Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation
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It’s nice to have a franchise like Mission: Impossible in a blockbuster landscape becoming more
populated with highly serialised ‘cinematic universes’ such as the hugely
successful Marvel one. Mission:
Impossible seems committed to pulling out thrilling self-contained action
flicks that require very little knowledge of each other’s stories to be
enjoyed, and Rogue Nation is
certainly no exception to this. Director, Christopher McQuarrie manages to
maintain the upwards momentum established by the series’ last outing, Ghost Protocol, combining a series of
outstanding action set-pieces with a humorous tone along with a set of
accessible characters brought to life by an excellent cast.
The main selling point of the Mission: Impossible films at this point tends to be which death
defying stunt will Tom Cruise risk his life doing. Rogue Nation fulfils this handsomely by crafting several
outstanding action sequences, ranging from a tense-filled and beautifully
constructed sequence at the Vienna State Opera to a heart-stopping underwater
infiltration to an electrifying chase sequence through Morocco. This is without
mentioning the much advertised shot of Ethan Hunt hanging from a plane as it
takes off, illustrating this film’s strength as a varied and exciting action flick. However, the
final act in London is a step-down from what precedes it as it doesn’t quite
keep up the fast pace and spectacle, resulting in a slightly disappointing
finale that nevertheless wraps the story up nicely.
The plot and script built around these set-pieces is fairly
bog-standard – Ethan and the gang work to stop the threat of the mysterious
‘Syndicate’ shadow organisation and prove their innocence to the CIA after they
have the IMF shut down. There is some
intrigue and more sophisticated themes to be seen but not enough is made of
them in order to elevate the story past generic territory. Luckily the cast is
there to do just that.
Tom Cruise is reliably on-form as leading man, Ethan Hunt
and remains one of Hollywood’s best action stars despite now being in his 50s.
Out of the returning ensemble members, Simon Pegg as computer genius Benji is
the stand out with most of the funniest lines and a winning comradery with
Cruise. Jeremy Renner and Ving Rhames as Brandt and Luther respectively are
underused and sit mostly on the sidelines but still put in strong work, while
Alec Baldwin as the brash CIA head manages to add some flair to his stock
character. As is constant in the Mission series, Rogue Nation struggles to build a particularly effective villain
though it succeeds further than most of the other entries thanks to Sean
Harris’s menacing and cold performance as rogue agent Solomon Lane.
However, the real standout was Rebecca Ferguson as undercover
agent, Ilsa Faust whose performance is akin to Charlize Theron in Mad Max: Fury Road as she is a perfect
match to Ethan and a classic ‘femme fatale’ who rules the film. As an interesting character with
constantly twisting loyalties, Ferguson simply oozes charisma, holds her own in
the action scenes and has the acting chops to top it all off. It seems a shame
that she is the single main female character in the film and I hope that the
next entry gives more great roles to women as the series is clearly capable of
it.
Overall, Mission:
Impossible – Rogue Nation is another winning entry in the MI series, proving
it to be one of the strongest series currently running. It combines some of
the previous outings’ best assets to create a satisfying summer blockbuster
with some really fantastic action sequences, despite a lagging third act.
★★★★
Hope you enjoyed the review! Please share your own thoughts on the film in the comments!
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