It’s amazing that Tom Cruise at 61 can still run around acting like he has no cares in the world like a 30-year-old man. On top of that he insists on doing the majority of his own stunt work. It’s ironic that in “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” we see Kittridge, played by Henry Czerny, return as one of Ethan Hunt’s (Cruise) adversaries.
What’s nice is that Cruise has some old buddies from previous “Mission” adventures. Ving Rhames is Luther Stickell, Simon Pegg is back for more as Benji Dunn and Rebecca Ferguson (“Dune”) reprieves Ilsa Faust. Also, Vanessa Kirby slips back into the persona as the mysterious White Widow. It should surprise no one that the adventure itself is a familiar one to “Mission” fans; preventing worldwide calamity, as in doomsday.
Esai Morales joins the breakneck action-adventure as a fellow Hunt adversary for Czerny’s Kittridge. The seventh outing, like the previous six, takes place outside the United States. Expect the usual way-over-the-top Cruise stunts. And, of course, the guy loves to run.
Hayley Atwell, onscreen last year in “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” portrays Grace, a grifter who’s a key con artist cog in the storyline. She may or may not throw a monkey wrench into the proceedings. Grace must decide if she wants to hook up with Hunt’s crack team of globe-trotting problem solvers or go it alone.
Christopher McQuarrie, back in the director’s chair for his third “Mission: Impossible,” won an Academy Award in 1996 for his “Usual Suspects” screenplay. He also called the shots on “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation” in 2015 and “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” in 2018 and he’s directing the second act of “Dead Reckoning.”
This fast-paced drama is a long one at two hours and 43 minutes. But the action never waivers, slows down or gets boring. In other words, prepare for the long haul. There’s no good time to sneak out on a quick mission for popcorn or potty break.
“Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” is enthralling. While I was watching it, I didn’t look at my phone once. The distributor has penciled in “Dead Reckoning Part Two” for next June, but the ongoing writers and actors strike could prove to be the real mission impossible.
Grade: A
