“Your mission should you choose to accept it?” That is the question, Tom Cruise’s “Bond, James Bond” and Dead Reckoning Part One takes that question and for the first time puts it at the front of the story. It’s the choice every hero in Mission has to make, it determines whether they live or die, it follows them for the rest of their lives but what if every choice had already been thought out and preplanned? Gone is The Syndicate and incomes a new villain, a decisive one but also quite possibly Ethan Hunt’s best opponent yet.
We join Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt as he is once again told about a dangerous mission he must choose to embark on. His mission is to retrieve two halves of a key that every government wants to have a hold of. Hunt’s ally Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) has one half and the other half needs to be found. Hunt and his team must find and secure both halves of the key before it is too late, all while being watched and hunted down by a villain who knows their every move.
If Dead Reckoning is one thing it is a masterclass in trailer creation, going into the film you have no idea who the villain would be or even really the general plot of the movie itself. Now, Mission films all run through the same storytelling circle but the start of Dead Reckoning has you questioning what is going on before a reveal of said villain.
Throughout the film, the villain works in different ways against the IMF team and it creates the type of film that makes you want to watch another film like it. In the same way, you want to watch something else mind-bending after watching Inception or another high-class action film after watching John Wick. Dead Reckoning’s villain could be the franchise’s best villain yet. It entirely depends on what Part Two entails, events don’t become wrapped up in Part One but if the payoff isn’t good enough then the film may somewhat crumble, an uneasy foundation that a two-parter film unfortunately ultimately is built on.
You can’t however judge a film based on what might happen in a year’s time so I’m here to say that yes this is another Mission film that could be the best Mission film. The last three, Dead Reckoning included, are standouts especially given how good J.J. Abrams’ Mission Impossible 3 is. Dead Reckoning shares more with Abrams’ Mission film, you have one object that must be retrieved or those you love will die. Mix into that formula the element that is working against a villain that knows your moves and you have yourself one hell of a 2 hours and 40-minute spy thriller!
A fantastic addition to the film is pickpocket Grace played by Hayley Atwell who almost steals the show from Tom Cruise most of the time. It was surprising to see how much of the film she is actually in and it was certainly a good choice. It really is the Tom Cruise and Hayley Atwell show with the normal crew taking what felt like a bit of a step back. Atwell and Cruise’s chemistry is undeniably great from the start and without spoiling anything hopefully we get to see more of it. Their car chase scene in Rome is a standout Mission set piece.
There are quite a few other additions to the cast, sometimes almost too many if I’m being honest, I won’t go through them all but the chess board has been set up with every player ready to make their moves across I imagine both of the films. Henry Czerny is back as Kitteridge from the first Mission Impossible film and for long-time fans of Mission films his appearance in the film isn’t short and he has a surprisingly crucial part to play as well.
One of the more surprising elements of the film is the back story given to Ethan Hunt. Across the first six films, Ethan hadn’t been given much of a backstory. In fact, if we talk about Abrams’ Mission 3 that is one of the only films that really gives Ethan something outside of his team to fight for as he is fighting to save his wife. Dead Reckoning introduces the beginning of a mysterious back story for Ethan Hunt, a reason why he is in the IMF in the first place, a tease of why he made the choice to accept, and hopefully, it is delved into more in Part Two as events begin to unfold.
Lastly, I can’t write this review and not mention the stunts, one of the reasons people see these films! The motorbike off-the-cliff stunt is interesting because unlike previous films it isn’t from almost the start, most Mission films have Cruise’s main stunt near the beginning to kick things off. This time, however, it is quite far into the film and when it happens it is almost a piece of side action. A very bold choice indeed but a well-made one! When you’re watching a film and it keeps cutting away to something that isn’t that interesting you start to lose interest, imagine that but it’s cutting to a massive stunt, I mean writer and director Christopher McQuarrie gets it and made a very smart choice. There doesn’t feel like there are as many stunts in the film but there is more action which is what the story requires and it’s the ability to make the choice to pull back on the stunts for story-led action that makes McQuarrie such a great director.
My apologies this is the last thing and it’s that Lorne Balfe once again has a perfect score created for the film. Balfe’s work with the Mission theme was a highlight of Mission Impossible: Fallout and again it doesn’t miss in Dead Reckoning.
Two parters aren’t easy, the first part has to be a truly exciting setup for something spectacular. Dead Reckoning Part One is an exciting edge-of-your-seat setup, one that most audience members wouldn’t have guessed the plot of, with an interesting, timely, and relevant villain, fantastic action, and good humor as a bonus. Everything about it is once again created with one goal in mind and that is to entertain the audience and it succeeds in that goal once again.
The Mission films have always stood out amongst the rest of the action blockbuster films and if this is potentially the setup for the last Tom Cruise Mission Impossible film with Part Two then I accept the mission. Cruise and his team have once again proved that they can make entertaining movies that audiences want to see on massive screens. Light the fuse because cinema is in Cruise control once again and will be in a year’s time as well!
Score: 5/5 Tom Cruise Death-Defying Stunts