Cinema Trips - 'Mission: Impossible Fallout'

Mission: Impossible Fallout is the sixth entry into the franchise led by Tom Cruise, which follows the international spy-related exploits of Ethan Hunt and his rag tag group of operatives, fighting organizations that have grand plans of global conquest while occasionally having to avoid capture by way of their own government, usually as a result of some kind of misunderstanding.

It is an incredibly competent story that manages to dance on the line of being a standalone adventure while being a continuation of the larger story pertaining to Ethan Hunt’s life. Several plot threats are carried over with enough context given so that you do not have to have seen the prior films, yet still know what is going on to having an emotional connection to the characters.

The story progresses at a swift pace without it ever feeling like it is being rushed, giving plenty of enough time to catch your breath and spend some time with the characters as they interact.

Despite the film clocking in at nearly two-and-a-half hours, I found myself so thoroughly engaged with what is happening that at no point was I bored and was genuinely surprised that it was as long as it was. It felt a lot shorter.

The acting in the series of films has only gotten better with each film while continuing to bolster characters in major and minor roles with great talent while retaining the fantastic actors that are already present. The new addition of Henry Cavill, and Angela Bassett taking on larger roles in the film while the likes of Wes Bentley help round off some of the minor characters elevate the acting in all areas of the film, all of whom fit in wonderfully, raising the standard of the film as a whole.

The antagonist is quite strong as it is one where you can understand the motivations, even if you do ultimately disagree with them. The action set pieces and the stunt work are all exhilarating to watch. As expected of them, they are a hallmark of the franchise. The cast and crew deserve a lot of praise for pulling them off, Tom Cruise, in particular.

The camaraderie and the bond between the team is consistently evolving and growing through the films, and therefore involves very real personal stakes in the finale as you unconsciously end up worrying about their safety.

This is a film that is intense through a majority of its run time. So in order to alleviate the constant tension and excitement, there are moments of humor sprinkled throughout the film, and at no point are they out of place. This helped to elevate the overall quality of the film that much more.

The finale is as cliched as they come in terms of the story beats. However, it still works remarkably well and made it one of the most intense finales I have seen in the cinema this year, all by taking each aspect of the cliche and amplifying each of them by a hundred.

What is wonderful about this series is that the camera actually stays still long enough to actually allow you to see what is happening on screen. The film is quite cinematic with some great camera work, and there are some points where the film captures a documentary-like feel during the finale when Tom Cruise is performing a stunt, which I liked quite a bit as it elevated the tension that much more for me.

Finally the soundtrack of the film is fantastic both with the new compositions and the classic Mission: Impossible themes being reworked to fit the tone of the rest of the music.

I would very highly recommend watching this film in the cinema.

The final point would undoubtedly be whether Henry Cavill’s moustache was really worth it. Yes, Yes it was.