Mission: Impossible

Ebert gave MI3 2-1/2 stars, which is like zero from a critic with actual standards.

http://filmexperience.blogspot.com/2006/05/history-of-missions-impossible.html

http://nypress.com/19/18/film/ArmondWhite.cfm

J.J. Abrams
Director - filmography
(In Production) (2000s) (1990s)

Star Trek XI (2008) (announced) (attached)
The Good Sailor (2007) (pre-production)

Mission: Impossible III (2006)
... aka M:I-3 (USA: promotional abbreviation)
"Alias"
- Authorized Personnel Only: Part 1 (2005) TV Episode (minor segments) (uncredited)
- Authorized Personnel Only: Part 2 (2005) TV Episode (minor segments) (uncredited)
- The Telling (2003) TV Episode
- Almost Thirty Years (2002) TV Episode
- Truth Be Told (2001) TV Episode
"Lost"
- Pilot: Part 2 (2004) TV Episode
- Pilot: Part 1 (2004) TV Episode

"Felicity"
- Todd Mulcahy: Part 1 (1999) TV Episode
- Friends (1999) TV Episode

i like how they dispensed with that in the first one but they've really painted themselves into a corner

No Barbara Bain, no cred

I really liked the first one and have seen it a few times, wasn't bothered about the second one and saw a wee bit of tit when it was on the telly once, not really interested in the third one and don't mind whether I see it or not

(lotsa reviews say PSH doesn't get much meat in this)

Did anyone ever watch the 2nd one more than once? is there a point?

too true - cf. Malkovich, Dennis Hopper, tons of others.

(exception = Pacino in Dick Tracy!)

Terence Stamp?

I liked Malkovich in that Eastwood pic.

Kneel Before Zod = teh classic, of course.

for example, (ignoring the plot) Timothy Dalton & Robert Davi in License to Kill.

xpost Warner is classically trained, right? Also did outstanding voicework in Baldur's Gate 2 as the villain.

also, Peter Cushing in SW

(OK, how about solid actors who get to use more than 5% of their chops playing big baddies? I think Brandauer and Malkovich qualify here.)

we can pretty much rule out sharon stone.

X-Men movies are great, kingfish otm for why too. (next one's gonna BLOOOOOOWWWWWW)

Lol

big fan of this one. getting this out of the way, i thought the Ethan/Ilsa romance which was only hinted at maybe didn't work, only because when she died it didn't feel heavy enough for someone that close to him, and while i don't want that type of heaviness for this story since it becomes an albatross on the narrative in these types of films (see: latter Craig Bonds), it felt a bit muted as far as a moment. She was a fantastic character who arguably revived the series as much as McQuarrie, maybe she deserved a bit better. but maybe they were just coming to a dead end with the part and maybe Ferguson was done playing that role and had other things she wanted to commit her time to. i suspect that might be the case. which is cool, she's a fantastic actor.

Cruise did his usual Cruise stuff and as the solid center of the franchise he's both likable and clearly insane to do what he does IRL. i appreciate his commitment to the craft. There's not much more to say about him.

Hayley Atwell is great, i also give a shoutout to her wardrobe and generally the duplicitous nature of the character really serves the narrative well, it's less about protecting her but protecting her while keeping an eye on her because she's liable to both escape and steal everything from you while doing so. which works to keep the chase going through various countries and setpieces the entire time. the car chase was particularly excellent, maybe not quite as impactful as the Ilsa pursuit in Rogue Nation but more gleefully demented.

Speaking of demented, i'm guessing Pom Klementieff really appreciated being given a shot to play a character completely the opposite of Mantis. she was clearly having a great time there, my kid's favorite part was her cackling while driving that armored vehicle over and through various obstacles. It's a very Xenia Onatopp type role. i also liked the brutality of the twist involving her, where Gabriel's deduction is correct but perhaps from the way the story plays out we can also deduce he played himself and caused what he correctly thought would occur to actually happen in the end.

Esai Morales was a good choice for the Gabriel part, he's a very good actor who never tips over into absurdity despite this being a potentially absurd role, and i also just like to see an underrated performer being given a juicy part along these lines, going mano a mano with Tom Cruise on top of a train, knife fighting his way across Europe, etc. i feel like perhaps Gabriel didn't need to be a guy from Ethan's past, that was a bit too "Silva in Skyfall" to me, but this film fortunately didn't turn into a therapy session, it just kept moving.

it was nice to see Czerny back in that role, with some good callbacks to his part in the first film. Vanessa Kirby was good too. everyone was good!

gonna be psyched to see how the story wraps up. from what i've read, there was the thought that MI:8 would wrap the franchise up, but it seems like it'll continue on for a bit longer. I hope so, it's probably the only ongoing action franchise i have confidence in as far as consistent QC, the Abrams entry aside.

i almost forgot about it in the midst of the rest of the film, but the opening scene with the Russian submarine is a great one, with such a bleak and haunting final shot.

Yeah as a grim miniadventure it was pretty great (and the actual final shot of the film appropriately fucked up and ominous).

Pom Klementieff

Was not really a fan of this movie, but particularly didn't like her character, tbh. Of course these movies are innately ridiculous, but I'm trying to think of other instances/characters that were as outright cartoonish. She reminded me, yeah, of a few colorful Bond henchpersons (Onatopp, May Day), but also a particular strain of eccentric movie assassins, not just like you may find in the heightened (sur)reality of "John Wick," but, like, Sam Phillips in "Die Hard 3," Lucy Liu in "Payback." Kind of took me out a bit.

"Mission: Impossible: Part Seven: Part 2" bumped to 2025! The future!

I don't know, something like that can't even begin to bother me in this type of movie. They are sort of the American Bond films at this point, to an extent. The outlandishness will periodically come with a territory, and it's all in good fun. I've never been taken out of any of these movies by anything other than III being mostly bad.

xpost -- Ah that sucks but the longer the SAG strike goes on...

Oh dear, this episode is on just now:

Government forces in a racist African country have captured Kitara, the leader of the revolutionary forces, and will torture him to death in their effort to find the gold bullion he has hidden. To rescue Kitara and secure the gold, Jim plans to manipulate the security official interrogating him. What better way to manipulate a racist than to turn him into what he least wants to be and turn his own forces against him?

So, yes, the Mission Impossible team comes up with some kind of thingummabob which turns racist Colonel Kohler into a black man!

Now did I know that Sam Elliott was one of the stars of the TV series or not?

Learning that Nimoy ended up there post-Trek was a bit of a surprise.

I'm there was a Twilight Zone episode similar to that

'sure'

All right, we have a trailer for the next (last?) one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOhDyUmT9z0

WHERE’S THE KEY??

I just realized what the key reminds me of, somewhat: Sarah Michelle Gellar’s “cross” from Cruel Intentions.

yes totally

oh thank god, they didn't forget to have a cut of Tom running as fast as possible in the trailer

When he gets to the point where he can’t run, they’ll have him wheeling himself at top speed through a hospital corridor

the last one was a compete mess but what a mess

I look forward to seeing Shea Wigham and (checks notes) Greg Tarzan Davis turning up with the payoff to their double act in the first one, but I also admit it would be very funny if they just... don't.

I have liked or loved all the McQuarrie missions though I cannot believe the last one refrigerated Ilsa Faust, who was probably the best character in the entire series and largely responsible for Rogue Nation being the best one in the series. Maybe she wanted to be done playing the role though. anyway this one looks good, kinda hope it’s not actually the final one, keep em coming as long as TC can run.

basically I want Vanessa Redgrave to return as Max and act circles around Tom Cruise while he knows it.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DQn1cDsWAAASX9d.jpg

I share omar’s sadness about a certain character but the actor’s been pretty damn busy and I hope it was more a scheduling thing than a plot thing, although anyone Ethan Hunt stands next to who is a possible romantic interest has a ticking clock over their head. A number of people haven’t stayed dead in these, though!

Yeah that actor seems down w franchises in general

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsQgc9pCyDU

we got some excellent actors in this one

and tom cruise

The ultimate Mission Impossible would be if Tom Cruise secretly filmed a series of stunts, then a few years after he dies releases another Mission Impossible movie full of big stunts and whatnot.

Tramell Tillman should/is going to be a huge star.

I have seen the thing. I liked it! It is what it is, but it is very good at what it is.

My extended thoughts folded into my old post from two years back:

https://www.tumblr.com/nedraggett/722573883179515904/my-impossible-mission

BUT WHO'S GOT THE KEY

the best review of the series that was never posted to usenet

Roffle, sounds about right.

I think I have seen all of these movies, but honestly? I passed a theatre today, and just seeing the title on the marquee felt enervating. Didn't the last one underperform (relatively speaking)?

It did, yeah, so if this ends up kinda closing the cycle (at least for now) I wouldn't be surprised. They've definitely set it up that way (while still leaving themselves an out).

If they could continue being made at this level of relative high-quality, I would be stoked. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed every single one since the series low point of MI3. But I know it’ll have to end sometime.

on rewatch dead reckoning 1 is even better than fallout i m o

pom klementieff can run over me with a big truck

(re)watching them all in order with my gf. so far we’ve seen 1 and 2. it was my first time seeing 1 in a decade, and i don’t know that i’ve ever seen 2, but if so it was in theatres at age 9. both obviously incredible. i was eating up the unhinged early 2000s cheese of 2

2 is my favorite movie

obviously

the sexually charged car chase between cruise and thandi newton is one of the best things i’ve ever seen

MI2 is the most unhinged and of course they would make the decision to make the safest choice possible with a JJ Abrams film after that.

I worked with a guy in 2000 on a night shift who would go out on breaks and steal those giant bus stop movie posters. He gave me a few of them, I took them back to my mom‘s house on a road trip one time, I was there last year cleaning some stuff out and got incredible nostalgia for gone in 60 seconds, Shanghai noon, the Samuel L Jackson shaft movie, and of course MI2.

I worked with a guy in 2000 on a night shift who would go out on breaks and steal those giant bus stop movie posters. He gave me a few of them, I took them back to my mom‘s house on a road trip one time, I was there last year cleaning some stuff out and got incredible nostalgia for gone in 60 seconds, Shanghai noon, the Samuel L Jackson shaft movie, and of course MI2.

― omar little, Friday, 23 May 2025 13:57 (three minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

lol awesome. i have a dead reckoning 1 poster in my office that they were giving away at the theatre when i saw it. i normally would’ve thrown something like that out, but the poster is in german (saw it during a very lonely and stressful extended work trip, during which the escapism the film gave me is one of few sweetly cherished bright spot) so i kept it

I still don't think I've ever seen 2 all the way through. I've seen 3 once. But I've watched 4-6 a bunch of times each, and 7 once. Not super excited about this one, because "unstoppable supercomputer AI Skynet Machine-That-Will-Change-Everything-Forever" is the most tedious thing you can make a movie about.

i rewatched 3 last weekend, remembering how much i liked Hoffman

turns out that he’s maybe the only thing i enjoy abt that one lol. i remember at the time being like, oh i love they used the theme song again. This rewatch it was more “i swear to god if they hit that fkn theme one more time i will throw this tv out the window. ENOUGH”

The AMC where I watched Friendship sits in a decrepit, dying mall with an equally sad B&N opposite the theater. When I left my showing of Friendship an hour ago I noted a sizable crowd for M:I.

have to be the voice of reason about 2 here. it’s a mess, and not even in an interesting or thoughtful way — literally slapdash, woo was forced to cut like over an hour of runtime from what he wanted to be the Final Cut iirc. bizarre discontinuities, scene sequencing that defy all common sense, tom cruise trying to be sexy…

the overuse of the mask thing is almost redeemed by its sheer campiness, but that last one in the bunker is just so obvious it’s an obvious crutch and ruins what could have been a decent scene

the acting is also unbearably stiff (imo). some good action sequences for sure tho

"voice of reason" about a movie that is against reason

it is delirious style. i wish i could see the complete woosterpiece we were denied but what we have is ostentatious and fearless