Tom Cruise returns in the fourth entry to the Mission: Impossible franchise, shot across Dubai, Prague, Moscow, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Vancouver.
After wrongly accusing Ethan Hunt (Cruise) for the terrorist bombing of the Kremlin, the President initiates 'Ghost Protocol' causing the immediate termination of the entire IMF agency. Forced to go rogue, Ethan teams up with a bunch of fellow IMF fugitives in order to clear his name and prevent another attack.
Newbies to the series include Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker) and director Brad Bird, the animated movie giant (The Iron Giant, The Incredibles) making his live-action feature debut.
The fourth impossible mission, a stand-alone entry with minimal ties to previous instalments, is a lean, effective action flick. Far more entertaining than the latest Bond, the focus here emphasises the team aspect of the original television series.
Not that Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (real name, no kidding) is a minor player. This is very much his show (especially during the lose-your-stomach IMAX sequences scaling the world’s tallest building, in which he apparently did his own stunts). Surrounding him in the field, however, is a solid ensemble of espionage: the amusing Simon Pegg, the sexy Paula Patton and the mysterious Jeremy Renner.
Director Brad Bird, making his live-action debut after the fantastic Pixar hits The Incredibles and Ratatouille, stages simple yet effective chase scenes, fist-fights, break outs and break ins. An Incredibles-eque score from Michael Giacchino keeps the mood buoyant, while a tight edit keeps proceedings tense and engaging.
Sure, the villain is a bit weak and there isn’t much re-watch value, but I found Ghost Protocol to be a fun night at the cinema. It gets the basics right, isn’t over-ambitious and the plot (albeit thin) keeps ticking forward with setbacks for the team around every corner. I wouldn’t be averse to seeing another outing with the same team in a few years’ time.
By Andrew Hedley, Flicks.co.nz
Went into this movie at IMAX to check it out BUT also to see the Dark Knight Rises prologue (which is awesome btw). Back to the review, i totally went in blind not being a real fan of the series but always knew that it would be big on thrills and spills. I came away after watching this pleasantly surprised. I liked Brad Birds approach to this movie. His previous credits include The Incredibles and The Iron Giant, two of my favourite movies. You will notice similarities between MI4 and Incredibles which is a very good thing. The action is fastpaced and the humour is spread throughout. The keyword in this movie is Teamwork. All our heroes need to contribute in order to succeed. It was nice to see that rather than Tom Cruise effortlessly saving the day with the supporting cast hanging around like extras. Enjoyed the fact that the technology on display wasn't 100% reliable. Added to the fun that was had. Kudos to Tom Cruise for his stuntwork in Dubai. Amazing that they would let a Hollywood superstar do this in the first place. Thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Big stunts, witty exchanges, team-oriented mission. The movie is proof that a) Tom Cruise is still a force in movies b) Jeremy Renner is a proven actor that can do action and c) Brad Bird has made a successful transition from 2D/3D to live action film. Can't wait to see what his next project is.
One of the big-studio highlights of the year—it's smart, snappy and stylish fun just in time for the holiday.
Wall-to-wall action in a spectacular, if repetitive, fourth series entry.
This is a good value, bang for your buck, old-fashioned blockbuster that makes up in action what it lacks in soul.
The film is delivered with a lot of style and panache.
A few damp squibs aside, Bird’s sensibilities make for the most animated Mission to date. Don’t see in IMAX if you’re a vertigo sufferer, though…
We've been told the NZ release date for this flick is Thursday, 15th Dec 2011.
Release date: December 15th 2011.
We haven't received times for this movie in this location yet. However these are updated as cinemas announce them, so check back soon. Hopefully the lovely cinemas in your location will choose to play it shortly. ~Ed.
