{2jtab: Movie Review}

Tom Cruise might be returning as Ethan Hunt but director Brad Bird, responsible for helming the beloved animated films Iron Giant, Ratatouille, and The Incredibles, is the real hero of Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol.  His live-action debut is a solid action film that is as hard-hitting as it is old-fashioned in its approach to some solid movie magic full of heroes and villains.  It’s a globetrotting adventure that settles easily into its action-heavy groove.  Armed with a 65 mm camera and a great knack for setting up adventurous sequences, Bird brings the second best Mission Impossible movie – the best being director J.J. Abrams’s effort – to IMAX screens this Friday and a general wide release on December 21st.

Written by written by Josh Appelbaum and Andre Nemec (former Alias scribes), Ghost Protocol builds its narrative core from the elaborate action pieces that surround it.  The film opens with a bit of a teaser that features agent (LOST’s Josh Holloway) from the Impossible Mission Force getting gunned down by freelance assassin Sabine Moreau (Lea Seydoux) over a briefcase that, as we’ll find out, everyone wants.

Ethan Hunt, after being rescued from a Moscow prison, is assigned to lead Agent Jane Carter (Paula Patton) and field agent Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg) on a mission to find out the identity of a person of interest code-named "Cobalt".  It’s a mission that leads them inside the walls of the Kremlin where, much to their surprise, the team discovers that “Cobalt” is also inside the Kremlin and broadcasting on their frequency.  They soon learn a bomb has been planted and, with very little time, much clear the Kremlin before it goes off.

They don’t make it and Hunt is nearly killed.  Accused of being responsible for the bomb, Hunt and his team are quick enemies of the Russians and disavowed by the President of the United States.  Suddenly, the Cold War is back on as “Cobalt” wants nothing more to launch a nuclear weapon at the United States.

Hunt and his team are extracted by the IMF Secretary (Tom Wilkinson) and IMF analyst William Brandt (Jeremy Renner) and, while disavowed, are given a secret agenda to stop “Cobalt” by any means necessary as nuclear Armageddon is solely on his mind.  From Russia, the team travels to the Burj Khalifa, glass-walled building that is the tallest structure in the world, in Dubai and then into the depths of India as they pursue the mad actions of Kurt Hendricks, a Swedish-born Russian nuclear strategist, who has nuclear launch key codes and mass-destruction on his mind.

Jettisoning the impenetrable plots of the first two films, Bird and Co. keep things fleet-footed and speedy at all times with only the tiniest of lulls in the middle of the third act.  Certainly, the fourth film based on the 1960s Mission: Impossible TV series feels as fresh as the third one, but in a weird sort of way it also comes across as a reboot of the franchise (or maybe just a large apology for John Woo’s over-the-top sequel).  There’s a new superhero-as-spy aspect to the film that is very similar to the good-humored spirit of The Incredibles.  True, it’s not as grounded in the gritty realism of Abrams’s MI3 but Bird doesn’t steer the franchise wrong.  There are several well-directed action scenes – one inside a Russian prison with only Dean Martin’s ‘Ain’t that a Kick in the Head’ as Cruise’s guiding muse - that keep things chugging along.

But let’s put rumors to rest.  It quickly becomes apparent that Cruise is not getting booted from the series by Renner.  Frankly, as a fan of Cruise’s earnestness throughout each of the films as Hunt, I have no interest in seeing a Mission Impossible film without him.  Scaling the side of skyscraper in Dubai might sound insane and be improbable, but Cruise sells it and he sells it well.  I flinched.  I experienced vertigo.  I winced in pain and I grabbed the armrests.

All because of Cruise.

Renner’s Brandt gets some equally hair-raising situations.  Yet, being a rather newcomer to the whole ludicrous action genre, he doesn’t quite pull off his stunts.  In one sequence, wearing a suit of chain mail, Renner jumps into a giant fan only to be suspended by small magnets and moved through shafts by a tiny Mars rover-like vehicle.  He chuckles beforehand; he hesitates.  So do we.  There’s only so much implausibility with our impossible missions that we can swallow before we choke.

Scenes like that one illustrate just how important Cruise is to the franchise.  He can make the impossible possible.  Hell, it is possible this film can restore some of his lost action-star mojo.  Put all that aside, though.  Bird is the man of the hour.  He delivers a great entry into the series by keeping things old-fashioned and fun.  Directors like Bird are exactly why directors like Michael Bay suck.  They deliver improbability with a finesse that doesn’t cause PTSD in its audience.

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol is fun and cool and sleek.  It’s a great crowd pleaser and, with impeccable action choreography and a confident use of immersive IMAX technology, is one of the best action flicks of the 2011.

Light the fuse indeed.

{2jtab: Film Details}

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sequences of intense action and violence.
Director: Brad Bird
Writer: Josh Appelbaum, André Nemec
Cast: Tom Cruise; Paula Patton; Simon Pegg; Jeremy Renner; Michael Nyqvist
Genre: Action | Adventure | Thriller
Tagline: No Plan. No Backup. No Choice.
Memorable Movie Quote: "I have arrived at the party!"
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Official Site: www.missionimpossible.com
Release Date: December 16, 2011
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: April 17, 2012

Synopsis: Blamed for the terrorist bombing of the Kremlin, IMF operative Ethan Hunt is disavowed along with the rest of the agency when the President initiates "Ghost Protocol". Left without any resources or backup, Ethan must find a way to clear his agency's name and prevent another attack. To complicate matters further, Ethan is forced to embark on this mission with a team of fellow IMF fugitives whose personal motives he does not fully know.

{2jtab: Blu-ray Review}

Component Grades Movie Blu-ray Disc Blu-ray Experience

Blu-ray Details:

Available on Blu-ray - April 17, 2011
Screen Formats: 2.40:1
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese
Audio: English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1; French: Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1; Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1
Discs: 50GB Blu-ray Disc; Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD); UV digital copy; DVD copy
Region Encoding: Region free

Shot with IMAX cameras, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol is a visceral experience on blu-ray.  The pristine images – especially in Dubai – are bound to give a person vertigo.  Yes, they are that lifelike.  Flesh tones are warm and engaging.  Fabric is textured with minute details never noticed on the big screen and the thrills are even more realized in 1080p.  The scenery is aptly sprinkled with location details and gritty sand; everything is peppered with great texture.  Black levels are deep and defined as concrete with sharp edges that never bleed into the background.  Picture-wise, this is a very detailed release even if a few of the shots tend to sway soft around the edges from time to time.  The sound – presented in a ripe Dolby TrueHD 7.1 lossless soundtrack – explodes with a wonderful kick from its many bullets and explosions and crashes.  Sound effects are keyed in and moments of soft dialogue are not lost either.

Supplements:

Commentary:

• Apparently, only Best Buy is offering a three-disc version of the film which features a commentary from director Brad Bird.

Special Features:

This two disc release is neatly organized and includes a look at the following deleted scenes - Alternate Opening: Hendricks Practices His Speech, Mission on the Train, Confusion in the Van, Benji Almost Caught in the Kremlin, Hendricks and Leonid in the Hangar, Arrival at the Burj -- Original Version, Ethan and Jane in the Jet, and Wistrom and Chips.  The scenes are interesting to watch, but they don’t alter anything to the theatrical release; they just add information and a bit of humor/intrigue.  The prizes of the disc’s supplements are the really wonderfully produced featurettes that look at the filming in Dubai and in Vancouver.  The detailed looks at the stunts in the film, the location shoots, and the many props of the movie are the rest of the supplementals.  Every single one is rich with information and style; overall, a great production design guides this one along.

• Mission Accepted -- Heating Up in Dubai (18 min)
• Mission Accepted -- Vancouver Fisticuffs (12 min)
• Impossible Missions -- The Sandstorm (3 min)
• Impossible Missions -- Props (3 min)
• Deleted Scenes with optional commentary from Brad Bird (15 min)

{2jtab: Trailer}

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