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  • Movie Review: ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’

    Tom Cruise in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    Tom Cruise in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    Opening in theaters on July 12th is the latest installment of the ‘Mission: Impossible’ franchise entitled ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,’ which was co-written and directed by Academy Award-winner Christopher McQuarrie (‘The Usual Suspects,’ ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’).

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    What is the plot of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’?

    In ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,’ Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team embark on their most dangerous mission yet: To track down a terrifying new weapon that threatens all of humanity before it falls into the wrong hands. With control of the future and the fate of the world at stake, and dark forces from Ethan’s past closing in, a deadly race around the globe begins. Confronted by a mysterious, all-powerful enemy, Ethan is forced to consider that nothing can matter more than his mission – not even the lives of those he cares about most.

    Who is in the cast of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’?

    Tom Cruise (‘Top Gun‘) as Ethan Hunt, Hayley Atwell (‘Captain America: The First Avenger‘) as Grace, Esai Morales (‘Master Gardener‘) as Gabriel, Ving Rhames (‘Pulp Fiction‘) as Luther Stickell, Simon Pegg (‘Hot Fuzz‘) as Benji Dunn, Rebecca Ferguson (‘Dune‘) as Ilsa Faust, Vanessa Kirby (‘Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw‘) as Alanna Mitsopolis, Pom Klementieff (‘Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3’) as Paris, Henry Czerny (‘Scream VI‘) as Eugene Kittridge, Shea Whigham (‘Joker‘) as Jasper Briggs, and Greg Tarzan Davis (‘Top Gun: Maverick‘) as Degas.

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    Initial Thoughts

    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ delivers exactly what we’ve come to expect from director Christopher McQuarrie and Tom Cruise’s ‘Mission: Impossible’ movies. The film is fun, exciting, action-packed, and features some of the craziest stunts you’ve ever seen on the big screen. Cruise is commanding once again as Ethan Hunt, and Hayley Atwell is a fantastic addition to the franchise.

    Story and Direction

    (L to R) Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie on the set of 'Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    (L to R) Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie on the set of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    Unlike the last few ‘Mission’ movies, ‘Dead Reckoning Part One’ does not begin with a one-off scene of Tom Cruise hanging off a mountain or the wing of a moving plane, instead focusing on a Russian submarine malfunction that sets off the plot of the movie. We soon discover that a new self-aware AI is threatening to throw the world into chaos, and it’s up to Ethan Hunt (Cruise) and his IMF team to track down a key (the film’s McGuffin) that can control the AI. But first, they’ll need to discover what the key actually unlocks, and who is working with the AI, also known as the Entity.

    Things get more complicated for Hunt when he is labeled a terrorist by his old boss, Eugene Kittridge (Henry Czerny) after refusing to give half of the key to the US government, as Hunt believes it is too dangerous to exist and must be destroyed. Hunt secured his half of the key from his alley Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), and goes to meet a buyer who has the other half of the key, planning to follow them to the Entity.

    However, when a pickpocket named Grace (Hayley Atwell) steals both halves of the key, Ethan has no choice but to recruit her for his team and train her to help him. Meanwhile, Hunt discovers that a man from his past before joining the IMF, Gabriel (Esai Morales), is working with the entity and has a personal vendetta against him.

    (L to R) Tom Cruise and Henry Czerny in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    (L to R) Tom Cruise and Henry Czerny in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    In my opinion, the ‘Mission’ franchise was on shaky ground until director Christopher McQuarrie joined the series. Brian De Palma’s ‘Mission: Impossible’ was a decent adaption of the classic TV series, but was not without its issues. John Woo’s ‘Mission: Impossible II’ was a huge disappointment, and the worst film in the series. Director J.J. Abrams feature film debut, ‘Mission: Impossible III’ is criminally underrated and one of the better films in the series, but failed to have the box office numbers of its predecessors.

    Brad Bird’s ‘Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol’ put the franchise back on track, but the series didn’t really gel and become what it has until McQuarrie was brought on board with ‘Mission: Impossible – Rouge Nation,” which is why ‘Dead Reckoning Part One’ feels more like a continuation of what McQuarrie and Cruise created with that movie and ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout.’

    While the film runs well over 2 and a half hours, McQuarrie does an excellent job of pacing the movie and keeping the “Mission” tone intact. This film, and in turn next year’s ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two’ are a much bigger story than we’ve seen in past installments, which is why it will take two movies to tell the entire story. But with that said, McQuarrie still manages to craft a satisfying ending to ‘Part One,’ even if it is not the conclusion of this particular story.

    Tom Cruise’s Performance and his Amazing Stunts

    Tom Cruise plays Ethan Hunt in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning - Part One 'from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    Tom Cruise plays Ethan Hunt in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning – Part One ‘from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    By now, half of the fun of a ‘Mission: Impossible’ movie is seeing what absolutely bonkers stunts McQuarrie, Cruise and their stunt team come up with, and ‘Dead Reckoning’ does not disappoint. Cruise released a video last year that demonstrated one of the stunts that he would be performing in the new film, which saw him driving a motorcycle off a mountain and then parachuting to the ground. Many fans thought that it would be the signature stunt of the film, and while it is certainly impressive, the movie has even more incredible stunts than that. There is a fantastic chase scene in Rome, but the real attraction is an unbelievable train sequence that is the centerpiece of the ending and one of the best action sequences I’ve ever seen. It will truly keep you on the edge of your seat.

    Cruise has been playing Ethan Hunt for over twenty-five years, and while some might say Maverick from ‘Top Gun’ is his signature character, at this point its’ got to be Hunt, who Cruise has portrayed more than any other character. The evolution of the character, and Cruise as an actor, can be witnessed over these seven movies. In the first ‘Mission: Impossible,’ Ethan Hunt was a fresh-faced IMF member betrayed by his boss, Jim Phelps (Jon Voight). He would later become IMF’s greatest team leader, creating deep friendships with Luther, Benji, and Elsa. Watching those relationships grow and seeing how they’ve changed Ethan from who he was when we first met him, is one of the joys of ‘Dead Reckoning.’

    Cruise gives another powerhouse performance and is absolutely commanding as Hunt. It’s hard sometimes to tell the difference between Tom Cruise and Ethan Hunt, but the character is so charming, it doesn’t really matter if you are rooting for him or the actor playing him. We’ve grown up with Ethan Hunt, and Tom Cruise for that matter, and part of his power as an actor is that he is just so likable. ‘Top Gun’ aside, ‘Mission: Impossible’ is Cruise’s best franchise overall and Ethan Hunt is definitely the character he will be best remembered for most. Cruise has great chemistry with Rhames, Pegg, and especially Ferguson, but is also great aside new co-star Hayley Atwell. As for the action sequences, no one does it like Tom Cruise, and the actor has pushed the boundaries for our entertainment one more time.

    Returning Characters

    Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning - Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    (L to R) Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning – Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    Ving Rhames has been a part of the franchise since the beginning, just like Cruise, and it just wouldn’t be a ‘Mission’ movie without him. The actor has some very nice emotional scenes with Cruise and Atwell, and as always a funny rapport with Simon Pegg. For his part, Benji has also become a vital element of the ‘Mission’ formula, joining the series in the third installment, and Pegg has grown into the role well bringing his own charm and humor to the franchise. A more recent but equally important addition to the series is Rebecca Ferguson as Ilsa Faust. The movie explores her deep connection to Hunt, and her scenes with Cruise are some of the most emotionally packed of the film.

    Vanessa Kirby also returns as the “White Widow,” daughter of “Max” (Vanessa Redgrave) from the first movie. She has a funny exchange with Cruise, but is mostly used in the third act. I won’t spoil her role, but as an actor she has a challenging scene to play and really made it work. But the most surprising returning face belongs to actor Henry Czerny, who plays former director of the IMF, Eugene Kittridge, last seen in the very first ‘Mission: Impossible.’ Kittridge was always a foil for Hunt, and their respectful yet antagonistic attitude towards each other is fun to watch on screen. Czerny is great in the role and it nice to see him back in the franchise.

    Related Article: Hayley Atwell Talks ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’

    New Characters

    Hayley Atwell in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning - Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    Hayley Atwell in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning – Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    Hayley Atwell plays Ethan Hunt’s latest recruit, a thief named Grace, and is absolutely mesmerizing in the role. If it’s possible to steal a scene from Tom Cruise, then Atwell succeeds with her charming and street-smart yet sophisticated character. Best known for playing Captain America’s girlfriend Peggy Carter in several different MCU projects, it’s nice to see the actress finally get a chance to show off her talents. Atwell totally holds her own against Cruise, and the two have a very nice chemistry together. Grace is a complex character, you never really know who’s side she’s on, and Atwell navigates that with confidence.

    Also new to the franchise is ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3’s Pom Klementieff who plays Paris, one of Gabriel’s assassins. The actress is obviously having a blast in the role and its super fun watching her smash cars and shoot machine guns while smiling and laughing in-character. Klementieff is great in the action sequences and creates an interesting and appealing character, one that I hope we see more of from the franchise in the future.

    The Villains

    (L to R) Esai Morales and Pom Klementieff in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    (L to R) Esai Morales and Pom Klementieff in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    Esai Morales plays the main villain, Gabriel and while it’s great to see the veteran actor get such a large role in a big franchise, his character doesn’t quite work. We’re told he’s from Ethan’s past and responsible for some tragedy, but except for a few quick flashbacks, this is not really explored or resolved in this movie. It will probably be addressed in ‘Part Two,’ but more clarification in this film who have helped the audience to better understand Gabriel’s motivations. Morales is fine for the most part, and very impressive in his action sequences, but overall, the character wasn’t believable as Ethan’s archrival.

    The other villain related disappointment comes from the fact that the Entity is really the big bad of the movie. That’s right … a computer! I really hope that an actual human being is revealed as the true villain in the next movie, because as realistic as it might be n 2023, I just can’t buy artificial intelligence as the ultimate villain of the movie. Sorry, but I don’t want to see ‘Ethan Hunt v. Skynet.’ I know that there are inherently sci-fi elements baked into ‘Mission: Impossible’ going all the way back to the original series, but for me this is a spy series first, like an American version of James Bond (which arguably also had sci-fi elements) and should stick to its lane because it does spy thrillers really well.

    Too Much Joking Around

    Hayley Atwell and Tom Cruise in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    (L to R) Hayley Atwell and Tom Cruise in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    The ‘Mission: Impossible’ series has always been fun and had a certain amount of humor to it. But for some reason, about half way through ‘Dead Reckoning,’ there are several bad jokes injected into the action. For example, in Rome, Hunt and Grace steal a Fiat while being chased. When Hunt tries to start the car, it won’t start, and he begins apologizing to Grace saying, “I don’t know what happened. This never happens to me.” First of all, Ethan Hunt should never apologize for anything … he’s Ethan Hunt! Secondly, it seemed like an awkward attempt at some kind of weird sexual innuendo and it’s just out of place for the franchise and off brand for Tom Cruise.

    Only Half of the Story

    Tom Cruise in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    Tom Cruise in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    I’ll give ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ credit for at least explaining in the title that this movie will be continued. I know a lot of people that went to see both ‘Fast X’ and ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ and were disappointed to find that those movies didn’t really end, and they’ll have to wait to see the conclusion of those stories. While I’m sure the ‘Part One’ in the title will help with audience’s expectations of the ending, the truth is that this movie only tells half of a story. Again, McQuarrie did a great job with the ending, it feels satisfying and doesn’t end on a huge cliffhanger, even if we will have to wait till next year’s ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two’ to see the actual conclusion of the story.

    But I do wonder if this story couldn’t have been told in one movie, as a lot of the action sequences go on longer than needed. If you cut some of the action, you could fit in more of the story, but with a franchise like this where the action is so important, I guess it’s better to tell a story over two films so you can afford the luxury of more action without sacrificing the character development and plot.

    Final Thoughts

    In the end, ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ is a solid entry to the franchise and on par with Christopher McQuarrie’s previous contributions to the series. Tom Cruise is at the height of his power, returning to his signature character and a series of groundbreaking and death-defying stunts, while Hayley Atwell is delightful as the newest addition to the franchise.

    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ receives 8.5 out of 10 stars.

    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ will be in theaters on July 14th, 2023.
    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ will be in theaters on July 14th, 2023.

    Other Movies Similar to ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One:’

    Buy Tickets: ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy ‘Mission: Impossible’ Movies On Amazon

    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ is produced by Paramount, Skydance Media, New Republic Pictures, and TC Productions. The movie is scheduled to release in theaters on July 12th, 2023.

  • ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ – Hayley Atwell

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    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,’ which was co-written and directed by Academy Award-winner Christopher McQuarrie (‘The Usual Suspects,’ ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’), opens in theaters on July 12th and is the latest installment of the ‘Mission: Impossible’ franchise.

    What is the plot of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’?

    In ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,’ Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team embark on their most dangerous mission yet: To track down a terrifying new weapon that threatens all of humanity before it falls into the wrong hands. With control of the future and the fate of the world at stake, and dark forces from Ethan’s past closing in, a deadly race around the globe begins. Confronted by a mysterious, all-powerful enemy, Ethan is forced to consider that nothing can matter more than his mission – not even the lives of those he cares about most.

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    Who is in the cast of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’?

    Tom Cruise (‘Top Gun‘) as Ethan Hunt, Hayley Atwell (Captain America: The First Avenger‘) as Grace, Esai Morales (‘Master Gardener‘) as Gabriel, Ving Rhames (‘Pulp Fiction‘) as Luther Stickell, Simon Pegg (‘Hot Fuzz‘) as Benji Dunn, Rebecca Ferguson (‘Dune‘) as Ilsa Faust, Vanessa Kirby (‘Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw‘) as Alanna Mitsopolis, Pom Klementieff (‘Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3’) as Paris, Henry Czerny (‘Scream VI‘) as Eugene Kittridge, Shea Whigham (‘Joker‘) as Jasper Briggs, and Greg Tarzan Davis (‘Top Gun: Maverick‘) as Degas.

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Hayley Atwell about her work on ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,’ her mysterious character, her relationship to Ethan Hunt, and working with Tom Cruise.

    Hayley Atwell in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning - Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    Hayley Atwell in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning – Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Pegg, Hayley Atwell, Vanessa Kirby, Pom Klementieff, Shea Whigham, Greg Tarzan, and director Christopher McQuarrie.

    Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about your mysterious characters, Grace, and your approach to playing her?

    Hayley Atwell: Great question. Because it was a collaborative one over a long period of time. There was a lot of time in filming where she didn’t even have a name. So, we tried lots of different things and different kinds of qualities to see what kind of thing felt most exciting on camera and, Tom and McQuarrie, I’d met several times before. McQuarrie had come to see me in a play in London’s West End about 10 years ago and said, “I want to work with you. I just don’t know what the character is yet.” So when I came in for the screen test for this, they both said, “We’re looking for the actor we want to work with and then we will build the character with them in real time as filming commences.” So I loved that. I found that very liberating because I trusted that I was in safe hands with them. They were not going to allow me to do something that ended up on a screen that I wouldn’t be proud of. So it allowed me the freedom to try lots of different things. So, the five months of preparation of stunt training for it was also about studying films from ‘Paper Moon’ to ‘The Sting’ to ‘Broadcast News’ to ‘What’s Up Doc?,’ to try and find a levity that I could take and build with Tom as a new kind of chemistry than you’ve seen before in this kind of franchise.

    Hayley Atwell and Tom Cruise in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    (L to R) Hayley Atwell and Tom Cruise in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    Related Article: Simon Pegg Talks ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’

    MF: What is Tom Cruise like as a scene partner, especially in the action sequences?

    HA: He is dedicated, he is a consummate professional, and a gentleman. He’s very concerned with people’s health and safety as well as his own. So, he’s meticulous in his preparation for any stunt that he does, which also means that his resources or an education for myself coming into this is so huge that I too felt like I could learn so much about what’s going to keep me safe, what’s going to keep me dynamic and mobile, and able to do a stunt several times from different directions, different takes with different performance notes, and how to sustain that over months and months. You feel very much in safe hands because he’s like a boxing coach that’s on your side. When you do something or land something, he is your greatest fan because he wants to see everyone around him thrive, which means his encouragement is contagious. I think everyone says that about him, that have worked with him in this way close up with him in terms of stunts that there’s no one quite like him.

    Hayley Atwell and Tom Cruise in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    (L to R) Hayley Atwell and Tom Cruise in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    MF: Finally, can you talk about Grace’s alliance with Ethan Hunt?

    HA: That was so fun to discover. It’s going, how are they cat and mouse or sort of sibling, how can they play with each other but in a way that didn’t seem to be too calculating? That they both needed each other in some way or both looking for the same thing, and how could they get their own needs met, but by using each other? To work with him in scenes, he’s incredibly present. Anything that you offer up, he will have seen it, taken it on board and reacted to it. He’s very alive to the other actor. Even when he’s off-screen and he’s standing behind the monitor or the camera and it’s your closeup, he is right there with you giving exactly the same amount of energy and focus as he would be if he was in front of the camera too. So, you have a scene partner, you have someone that’s in your corner and someone that’s opposite you, that’s holding the space for you to the best work you can possibly do in that moment.

    Hayley Atwell stars in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning - Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    Hayley Atwell stars in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning – Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    Other Movies Similar to ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One:’

    Buy Tickets: ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy ‘Mission: Impossible’ Movies On Amazon

    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ is produced by Paramount, Skydance Media, New Republic Pictures, and TC Productions. The movie is scheduled to release in theaters on July 12th, 2023.

     

  • ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’s Simon Pegg

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    Opening in theaters on July 12th is the latest installment of the ‘Mission: Impossible’ franchise entitled ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,’ which was co-written and directed by Academy Award-winner Christopher McQuarrie (‘The Usual Suspects,’ ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’).

    What is the plot of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’?

    In ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,’ Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team embark on their most dangerous mission yet: To track down a terrifying new weapon that threatens all of humanity before it falls into the wrong hands. With control of the future and the fate of the world at stake, and dark forces from Ethan’s past closing in, a deadly race around the globe begins. Confronted by a mysterious, all-powerful enemy, Ethan is forced to consider that nothing can matter more than his mission – not even the lives of those he cares about most.

    4FW03nLTiYCt02QQgHEaF7

    Who is in the cast of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’?

    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ stars Tom Cruise (‘Top Gun‘) as Ethan Hunt, Hayley Atwell (‘Captain America: The First Avenger‘) as Grace, Esai Morales (‘Master Gardener‘) as Gabriel, Ving Rhames (‘Pulp Fiction‘) as Luther Stickell, Simon Pegg (‘Hot Fuzz‘) as Benji Dunn, Rebecca Ferguson (‘Dune‘) as Ilsa Faust, Vanessa Kirby (‘Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw‘) as Alanna Mitsopolis, Pom Klementieff (‘Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3’) as Paris, Henry Czerny (‘Scream VI‘) as Eugene Kittridge, Shea Whigham (‘Joker‘) as Jasper Briggs, and Greg Tarzan Davis (‘Top Gun: Maverick‘) as Degas.

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Simon Pegg about his work on ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,’ his reaction to the screenplay, working with Tom Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie, the franchise’s signature rubber masks, and what he would say to moviegoers to prepare them for the upcoming sequel.

    Simon Pegg in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    Simon Pegg in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch the interview.

    Moviefone: To begin with, what was your first reaction to the screenplay for ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’?

    Simon Pegg: I didn’t expect to ever do another ‘Mission: Impossible’ after ‘Mission: Impossible III.’ Then I got the call from J.J. Abrams who was producing the next movie, who said, “Hey, how would you feel if Benji was an agent?” I was like, “What?” And in true Benji fashion, I accepted the mission, obviously. Then here we are five films in and the character’s still alive and kicking. I always get very excited when I hear we’re going to do another one. It means that I get to hang out with the guys and work with McQuarrie and Tom, which I love to do, and see Rebecca, Ving, and now this whole new group of friends that we have because of the new characters. It’s a real treat.

    MF: What’s it like working on set with director Christopher McQuarrie and Tom Cruise?

    SP: It’s an adventure. It’s a genuine adventure because the way that they work, they have such a specific creative process, which involves really feeling the film out as we go. So, it’s not that we have a script that we shoot, we invent as we go. It sounds crazy, but it really works. The stuff that’s really figured out at first are the big stunts, the big set pieces, the chases, and that’s all very rigorously put together. Then the connective tissue that joins them all together, that comes organically out of our filmmaking process. It’s a wild ride.

    Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie on the set of 'Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    (L to R) Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie on the set of ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    MF: What has your experience been like acting opposite Tom Cruise in this series of films?

    SP: I love working with Tom. He’s such a professional, and obviously he’s been in the business a really long time. We often shoot stuff very technically, so we’ll get the chance to go over lines again and just really focus in on specific lines. We’ve learned each other’s rhythms, so I might say a line, and then I know when Tom wants to say a line again. If he didn’t nail it, I can see it in his eyes, so I just won’t say anything. Then he’ll say it again. Then Chris says, “Continue,” and we keep going. We’ve got a rhythm going now. It’s like a well-oiled machine.

    MF: Will we see more of the franchise’s signature rubber masks in the new movie?

    SP: I mean, of course. It wouldn’t be ‘Mission: Impossible’ without a mask gag. I love the fact that we’ve never really made fun of that particular device in these films. It’s one of the most outlandish and unlikely things that you could literally just change your face. But that was always a thing in the TV show and you just bought it because this is fantasy. There’s a science fiction edge to it, I guess, in that respect. No one’s ever made a wry joke about, “Hey, how does this work?” or that kind of thing. There’s been a few comments about Halloween masks, but we always commit to it. The masks are a real important part of ‘Mission.’ There’s a very good performance by one of the actors in our film when they play one of the other characters in the film beautifully. It’s a great moment.

    Tom Cruise and Simon Pegg in 'Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning - Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    (L to R) Tom Cruise and Simon Pegg in ‘Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    MF: Finally, what would you say to moviegoers to prepare them for the cinematic experience they are going to have when watching ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’?

    SP: Well, we’re all back in the cinema now. We’re all back at the theater and we’re watching movies again, and just in time for this, which I think is a truly cinematic experience. It’s vast in its scale and scope, and it’s incredibly exciting. One of the things I love about the theatrical experience isn’t necessarily the size of the screen. It’s the size of the audience. When you’re with people, but you don’t know anybody else there. You’re with your little group, but there are strangers in front of you, strangers behind, and you’re all sharing this moment. Cinema really democratizes groups of people, and in this day and age, everyone’s fighting about something. Everyone’s arguing and lying about something. Everyone’s got a beef with something. When you sit in a cinematic audience, all of you are having the same experience. Whatever you think about anything else, you’re in that moment together. It’s so important for us as humans to have that experience. This film, it’ll make you your heart rate accelerate, and it’ll make you gasp. It’s just one of those experiences you must have at the theater.

    Simon Pegg stars in 'Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One' from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.
    Simon Pegg stars in ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ from Paramount Pictures and Skydance.

    Other Movies Similar to ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One:’

    Buy Tickets: ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy ‘Mission: Impossible’ Movies On Amazon

    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ is produced by Paramount, Skydance Media, New Republic Pictures, and TC Productions. The movie is scheduled to release in theaters on July 12th, 2023.

     

  • Tom Cruise Shows Off ‘Mission: Impossible’ Stunt Work

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    Long gone are the days when we had to wait for home entertainment to see “Making Of” videos explaining how filmmakers pulled off amazing stunts or effects sequences.

    These days, they’re out before the film itself arrives.

    And if you’re Tom Cruise, you don’t have the patience to hold off until the year the movie lands, let alone the month or week. Hence a new look online at the extensive preparation behind one of the keynote stunts of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’, which will see his character, daredevil agent Ethan Hunt, sailing over a cliff on a motorbike and launching himself into the sky for a BASE jump.

    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ will be in theaters on July 14th, 2023.
    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ will be in theaters on July 14th, 2023.

    He might not have the patience to wait and show off the team behind the stunt, but Cruise certainly has it to make sure the sequence goes flawlessly––and with good reason, because no one wants to see him pancaked on the ground.

    Least of all writer/director Christopher McQuarrie, who can be seen in the video visibly aging as Cruise pulls off his latest wild activity.

    Which means we’re treated to an extensive exploration of what goes into a sequence such as this––in this case, much stunt bike training, test jumps and even microchip-linked drones which accurately record his distance, velocity, and angles so all involved can make sure it’s worked out properly.

    And the ‘Mission: Impossible’ movies could certainly use the good publicity after a couple of years that have seen them hit with pandemic filming delays and all sorts of issues as the mammoth shoot continued (and continues).

    Holt McCallany, Henry Czerny, and Nick Offerman in Paramount's 'Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two.'
    (L to R) Holt McCallany, Henry Czerny, and Nick Offerman in Paramount’s ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two.’

    We still don’t know exactly what the story will be this time (besides the obvious opportunities for Ethan Hunt to run/drive/jump off/into/out of things), besides hints that his past will be coming back to haunt him––particularly since old enemy Eugene Kittridge (Henry Czerny) is back from the original ‘M:I’ movie way back in 1996.

    We can expect to see Simon Pegg (back as Benji) and Ving Rhames (Luther), plus more recent recruits including Rebecca Ferguson’s Isla Faust and Vanessa Kirby’s White Widow.

    Completely new this time are Hayley Atwell’s Grace, plus Pom Klementieff, Indira Varma, Mark Gatiss, Rob Delaney, Charles Parnell, and Esai Morales, who was drafted in to replace Nicholas Hoult as one of the movie’s villains, after the latter had a schedule clash due to the movie’s many delays.

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    Tom Cruise plays Capt. Pete "Maverick" Mitchell in 'Top Gun: Maverick'
    Tom Cruise plays Capt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell in ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ from Paramount Pictures, Skydance and Jerry Bruckheimer Films.

    In related Cruise news, he also took time out from flying around to thank fans who showed up in droves and helped make ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ one of the biggest hits of the year.

    But far from simply standing in front of a poster of the film (or in front of some pretty location where he’s still currently filming the two new ‘Mission’ movies), he chose to do it in his inimitable style––jumping out of a plane. Seems fitting, we suppose…

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  • First Teaser for ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’

    Tom Cruise in Paramount Pictures' 'Mission: Impossible - Fallout.'
    Tom Cruise in Paramount Pictures’ ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout.’

    Given that between them, the next two ‘Mission: Impossible’ movies might – heavy emphasis on might – represent the end for the venerable action franchise, the biggest takeaway from this first teaser for the seventh outing suggests that it has legacy on the brain.

    Released not-so-coincidentally the same week that sees ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ hit theaters, the initial glimpse of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ goes all in on Tom Cruise doing what he does best… risking life and limb for the benefit of cinema viewers.

    But even beyond the presence of Eugene Kittridge (Henry Czerny), who hasn’t been seen since the first ‘M:I’ movie back in 1996, there are little nods here and there towards that original film. Not the least of which is Cruise once more battling baddies on a train (though it’s a much more old-school steamer than the sleek Channel Tunnel vehicles seen in the original).

    Yet it’s far from just The Tom Cruise Show – we’re treated to footage of franchise veterans Simon Pegg (back as Benji) and Ving Rhames (Luther), plus more recent recruits including Rebecca Ferguson’s Isla Faust and Vanessa Kirby’s White Widow.

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    Completely new this time are Hayley Atwell’s Grace, plus Pom Klementieff, Indira Varma, Mark Gatiss, Rob Delaney, Charles Parnell (who will also be seen opposite Cruise in the new ‘Top Gun’) and Esai Morales, who was drafted in to replace Nicholas Hoult as one of the movie’s villains, after the latter had a schedule clash due to the movie’s many delays.

    ‘Dead Reckoning’ represents possibly the biggest challenge yet for Cruise and writer/director Christopher McQuarrie, who have collaborated on the last few ‘Mission: Impossible’ movies. They had to navigate a tricky, ever-changing shooting plan because the pandemic either cancelled or interrupted production. And then there’s wrangling with their own achievements – how do you top the level of stunts that they and their team have collectively pulled off in the past? The answer for Cruise, at least, appears to be even more derring-do, jumping off a bike that is itself falling off a huge cliff. Letting a train speed off another cliff. And breaking the story across two movies? That’ll lead to a more narrative cliff-hanger. These two like cliffs, is what we’re saying.

    Story-wise, there’s not much to go on yet, though Kittridge certainly looks to be giving strong villain vibes, telling Ethan Hunt he’s effectively on the wrong side of history and that the “ideals” he’s been fighting for don’t exist. There are shots of people being gassed with a mysterious green substance, explosions and all manner of chases. Hunt, in his encounter with his old nuisance, mostly looks like he wants to blow up another fish tank…

    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ will be in theaters on July 14th, 2023.

    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ will be in theaters on July 14th, 2023.
    ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ will be in theaters on July 14th, 2023.
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  • ‘Mission: Impossible’ 7 and 8 Delayed

    Tom Cruise in 'Mission: Impossible - Fallout'
    Tom Cruise in ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’

    When he’s playing Ethan Hunt in the ‘Mission: Impossible’ movies, Tom Cruise can do many things: jump out of planes, hang on to aircraft, climb mountains freehand. But the one challenge even he can’t seem to conquer is Covid delays.

    Paramount has decided to move back the next two ‘Impossible’ movies on its release schedule, to July 14, 2023, and June 2024. The new films, currently still only known as ‘Mission: Impossible 7’ and ‘Mission: Impossible 8’ have bounced around different dates for the last couple of years – there was a time when the first of the two was due in July 2020. Remember that?

    Most recently, the movies had been set for September 30 this year and July 7, 2023, respectively.

    Once again written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie (who was behind previous entries ‘Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation’ (2015) and ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’ (2018), the latest movies in the long-running franchise see Cruise’s intrepid, globe-trotting agent Hunt and his team once again confronting dire threats to the safety of the world.

    No specific plot details for either movie have been released, but we can expect plenty of the practical stunt action for which Cruise and the series has become known.

    Alongside Cruise, returning actors for one or both movies include Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames, Rebecca Ferguson and Vanessa Kirby. And in a move likely to spark enthusiasm in fans of the original 1996 movie, Henry Czerny is back as Eugene Kittridge, the former director of the Impossible Mission force who was framed as a mole in that film.

    Among the new faces? ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’ (2017) star Pom Klementieff, ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’ (2011)’s Hayley Atwell, ‘Saw’ (2004) veteran Cary Elwes and Esai Morales, who replaced Nicholas Hoult as one of the villains of ‘Mission 7’.

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    McQuarrie and his ‘Mission’ cast and crew have faced their own challenges shooting in a time when the pandemic caused so much disruption. Plans to film in Italy were curtailed as Covid-19 began to take its toll on the world, and resuming production required a complicated mix of safety protocols and location changes.

    Cruise was overheard berating crew members who breached the distance advice on set, and the various issues caused by the pandemic have been part of the reason why Paramount has been shifting the movies around the release calendar.

    Add to that the ongoing challenges with cinema attendance levels and concern for audience safety, which have led to many movies either pushing back their release or moving to streaming services. Paramount is one of the studios that has tried to keep its bigger releases in cinemas, resulting in delays for several movies, including fellow Cruise project ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ (currently due to land on screens on May 27 this year).

    That’s despite recent success with the new ‘Scream’, which has already earned more than $ 54 million at the worldwide box office. Paramount, of course is being more careful with the huge-budgeted ‘Mission’ movies, which also require extensive promotional tours.

    “After thoughtful consideration, Paramount Pictures and Skydance have decided to postpone the release dates for ‘Mission: Impossible 7 & 8‘ in response to delays due to the ongoing pandemic. The new release dates will be July 14, 2023, and June 28, 2024, respectively. We look forward to providing moviegoers with an unparalleled theatrical experience,” Paramount and Skydance said in a statement.

    Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is just to keep on waiting.

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  • Mission: Impossible – Fallout RED CARPET

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  • Why Disney Will Never Make a Movie as Crazy as ‘Con Air’ Again

    Twenty years ago, the world was bestowed a magical gift in the form of “Con Air,” an action thriller so over-the-top and nonsensical that a longer, more methodically paced “directors cut” made it even more confusing. The film starred Nicolas Cage (back when his post-Oscar-win action movie streak was a novelty) as Cameron Poe (!), a disgraced Army Ranger sentenced to serious jail time after defending his pregnant wife from attackers (this makes no sense whatsoever). When his ride home, the Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System aka “Con Air,” gets hijacked by a bunch of villainous freaks, among them Cyrus the Virus (John Malkovich), The Marietta Mangler (Steve Buscemi), Diamond Dog (Ving Rhames) and Pinball (Dave Chapelle), he’s forced to do his best to get the situation under control and aid US Marshall Vince Larkin (John Cusack) in the safe containment of the situation.

    Of course, everything goes to hell, in the most spectacularly violent and least plausible way possible. And the movie, which has the logline of one of those action movies that premieres on Cinemax on Friday night, is surprisingly handsome (British cinematographer David Tattersall, known for his longstanding relationship with George Lucas, shot it) and gleefully entertaining. It was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, who, in 1997, had his hand so firmly on the pulse of the American people that he could have probably been elected to office.

    “Con Air” is crazy. That much we know. But what’s pretty certifiable is that Disney (who produced the movie — more on that in a minute) will never make another movie as crazy ever again.

    First, an explanation about the whole Disney thing, especially when it comes to a movie that has a character named “Johnny-23,” named for the amount of women he raped before being sent to prison. In the early 1980s, the Walt Disney Company’s cinematic output was faltering. Walt had died in 1966 and, honestly, the company had been starved for hits ever since (think about it). In 1984, then-CEO Ron Miller, who was Walt’s son-in-law (he was married to Walt’s daughter, Diane), started Touchstone Pictures as a label that could release PG-rated movies since Disney only put out exclusively G-rated affairs. Their first film was “Splash,” which was a huge hit, and in 1986 they released “Down and Out in Beverly Hills,” the first R-rated Disney film. In 1989, another imprint, Hollywood Pictures, would be developed by Disney and released everything from Bruce Willis erotic thriller “Color of Night” to prestige pictures, like “Quiz Show,” “Evita,” and “Nixon.” In 1993 Disney bought Miramax (which also gave way to Dimension Films), which means that “Trainspotting,” “Pulp Fiction,” and “Priest” are all Disney movies. I’m sorry if your childhood is ruined; try not to think of Snow White shooting up.What movies fell into which offshoot remains hazy, although Touchstone seems to have had a more populist bent, while Hollywood was more niche and genre-oriented, and Miramax was basically whatever Bob and Harvey Weinstein wanted.

    When Bob Iger took over the company following Michael Eisner’s tenure, he began cutting away at what he felt were unnecessary lines of business. Iger wanted to streamline everything and centralize it under a single brand; Walt Disney Pictures wasn’t even used anymore. Everything was simply Disney. It’s easy to see why he did it, he wanted to easily establish what Disney meant and reinforce that meaning through the product. There wouldn’t be confusion over Touchstone versus Hollywood versus Miramax versus Disney, there’d just be Disney. And you’d know what you got when you showed up for a Disney movie, just like you’d know what to expect from a Disney Park or a Disney Cruise.

    That meant Touchstone, Miramax and Hollywood all went away, only resurrected for certain individual movies (like when Disney was releasing DreamWorks’ live-action slate) but without a continuous development slate. These shingles were supposed to be where Disney could release riskier movies and develop filmmakers who didn’t fit within the core Disney brand but that all went away. There’d be no more R-rated releases, only films that appealed to all “four quadrants” of moviegoers. That meant a violent, profanity-filled action-thriller would never be developed, let alone green lit and produced.

    Another reason why Disney will never again make a movie as crazy as “Con Air” is that producer Bruckheimer, who has shepherded such hits as “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “National Treasure” through the studio, has handled just as many costly flops, things like “Prince of Persia: Sands of Time,” “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” (again with Cage), and “The Lone Ranger.” Bruckheimer’s relationship with Disney has frayed; he no longer has a production shingle at the studio and now only produces the “Pirates of the Caribbean” films for the company. Ever wonder why there was never a third “National Treasure” movie? Well, it has a lot to do with the strained relationship between Disney and Bruckheimer.And maybe the most important reason “Con Air” would never get released today is that it is terribly offensive. The screenplay by Scott Rosenberg isn’t exactly filled with nuance and subtlety, but there are also things that would just be inadmissible to a major studio movie in this day and age (and this even goes beyond the “Johnny-23” character). Female characters are basically relegated to victims (I believe there’s a female guard), potential victims (like the small girl you think Buscemi is going to kill), or wallpaper (like Julia Roberts lookalike Monica Potter as Cage’s estranged wife).

    Even more problematic is the character of Ramon “Sally-Can’t Dance” Martinez, played by Renoly Santiago. If you can’t tell by the colorful nickname, this is a character who is flamboyantly gay and a cross-dresser, and if the other characters are cartoons, then he’s something that’s doodled on a cocktail napkin — barely recognizable as a character at all. It could be argued that the character works in the context of the super-sized world of the film, but it would also be something that would prevent the film from being made today.

    So yes, “Con Air,” that towering achievement of insanity, is the rare cultural relic that will never be able to be duplicated or improved upon. It is of its time, for sure, and was only able to exist because a few key factors came together to make it so. These days, Disney is about appealing to everyone and “Con Air,” while conventionally mainstream, would never achieve liftoff.

  • ‘Mission: Impossible’: 15 Things You (Probably) Didn’t Know About the Tom Cruise Blockbuster

    Before 1996, “Mission: Impossible” was a long-since-cancelled TV spy series, beloved by Boomers but forgotten by anyone younger. Today, of course, it’s a popular Tom Cruise movie franchise, known for its twisty plotting and jaw-dropping stunt sequences, whose five installments to date have grossed $935 million in North America and $2.8 billion worldwide.

    The change came, of course, with the release of Cruise’s first “Mission: Impossible” 20 years ago, on May 22, 1996. Since then, Brian De Palma‘s clever, convoluted blockbuster has been watched and copied plenty. And while some of the spy franchise’s secrets have become widely known, there are still some that have remained classified — until now.
    1. “Mission: Impossible” marked Cruise’s debut as a producer. In a deal that would become his then-customary contract, he took no money up front but negotiated a lucrative percentage of the theatrical and video gross profits, reportedly as high as 22 percent. Cruise reportedly pocketed an estimated $70 million for the first “Mission.”

    2. The most celebrated (and imitated) action set piece De Palma created for the film was the vault heist at CIA headquarters. That’s really Cruise dangling from those cables and balancing himself inches from the floor. Initially, he kept banging his head on the floor, but he came up with an ingenious way to stay level: He put coins in his shoes as counterweights.
    3. When Jim Phelps (Jon Voight) is reading his team’s personal files on the plane, the one for Jack Harmon (Emilio Estevez) lists his alias as “Tony Baretta,” the name of Robert Blake’s bird-loving sleuth from 1970s detective show “Baretta.”

    4. In another in-joke, a shout out to “Top Gun,” when Cruise’s Ethan Hunt looks over the list of aliases on the NOC spy list, one of them is “Maverick.”
    5. The exploding fish tank stunt was reportedly Cruise’s idea. De Palma tried to shoot it with a stunt double, but the results were unconvincing. So that’s really Cruise you see as he flees from 16 tons of rushing water.

    6. The film’s final action set piece, the battle atop a moving bullet train, almost didn’t happen because the train’s owners didn’t want to allow it, since it appeared too dangerous. Cruise charmed them over dinner, and they changed their minds.7. Even so, much of that sequence was filmed in front of a blue screen on the James Bond soundstage at Pinewood Studios. But the scene where the helicopter blast hurls Ethan onto the surface of the train (above) still involved flinging Cruise himself through the air.

    The producers had to search throughout Europe to find the sole wind machine forceful enough for the stunt. Blowing at 140 miles per hour, it even made the skin on Cruise’s face visibly ripple. “I ended up doing it three or four times and it hurt — I was black and blue for days,” the actor recalled. “But I wanted to make it real, to make it believable.”

    8. Apple ponied up $15 million for a promotional product placement deal, which included showing Ethan using a PowerBook 5300c in key scenes. Unfortunately for the company, it came aboard the production too late to have script approval, so it couldn’t rewrite the scenes where Ving Rhames’ master hacker demands and later uses a Windows laptop. What was worse, the PowerBook was subject of a recall around the time of the film’s release, so consumers inspired by the film to buy one couldn’t find one in stock for four months. Plus, Apple was smarting from a $740 million quarterly loss, the second-worst in the company’s history at the time. As a PR move, the “M:I” tie-in was a compete backfire.
    9. The opening sequence in Prague marked the first time a major Hollywood production had filmed in the Czech capital since the fall of communism. Unfortunately, Cruise and his fellow producers felt gouged by the local authorities when they rented the historic Lichetenstein Palace as an exterior location and were charged 10 times the fee they expected. City authorities claimed the lower-quoted price had never been an authorized offer.

    Playwright-turned-president Vaclav Havel sided with the Americans, arguing that the officials, who were new to capitalism, didn’t see the bigger picture, that they were risking the ultimately more profitable benefits of travel-brochure-worthy footage in a Hollywood blockbuster and a positive reputation among international filmmakers. Indeed, Team Cruise threatened to warn other Hollywood crews against working in Prague, though the actor did use the city again as a double for Moscow in “Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol.”

    10. Thanks in part to Cruise’s deferred fee and De Palma’s limited use of CGI, the film cost just $80 to make, a relative bargain by today’s standards. (Last year’s “Rogue Nation” cost $150 million).
    11. “Mission: Impossible” was the first film to open on more than 3,000 screens. (3,012, to be exact.) It earned $181 million in North America and $458 million worldwide.

    12. Many fans of the original TV series bristled at the radical changes the movie made. After all, Jim Phelps was the only character from the old show who’s also in the movie, and the film makes Voight’s Phelps anything but a hero.

    Peter Graves, who played the original Phelps, said he wished they’d just given Voight’s character a new name. Greg Morris, who played tech whiz Barney Collier, left a screening of the movie partway through. Martin Landau, who played master of disguise Rollin Hand on the show, said of the big-screen version, “It was basically an action-adventure movie and not ‘Mission.’ ‘ Mission’ was a mind game. The ideal mission was getting in and getting out without anyone ever knowing we were there. So the whole texture changed.” He also said he and the other original stars had rejected an early screenplay that would have killed off most of the old team. “Why volunteer to essentially have our characters commit suicide?” Landau added that J.J. Abrams invited him to do a cameo in “Mission: Impossible III,” but he said no.
    13. One original element from the show that remained intact was Lalo Schifrin’s iconic, pounding theme song, which De Palma used over the opening credits. But the film closed with a new version by U2 members Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. Their pop instrumental became a top 10 hit worldwide and was nominated at the 1997 Grammys, where it competed against Schifrin’s own new recording of the song.

    14. The movie doesn’t offer much backstory on Ethan Hunt or any of his colleagues. But the “Mission: Impossible” Blu-ray includes dossiers on Ethan and his teammates, letting viewers know that Ethan speaks 15 languages (three fewer than his mentor, Jim Phelps) and that he first developed his talent for impersonating other people while playing alone as a child on the Hunt family farm.
    15. “Mission: Impossible” establishes Ethan for the rest of the franchise as a spy who prefers deception and disguise to violence. In this film, though not in future installments, he never gets involved in a gunfight; in fact, he never even fires a weapon. And the body count for the entire film is just seven casualties.

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  • Tom Cruise Begins Work on Sixth ‘Mission: Impossible’

    Tom Cruise and Jon Stewart
    Tom Cruise and Jon Stewart

    Apparently clinging to an airplane, getting beat up and shot at, briefly dying underwater and enduring the wrath Alec Baldwin just wasn’t enough for Ethan Hunt to cash out his 401k and drift off into a peaceful retirement.

    Another “Mission: Impossible” movie is on the way.

    “We’re starting to work on it now,” producer-star Tom Cruise told Jon Stewart on “The Daily Show” on Tuesday night (video below). “We’ll probably start shooting it next summer.”

    The next film will mark the sixth installment in the action franchise, which started in 1996 and is based on a 1960s TV series.

    “Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation” — opens Friday with Cruise’s Impossible Missions Force being dismantled by the U.S. government but carrying on anyway to save the world. It co-stars Baldwin, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Jeremy Renner and Ving Rhames.

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