent, and in my opinion has a potentially bright future in similar action roles.

One of the things that really impressed me about the film that none of the other installments touched upon, maybe the first one somewhat, was the idea of a team not an individual with some back up.  Every team member plays their part to the fullest to help complete their mission and stays faithful to each other no matter what the cost.  This element harkens back to the original show and truly pays homage to the original source material.  Which, again, “Alias” fans will not be surprised with at all and should give you a better appreciation of the film. 

I have a difficult time thinking of more than a couple franchises where a third installment dares to improve upon its inferior predecessors, but you can most certainly add “Mission: Impossible III” to that short list.  This may be the final installment, but if not, I beg of the producers to do everything they can to keep Abrams at the helm.    It is by his co-writing and direction alone that truly gives this franchise the shot in the arm it most definitely needed.

9/10

George Buehle

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