In the highly anticipated film “Top Gun: Maverick,” set to release in 2022, the enemy remains intentionally vague, ensuring that no specific nation is offended while celebrating our hero’s courage and daring exploits. Serving as a cinematic celebration, the film provides much-needed optimism for audiences returning to theaters after the pandemic. Now, just a year later, we have “Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning Part One,” the latest installment in Tom Cruise’s other successful franchise. Once again, Cruise faces off against an unidentified adversary, but this time, the film shifts its focus to a more contemporary apocalyptic scenario, injecting a shocking relevance into a series that has been running for almost thirty years.
In the “Mission: Impossible” films, Cruise portrays Ethan Hunt, a secret agent with exceptional athleticism and unwavering confidence, capable of thwarting any brewing nuclear crisis through a combination of elaborate disguises and breathtaking stunts. Despite the series’ inception in 1996, based on the ’60s TV show, it reached new heights with “Fallout” in 2018, defying the inevitable decline that usually affects even the biggest names in the industry. As Cruise, now 61 years old, continues to race forward in his career with no signs of slowing down, each new movie serves as a testament to the importance of his continued presence. “Dead Reckoning Part One” raises the stakes further, pitting Ethan against an omnipotent artificial intelligence devoid of personality, soul, and most importantly, star power. This futuristic threat embodies what traditional Hollywood fears—an era governed by computers making every decision. Ethan, a quintessential analog hero, with his running, jumping, and deeply human qualities, becomes the perfect champion to stop this dystopian future.
And stop it he does. “Dead Reckoning Part One” is yet another triumph in the series, with director Christopher McQuarrie skillfully infusing a genuinely compelling narrative into the adventures of the world’s most ludicrous superspy. By engaging Ethan in a battle against a merciless AI entity known as “The Entity,” which seeks to manipulate world governments, the film positions him as a paragon of humanity—an audacious move, considering Cruise’s reputation as one of the industry’s most eccentric celebrities. Nevertheless, the “Mission: Impossible” movies have been subtly pushing this narrative forward for quite some time. Unlike James Bond, who may be the best at what he does but remains a cog in the state’s machinery, ultimately ruthless, Ethan rejects any notion of sacrificing the individual for the greater good. Instead, he employs every possible means to bend reality and save both those around him and the world simultaneously.
Ethan is accompanied by his usual band of allies: the tech-savvy Luther (Ving Rhames) and Benji (Simon Pegg), as well as the versatile British spy Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson). Joining the ensemble are two formidable femme fatales: Grace (Hayley Atwell), an expert pickpocket, and Paris (Pom Klementieff), an assassin. Although their adversary is nothing more than a luminous sphere residing in the cloud, it employs Gabriel (Esai Morales), a seething terrorist sporting a perfectly trimmed salt-and-pepper beard, as its human emissary. They are all in pursuit of special keys that will play a significant role in neutralizing the Entity, with the intricate details that often characterize “Mission: Impossible” movies taking a back seat.
Surprisingly, fans of McQuarrie’s high-octane style showcased in the series’ previous two installments will discover a deliberate return to the espionage’s intricate and treacherous aspects within this entry. Double-crossing and shadowy alliances reminiscent of Brian De Palma’s inaugural “Mission: Impossible” film in 1996 make a compelling comeback. To emphasize this connection, the edgy character actor Henry Czerny reprises his role as Eugene Kittridge, now the CIA chief, who hadn’t made an appearance since the 1996 installment. His presence serves to highlight the ongoing absurdity of Hunt’s “Impossible Mission Force,” a quasi-governmental agency that curiously coexists alongside America’s conventional intelligence apparatus, recruiting agents whose mastery lies more in close-up magic than hand-to-hand combat.
Although the computerized Entity stands as the primary antagonist, Kittridge personifies another critical element that permeates these films: the rigid bureaucrat who helplessly fumes as Ethan and his comrades defy all logic and triumph against the odds. “Dead Reckoning Part One” retains the exhilarating set pieces, such as Ethan careening down a mountainside on a motorcycle and engaging in martial arts atop the Orient Express. Yet, amidst the action, traces of melancholy and concern emerge, hinting that the good times cannot endure forever in the face of bureaucratic and algorithmic dominance. As expected from a “Part One,” the film’s conclusion may be less satisfying than a typical third act, but it remains a worthy addition to America’s most exceptional ongoing franchise. It effortlessly intertwines sincerity and absurdity, combining them with resolute conviction to deliver a vital and triumphant cinematic experience.
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