REVIEW: "Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One"

Genre: Action; Thriller; Drama.

Director: Christopher McQuarrie

Writer: Christopher McQuarrie & Erik Jendresen

Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Esai Morales, Pom Klementieff, Mariela Garriga & Henry Czerny

Audiences that go after a fun time at the movies should consider the new installment of the Mission Impossible franchise as one of the top options these days. It's an action packed movie with light and funny moments, but it also offers some dramatic beats and eye-opping action sequences. Tom Cruise is back in the leading role as Ethan and he brings his gang back with him, but it's Hayley Atwell who brings some spice and freshness to this movie - and it might well be the most welcome addition in the franchise's history. Action, fun and some thrills, it is not the best movie of the Mission Impossible movies, but it is a nice reflexion about AI paranoia, with a sharp technical execution.

It's hard to review this movie without giving away any spoilers, but I will try to be spoiler-free. Ethan Hunt and the gang are asked to reunite again in order to find an artefact of interest for all the nations around the world - with this "key" every man or nation would be able to control an AI system with the hability to access every digital data in the world. The thing is... Hunt and his crew are not alone in this quest and things start getting messy, which ultimately leads to an international speed running, which makes it engaging.

The plot is simple and the big villain is non-existent in the human form - in fact, Dead Reckoning Part One is not groundbreaking, but it is efficient narrative-wise. It rises above the "espionage drama" field and it assumes itself as an almost-epic action adventure. Tom Cruise proves once again he's a movie star, leading the movie effortlessly - this is his confort zone and he's a natural action movie star. Rebecca Ferguson's presence is scene-stealing, but the real star of Dead Reckoning Part One is Hayley Atwell - hers is a magnetic presence and her character and Ethan engage in a cat & mouse dynamic (that's both flirtatious and full of twists, which draws direct comparisons with classic espionage movies). Cruise is the lead, but Atwell is the real magic ingredient of this movie. 

Technically, Dead Reckoning is pretty well-executed. While I had some issues with the visual effects - there are some sequences that almost scream "this is CGI" - there's no way to deny the quality of the practical visual effects and, mostly, how impressive the stunts are! Proof is a Rome car chasing scene, which might well be the best sequence in the whole movie, which offers both the thrills and the laughs in this one. Or the train sequence, wich includes Tom Cruise jumping from a cliff in a motorcycle and a fight scenes on the top of the train (and you still wonder how can Cruise still so in shape for such physically demanding parts). The editing and cinematography works are also solid, but the best aspect was the sound department! Not too loud, perfectly mixed and perfectly edited - I found it a joy to watch and hear the action sequences in a movie theater. This is what really elevates any action movie: visual challenging scenes and a sound set full of energy.

So, is Dead Reckoning Part One a great movie? Well... it's a very well-crafted movie that offers pure cinematic entertainment. I don't think it ever achieves greatness, but it does touch "this is a lot of fun" plenty of times. It's a solid action packed movie, with great technical aspects and a lot of fun moments, but an incomplete narrative (to be continued in part two) and a "standard plot" keep it away from being a great movie. Still, worth to be seen on a big screen. 

RATING: 6,5 / 10

Oscar potential categories:

• Best Sound
• Best Visual Effects