Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One

If you follow social media you're well aware that this summer's MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - DEAD RECKONING PART ONE fell short of its box office goals.  Especially following the runaway success of the previous installment ....FALLOUT.   I've always been curious as to why the media and its consumers are so fascinated with this sort of thing.  Maybe it's because I come at it from an artistic point of view.  Lots of armchair analysts out there who believe they understand how much a film needs to gross just to break even, much less turn a profit.  Embarrassing to read, almost as much as when folks pontificate about politics.   And honestly, simply because a film is a hit does not make it worthwhile.  Too many examples to cite, but SUPERMAN III comes to mind.   Sometimes, film quality is inversely proportional to popularity and hefty BO receipts.

You probably also know that Paramount made the poor decision of releasing this seventh in the franchise right before the twin juggernaut of  BARBIE and OPPENHEIMER.  The latter film snatched the IMAX screens away, pushing DEAD RECKONING into fewer theaters.  

This is too bad, as I imagine Tom Cruise's latest thrill ride must be awesome on a screen five stories high.  Wish I had that opportunity.  Maybe just prior to the release of PART II next year, it will come again.  Right, guys?

So how is this latest would be blockbuster?  As with many of the previous, the screenplay is best not analyzed too closely.  I feel I'm repeating myself with each of these. but the same can be said of many action vehicles.  Many James Bond films as well, which this series clearly emulates, and sometimes outdoes.  Director Christopher McQuarrie, co-writing with Erik Jendresen, attempts to make the villainy more complex and immediate - artificial intelligence gone amok.  That phrase may be becoming more redundant as the years roll on.   A timely idea that will doubtless provide fodder for writers forevermore, if it doesn't eliminate their jobs entirely and write its own messy screenplay.

Ethan Hunt (Cruise) is back in action, combing the globe for both halves of a key that controls "The Entity", said AI that took out a Russian submarine by turning a torpedo back on itself.   He must outwit former Impossible Mission Force (IMF)/current CIA director Eugene Kittridge (Henry Czerny, last seen in the first MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE), Gabriel (Esai Morales), a terrorist who has a mysterious link to the Entity, and assorted Intelligence guns for hire.   Complications abound as Ethan becomes an uneasy ally with a thief named Grace (Hayley Atwell) and arms dealer called "White Widow"(Venessa Kirby).  And Ilsa (Rebecca Ferguson),  IMF ally since ....ROGUE NATION returns in a smaller but crucial part of this mosaic.

The script feels like several contemporary elements were plugged into some software and spit out.  As if artificial intelligence had in fact created it.  I find that funny and sad.  There is some attempt at complexity with the character of Gabriel, who it is teased more than once may not be mortal (yet inexplicably gets hoodwinked during the climax), but this story never creates any real urgency in its high stakes.

You go to DEAD RECKONING for the action, and the set pieces continue to raise the bar. McQuarrie really knows how to stage mayhem and close scrapes.  And kudos for his insistence on practical effects.  The lengthy car chase that eventually involves a Fiat is a showstopper.  You've probably seen clips of the infamous motorcycle jump.  This also involves a moving train, and its sequences on the bridge are pretty impressive, even if it wasn't an intended homage to Buster Keaton. 

You also maybe go for the actors.  The camaraderie among them.  Cruise, that rascal who still insists on doing his own stunts, is committed as ever, and seeing Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames as his IMF cronies is always a pleasure.   This film may have fallen short of its projected earnings but don't cry in your hard seltzer just yet.  I am as eager as always for the next one.  Will it be the last?