Movie Review – Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol
Terrific, labyrinthine thriller plays more like a Bond film than any Mission Impossible film we’ve seen to-date, Ghost Protocol might just be the most intelligent of the four entries into the franchise thus far. Cruise plays himself once again, and he’s ably assisted by a terrific cast all delivering the goods in their supporting roles. Brad Bird helms the film like he’s been doing it forever, with plenty of thrills, spills and spy-game activities to keep the John Woo fans at bay once again. A terrific film: most definitely worth your while.
Principal Cast : Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, Paula Patton, Michael Nyqvist, Vladimir Mashkov, Samuli Edelmann, Anil Kapoor, Lea Seydoux, Iilia Volok, Miraj Grbic, Tom Wilkinson.
Synopsis: When the IMF is disavowed after a mission goes wrong and inadvertently blows up half the Kremlin, Ethan Hunt and his team must track down and stop a Russian madman intent on detonating a nuclear device to start a war between the Western powers.
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Four instalments in, and the Mission Impossible franchise just seems to be getting started! Ghost Protocol, the Brad Bird-helmed action film featuring the return of Tom Cruise to the role of Ethan Hunt, is actually a lot more restrained than I was expecting (by comparison to the overblown MI2 and the cool-but-frenzied MI3) and yet shoots for the top of the leader-board as the best of the series yet. Eschewing gratuity in flavor of a streamlined plot and slick, pretension-free action sequences, Bird delivers a film deftly capitalising on the Cruiser’s effortless essaying of his signature role while maintaining the feel of an ensemble piece: Ethan Hunt doesn’t save the day on his own – rather, he must use his team to get the job done – a tone and theme vastly different than the previous three movies managed. Ghost Protocol is a spy film, an action film, and a snazzy piece of high adventure, wrapped in the cocoon of Hollywood money and the wonderful cast involved.
After being broken out of a Russian prison by fellow IMF Agents, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) learns that a rogue Russian operative known as Cobalt is trying to obtain the launch codes to a nuclear weapon with the intent of starting World War III. While trying to obtain information on Cobalt by breaking into the Kremlin, Hunt and his team – Beji Dunn (Simon Pegg) and Agent Jane Carter (Paula Patton) are compromised by Cobalt himself, whereupon as Hunt tries to escape, half the Kremlin is blown up. With IMF disavowing all their agents, effectively cutting Hunt and his team off from any help, the Agency’s Secretary (Tom Wilkinson) gives Hunt an off-grid mission to track Cobalt and stop him at any cost, albeit without any help. With the Secretary’s chief analyst, William Brandt (Jeremy Renner) along for the ride, Hunt and his team set off to intercept Cobalt’s right-hand-man from obtaining the launch codes from a deadly assassin in Dubai. It seems Swedish strategist Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist) wants to bring about an Earthly utopia via nuclear holocaust, bringing him into the fight with the IMF. This leads them to Mumbai where Hedricks controls a satellite capable of authenticating a nuclear launch to an off-shore submarine, and now has the launch codes to use it.
If the modern revamp of James Bond tells us anything, it’s that story over style will win out every time. Whereas John Woo gave fans a fatuously made wank-fest in MI2, JJ Abrams delivered a solid outing with MI3 thanks to a terrific script and a top-tier cast; Brad Bird follows where Abrams trod with an even more restrained adventure for Ethan Hunt, delivering a tautly scripted, well acted and intelligent thriller that delivers everything you’ve come to expect from the Mission Impossible films. There’s great action sequences, terrific “impossible missions” for Hunt and Co to weave through, and some well written character moments that bring to the fore the emotional hook for the film – in this one, it’s a backstory revolving around the death of one of Hunt’s loved ones, and how that set in motion the events of this film. If anything, it’s the sense of realism the film delivers – you could almost believe this kind of thing happens, and if you take away the fancy gadgets and slick cars, it probably has happened somewhere in the world! – it’s the kind of “believable fantasy” the revamp of James Bond in Casino Royale a few years ago achieved.
The scripting on this baby is a ripper – Andre Nemec and Josh Applebaum pull duties on this film – with a decided lack of flash: this script just goes for the jugular of what the mission and the characters are about, and I was highly appreciative for that. Ethan Hunt is placed into a unique situation for the MI films this time: he has to work with a team, depend on them more than he ever has had to in a previous outing, and I found him a somewhat “humbled” individual as a result. Hunt’s always been the Alpha in any Mission Impossible film, taking on the Bad Guys single-handed no matter how good his team is. In Ghost Protocol, he has to rely on others for the mission to succeed, and that’s a great twist in his journey as a character. One feels he’s not entirely used to it, but it’s essential given the lack of backup they all have from an in-disgrace IMF. Benji, played by fan favourite Simon Pegg, is the film’s comedy relief, although I have to say I don’t think he was really that funny – he was more amusing in MI3, to be honest – but take nothing away from him, he really kicks ass when needed. Paula Patton is this film’s resident sex appeal, as a bereaved IMF agent seeking revenge against the assassin who killed her lover; Patton’s a solid actress, but can’t hold a candle to previous MI-girls Thandie Newton, Emmanuelle Beart, and Maggie Q. Jeremy Renner provides excellent male backup for Hunt as chief analyst Brandt, who hides a secret involving Hunt that’s as potently explosive as his left hook. It was interesting to see Renner in such a role, since I never really saw him as an out-and-out “action star” type: having said that, after this and appearing in The Avengers as Hawkeye, I doubt I’ll see him as anything other than the same. Keen eyed observers will gladly spot Michael Nyqvist as Kurt Hendricks, the films’ central antagonist. Nyqvist is best known to Western audiences for his portrayal of Blomkvist in the original Swedish Girl With The Dragon Tattoo series of films, a role more recently essayed by current Bond, Daniel Craig. Nyqvist is a quality actor, and he seems to be having a ball as the Bad Guy this time around (even if he’s not in the film enough) – his final battle with Hunt (because the bad Guy has to have a final battle with Hunt, of course) is brutal and cool.
But it’s Cruise who carries this film, even with such talented thespian backup. He’s nowhere near as histrionic as he has been in previous films, instead relying on his subtle internal rage and power as a character to make people do what he wants. He is a little like Gerard Butler’s character in Law Abiding Citizen: he can see how an event will play out and use that skill to get his mission across the line. Cruise, whether you like him as a person or not, is as capable an actor as any ageing superstar (hard to believe that he was 49 when this film came out!) and he slides into headlining this film with ease. He understands what makes Hunt tick as a character, and nothing he does in Ghost Protocol invalidates anything which came before. My mate Scott over at Front Room Cinema once described him as “the Poison Dwarf”, and while I laughed at that, I can’t help but wonder if his career would have been even bigger had he not been a complete nutter. Pity the same can’t be said for Mel Gibson. I guess being crazy and being stupid are two different things.
There’s a number of set-pieces in this film which are key to the movies entertainment value: a break-in of the Kremlin and it’s subsequent near-destruction, Ethan having to clamber up and down the outside of the worlds tallest building in Dubai, and a brutal fight to the death in a giant vertical carpark. If there’s one thing Mission Impossible does well, it’s those death-defying mission objectives that are… well, impossible. It’s a well known fact that Cruise himself performed the majority of the major stunts, including actually clambering around the outside of the Burj Khalifa, held in place only by a few small wires. No matter what you think of the Cruiser, you have to give him props for having balls the size of a combine harvester. Brad Bird’s direction of these set-pieces isn’t flashy or ostentatious at all, instead he just gives us an effortlessly solid sequence which moves the story along at a rapid clip without pause, breathlessly exciting in more emotional ways than John Woo’s motorbike ballet from MI2. While the Burj abseiling sequence is probably the most daring of all the stunt sequences, the one which had me wincing in assumed agony was the fight-to-the-death in the enormous vertical carpark right at the very end; a bruising, bone shattering affair that actually takes Hunt right to the death-knock to save the day. The perfunctory way Bird places us in the thick of the action, delivering solid punch after solid punch, narratively speaking, is reminiscent of the revamped James Bond for delivering a reality to the film without compromising the fantastical elements we’re all expecting. The “sticky gloves” Hunt uses to clamber up the Burj Khalifa are a case in point: you could almost believe they’d be real, but hope like hell they aren’t for the sake of peoples lives.
As far as Mission Impossible films go, or action films in general, Ghost Protocol delivers a solid time at the movies. It’s not the flashiest action flick around, nor is it even the best of the MI series (I prefer the third for outright tension and thrills – plus, Phil Hoffman nails the Bad Guy role in that one!) but it’s a deftly directed, well scripted, exceptionally well acted, twist-a-minute thriller with a brevity of extravagance modern audiences have come to expect. Taut, tightly written, with plenty of thrills in its two hour runtime, Ghost Protocol is a very, very good film. Even with the Poison Dwarf.
What Others Are Saying About Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol:
Tom Beilby at Front Room Cinema noticed something peculiar about Tom Cruise’s run: “Action stars seem to have an incredibly long shelf life these days, just take a look at the cast of The Expendables; it’s hard to believe that actors in their late fifties and mid sixties are still churning out action films, and with this in mind I doubt that Tom Cruise will be willing to relinquish his crown as an action star just yet, but he definitely needs to work on his run.”
There’s no mistaking how Aiden at Cut The Crap felt about it: “The best one yet, the best thrill ride of the year, total insanity.”
Sam at Duke & The Movies thought it was excellent: “[But]..make no mistake; this is an adventure worth embarking on. Brad Bird’s over-the-top stylish camerawork is incorporated perfectly with the feverish action.”
Matt at NeverMind Pop Film has this recommendation: “Go see this brilliant debut from Brad Bird, I dare you not to enjoy it.”
Jessics at The Velvet Cafe gave it high props: “It was a ballet in disguise. And such a beautiful one! Action ballet never gets better than this.”
Nostra at My Film Views smiled through it all: “Now this is a movie where I was watching it with a constant grin on my face.”
Rory over at Above The Line finally chimes in with his thoughts: “Ghost Protocol finally accomplishes the task of pleasing fans and attracting first timers as well, both a solid entry in the franchise and a solid foundation for the next installment that will surely come – or should.”
Ruth over at Flixchatter loved it: “[but] …what makes the film works is the execution. Pixar director Brad Bird (The Incredibles) in his first foray into live action film confidently packed this movie with bombastic action sequences that thrills from start to finish!”
The guys over at 3Guys1Movie enjoyed it: “Where the film lost me was whenever it tried to take itself too seriously by adding unnecessary dramatic elements.”
Max over at Impassioned Cinema loved it too: “I can’t think of a more entertaining, purely action movie that would compete with this in the last two years. It is a highly enjoyable, smart action film that will leave audiences completely satisfied.”
And finally, the last word belongs to my brother from another mother, Al K Hall over at The Bar None: “Sometimes action movies only have two or three action scenes and the rest of the movie is guys crying and sharing their feelings, or sometimes there’s a lot of lazy action when the director can’t squeeze out any original ideas so he pinches everyone else’s and you get one cliche car chase followed by a hackneyed karate fight scene, but not here, man. Here the action comes non-stop and hard and you even get Tom Cruise doing his own stunts which gives this puppy a certain credibility.”
Think we’re wrong in our assessment of Ghost Protocol? Wanna make your opinion heard? Let rip in the comments section below!!
Who wrote this?
You should add some type from my glowing review as well! I gave this a five out of five when I reviewed it last year and I'd say it's one of the finer action movies to come out in awhile. I just recently bought it on Blu-ray and while I'm disappointed that the IMAX ratio wasn't preserved, the movie is still fantastic!
Consider it done, sir!! Nice review you have there, my friend!
Great review! I thought this was an amazing film, especially the part where Tom Cruise hangs off the side of that building! I can't wait to get this on Blu-ray soon!
Glad you enjoyed the review, gman, and thanks for stopping by!!
Top notch work here Rod, especially enjoyed your overall assessment of the franchise from a true fans perspective. Overall I enjoyed Ghost for what it is – pure a simple action, eye-candy, escapist cinema. I was curious to see how they were going to get away with modifying the Huntean-universe of one man one mission with one team one mission with the hopes of continuing the franchise. At $150M to make and nearly $700M in global tickets according to boxofficemojo, well I think it's safe to say another film will be forthcoming. These films are nothing if not predictable in that way and besides, Cruise is only pushing 50 – he's got a long time to catch up to Schwarzenegger who will be 65 this year.
I think it was actually smart to change to a team strategy. Maybe it's just the bankability of an ensemble as both a way of supporting our aging heroes who have made enough movies now to have plenty of followers and detractors, and to introduce new and notable character actors who can bring their own fans and followers to the series. I think the producers realized they needed to raise the bar and by bringing in a diverse team they could reach the broadest demographic possible knowing audiences really connect to a movie when there is a personal, spiritual, cultural identifier woven into the experience. Best of all is it doesn't have to feel contrived or manipulated to go a long way toward production value.Obviously Ghost was intended to capitalize on rich, expensive set pieces both for international audiences (I mean the building was every bit a character as anyone in this movie) and as a visually interesting background to set the film apart from all the other instantly recognizable landscapes connected to the genre. I'd like to think it's a sign of the times as all our aging everymen run out of solo missions and their youth and really not since the 80s/90s divide have we really seen effective one man running on glass and bullets (Die Hard) or loner looking to start over but small town sheriff has an ax to grind (Rambo). Of course there's Bourne and the Bond bordello reboots of late, but even those turned to team sports. Alien became Aliens, Terminator to Terminators, Batman had Robin then dropped him then picked another, then…Maybe it's all really just better left for stale popcorn and sticky floor cinephiles and cineastes to ponder. Sometimes we just want to go for a ride with the top down and enjoy the countryside. That being said, I think you liked this film much more than I did though I admit it was entertaining and well made. You usually can't knock these big budget films for lack of polish, for that Hollywood sheen that comes from all those zeros on the checks but for me I was disappointed in the toys department. The cars and collisions were all top notch and the sand storm was a hoot. I thought there was too much exposition for an action film, too much time spent making sure we were on the page when all we really needed was to get out of the room. I mean maybe someone would say I'm wrong and point out all the ways in which Bird is all over this film but I can't say his signature stood out as such. Effective and stylish check, high octane and big set pieces for outlandish action check, nice moments with characters and for characters but the aging bad guy with the briefcase that stomps Mr. BA Baracus Hunt for ten minutes into ridiculous, then comes alive one last time ala Alex Forrest (Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction) just felt like a bad choice. There I go being nit-picky again. I guess I've rambled on long enough to write my own review now, eh? Cheers mate always a good read.
Wow, when you return to visit you do it in a big way, don't you Rory? LOL!! You make some excellent observations (as always) about Ghost Protocol, and I'd like to respond to a few of them. I once read that the Mission Impossible franchise seemed to be the poor man's James Bond, although I tend to think Ethan Hunt might be a little more driven than Bond when you come down to it – you don't catch Ethan sleeping with all the beautiful women he works with (Thandie Newton aside, but then, haven't we all had that fantasy?) and Hunt feels a little darker of character than Bond ever did. I think what the MI franchise might struggle with is to depart from having Cruise as the leading man, a la what the Bond franchise has been able to do, might not work as well for MI if Cruise decides to step down. It's also similar to the current Bourne franchise scenario, where they've now got to continue the story without Matt Damon; a difficult propositon at best. They've obviously recognised that Cruise isn't going to be able to do this forever, which is why Ghost Protocol seems to be more an ensemble piece than any of the previous installments, a factor your mentioned.
Upon reflection, I too think I was a tad underwhelmed with the lack of real gadgetry (those sticky gloves aside), because I think the MI films do those even better than Bond! I disagree about the exposition you mentioned; I thought the film flowed well enough with a ripping script and plenty of red herrings to throw us off the scent – one man's waffle is another mans Shakespeare, I think I heard once. Perhaps that's the case here! I also thought the final fight between Hunt and Suitcase Guy was a little far-fetched, but as a popcorn send-off for the film, it wasn't too bad. Although Cruise's last line in that scene was a bit of a groaner. I think you could see that the MI guys were trying to emulate Bond's droll wit – and failed.
Thanks for your words, Rory, and I look forward to seeing your own review on this film in due course…. 😉
Wow, when you return to visit you do it in a big way, don’t you Rory?
LOL!! You make some excellent observations (as always) about Ghost Protocol, and I’d like to respond to a few of them. I once read that the Mission Impossible franchise seemed to be the poor man’s James Bond, although I tend to think Ethan Hunt might be a little more driven than Bond when you come down to it – you don’t catch Ethan sleeping with all the beautiful women he works with (Thandie Newton aside, but then,
haven’t we all had that fantasy?) and Hunt feels a little darker of character than Bond ever did. I think what the MI franchise might struggle with is to depart from having Cruise as the leading man, a la what the Bond franchise has been able to do, might not work as well for MI if Cruise decides to step down. It’s also similar to the current Bourne franchise scenario, where they’ve now got to continue the story without Matt Damon; a difficult proposition at best. They’ve obviously recognized that Cruise isn’t going to be able to do this forever, which is why Ghost Protocol seems to be more an ensemble piece than any of the previous installments, a factor your mentioned.
Upon reflection, I too think I was a tad underwhelmed with the lack of real gadgetry (those sticky gloves aside), because I think the MI films do those even better than Bond! I disagree about the exposition you mentioned; I thought the film flowed well enough with a ripping script and plenty of red herrings to throw us off the scent – one man’s waffle is another mans Shakespeare, I think I heard once. Perhaps that’s the case here! I also thought the final fight between Hunt and Suitcase Guy was a little far-fetched, but as a popcorn send-off for the film, it wasn’t too bad. Although Cruise’s last line in that scene was a bit of a groaner. I think you could see that the MI guys were trying to emulate Bond’s droll wit – and failed.
Thanks for your words, Rory, and I look forward to seeing your own review on this film in due course….
Well I didn't know it was going to take this long, nor that I was going to publish this one today – but here it is, the long anticipated (ha!) review of this film. It started similar then went somewhere else, hung around for a little while and then returned. Let me know what you think. Hope your well – ain't writer's block a B!
http://rorydean.wordpress.com/2012/10/21/mission-…
My friend, I'm so glad you dropped by with the link! To make it official, I'll add it to the main link text area in the review, in case folks skim over the comments here and miss it.
Writers block is starting to give way to re-enthused passion once more, so you could say all is well over here in South Oz, my friend!
Thanks for the kind words, Nostra. Glad you also enjoyed the film!
Ahh so you've replaced the old comments with the Disqus system. Was there any opportunity to back-up and import the old comments?
I understand that all the comments on the “old” system remain in place,
and Disqus just overlaps on top of them (so to speak),… I’ve imported
all the comments over the Disqus system, and they all seem to have
transferred over okay (as far as I’m able to tell).
Nice to read you also enjoyed it, recently rewatched it again and I don't do that often.
Yeah you're so right, this franchise is just getting started. Great review! Mind blowing action and the poison dwarf is bloody fantastic in all those insane action scenes! To think I nearly didn't watch this as I was fed up with the franchise.
Can't add much more except to say "ditto" to everything Pete said! Thanks for dropping in, man!
Great review, Rodney! I thought this one was the better of the last two Mission Impossible films. I didn't like the second one at all, but this one is pretty decent. Loved the scene with Tom Cruise on the side of that enormous building!
Can't wait for your Avengers review! Hubby and I are off to see that on the weekend as well!
That scene is pretty exciting, isn't it! Loved it too – especially the fact that Cruise did the stunt for real, not using a stunt guy!
Our review of The Avengers should be up sometime on Saturday: I'm off to see it Friday night, and hope to have my review done within 12 hours of walking out of the cinema. Check back here on Saturday afternoon and we'll compare notes!
Excellent sequel. Very suspenseful entry, for me better than 2 and 3 in the series. The ending was a bit far-fetched, but Dubai scenes were spectacular. Lea Seydoux could be a star of the future, she is beautiful.
The formulaic nature of the script brought it down a few points for me (I gave it 7.4 in my monthly round-up).
I did love the witty dialogue, reminded me of Bond movies, hope to see more of that in MI5 ( :
Thanks for stopping by, Chris! Good to hear your thoughts on this; I agree with you on Lea Seydoux – I'd love to see her get more roles and stretch herself a bit, she is indeed beautiful, and was a little wasted in this film, to be honest. See, I thought the script was actually pretty good, I didn't think it stuck to the obvious (even if it's a formula film by definition) and actually tried to do something different from the previous installments. I thought Simon Pegg's dialogue in MI3 was better than here, but he still provided excellent comic relief during tense moments. "I'm on the computer" indeed!
Good to have you stop in, my friend!
Thanks for the link loving Rodders!!
We talked about this the other day, and apart from the length being a bit too much for my short attention span I enjoyed it quite a bit… more than I probably should!!
Great review matey
No dramas dude! Yeah, did you notice my mention of The Poison Dwarf? LOL!!!
Hey thanks for the link love, Rodney! Glad you enjoyed this as well, I've just ordered the Blu-ray for this. Gotta see this again soon, especially that exhilarating Burj Khalifa scene!
No worries, Ruth, glad you liked the film! I think the Burj sequence will go down as one of the more iconic franchise sequences, right up there with Cruise hanging down into the computer room from the first film.
Hey thanks so much for using our quote. I really like that feature that you add at the end, I have not seen that on another film review site.
I was all set to hate on Tom Cruise when we saw this but as it turns our I was pleasantly surprised. Nice review
3guys – You're welcome, mate. I enjoy reading other reviews on films and am always keen to share the link love where possible. Not everyone has reviews I can link to, however, so it's usually a bit hit-and-miss in that department, but big release films usually have plenty of material to work with!
Wow! For once i agree with all your intelligent friends! i'm getting so better at this. And thanks for including my quote, brother. No one writes these up like you do.
@ Al – Thanks man, nobody leaves comments about my reviews quite like you do either!
Dude, I'm blushing here. Thanks for the props!!