Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning

Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning is a bit of a disappointment, coming off the particularly high highs of Fallout and Dead Reckoning. The stakes are heightened narratively, with the end of the world being imminent throughout, but you don't often feel the desperation; you're mostly just told about it. And that's one of the things that holds this film back. It's so weighed down in exposition and dialogue scenes that aren't necessarily that much worse than such scenes in the other films in the series, but they're inferior enough that they start to drag. And there's not enough action here, which feels weird to say. There needed to be one more set piece, preferably during the first hour, because this is a long movie and the first hour or more is honestly a bit dull. The funny banter was also much less funny, when they even attempted humor. It's kind of a dour movie, which makes sense with the stakes, but also, I didn't really feel those stakes. So I would've rather just had that usual breezy team chemistry and joke-making.

Speaking of stakes and showing things, I would've loved a set piece in a populated area? Or an action scene that felt more alive/crowded/in a place that felt real. In The Final Reckoning, there's an extended one with Cruise alone, one near the end (and on some of the posters for the film) involving some small planes, and then a handful of small shootouts and fist fights. There's nothing that's as big or as exciting as the whole train sequence in Dead Reckoning, and that film had some city action (plus a great car chase) and the whole airport scene. It's fresher in my mind than The Final Reckoning, even though I saw one two years ago and the other two hours ago. There's more tension and a feeling of danger when you can see civilization and bystanders, I think. And with everyone in the world being in danger because of the plot, it was weird to feel like no one (other than the main heroes and villains) was in danger during the action scenes.

The finale of this movie is smaller scale, but that sequence is a knockout. It's almost worth the price of admission, but you do have to slog through some dreary stuff beforehand. The end of the world is nigh, but mostly you just hear about it, or some high-ranking government officials discuss things in board/bored rooms (and some of those scenes feel like if they were pushed into territory that was any more over-dramatic, we'd have Dr. Strangelove-esque comedy).

The more I think about it, the more I realize this was kind of disappointing, even if I really loved the one big action scene that will, eventually, be the only thing I remember about this. I'm torn between like a 3/5 or a 3.5/5, and think I have to go more toward the former, just because this is too long for something with so little action. It needed to show more of the world, and we needed at least one sequence with more people and things in it. I feel like Dead Reckoning had about two or three times more great action than this, and the same can be said about Fallout. Dead Reckoning was a few minutes shorter, and Fallout was like half an hour shorter. Neither cost as much, but both felt more expensive. More bang for your buck watching those, and fewer bucks spent by the filmmakers to make them. The Final Reckoning feels pretty expensive, but not $300-400 million expensive.

They got a little lazy with The Final Reckoning. They didn't get lazy in the couple of particularly flashy scenes, but they needed more big scenes and they shouldn't have had the film feel so empty. Too much telling, not enough showing. The lack of a consistent villain throughout hurt - Gabriel was a compelling presence in Dead Reckoning, but he's not in this one as much, disappearing for long stretches at a time.

The Final Reckoning comes alive in parts. The plane stuff is thrilling. 90% of the movie, or maybe even a little more, fluctuates between being a tiny bit disappointing and very disappointing. I guess overall, I'm quite disappointed they couldn't keep the momentum going; these films had just kept getting better, from the second onwards, but no more.

This really will be the Final one, I Reckon. Can't see it turning a profit, either.

Okay, so last night I read some initial reviews of the movie in my feed and all of them were calling it a dull movie, one of them even calling it worse of the franchise. So, today when I entered the cinema my expectations were not so high. But throughout the movie I kept wondering when will the dull part begin!

Instead, I got epic visuals, heartwarming human emotions, satisfying throwbacks for a long term MI fan. When the credit rolled I had nothing but respect for the makers, for the entire team, not just of this movie but for every movie since MI 1996.

Overall, it might not top Mission Impossible Fallout but it will stay equally memorable to me. It did its job well which is to conclude the franchise in a spectacular way, without going over the top with action (think of Fast and Furious franchise).

I surely liked it better than Dead Reckoning because there were more of likeable characters rather than annoying characters. It was like a bunch of good people coming together to fight a noble cause, something that was missing in the previous movie. Some people might find some of the scenes being too lengthy but I didn't mind all of the hard work being played a little longer than required. Watching Tom Cruise giving it his all was once again as thrilling as it was 25 (or so) years ago.

As the movie said: our lives are the sum of our choices. Watching this movie was one of the best choice I ever made. So, if you are an MI fan don't miss this in cinema. It's going to be memorable, it's going to be epic!

Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning is bombastic to put it mildly, given all the fast-paced exposition and visually resounding action setpieces.

While after the Hitchcockian narrative of Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, this concluding chapter somewhat may feel a bit inadequate - especially with all those lots of scenes in caves and lairs and prisons with no astoundingly risky turn - the highs are even higher than the lows seem lower. Let me tell you, everyone will be googling "Mission Impossible 8 submarine scene" a week for now.

The underwater chapter is indeed breathtaking and quite original piece of filmmaking and a nice addition to M:I franchise which saves the movie big time. That 20-minute sequence with submarine is perhaps the most original piece of action written for action-oriented narratives since 1996's Mission: Impossible's own aqua cafe sequence between Ethan and Kittdridge, directed brilliantly by Brian De Palma. The suspense as Ethan so assiduously tackled all those aquatic, James Cameron-isque challanges was palpable. The realism and authenticity added the rest.

Else, they have recycled tropes all over the place in order to pay homage - the gala which is rendered into a jail before the gathering itself is even exhibited - no fancy cars, garish costumes, stupendous decorum, dances, masks, bluetooth talk, etc. In here. I missed the trains as well.

And narratively, there also exists this thing called predictability, and it's here to stay in the movie - the biggest weakness of The Final Reckoning. The movie is, perhaps, the least memorable for its twists - or the lack thereof - when compared to all the other M:I movies in the franchise, probably tied with Mission: Impossible 2. But that's not to say it is bad, or average or even above average - no! It's hella great!!

In terms of action-based storytelling as well, this may seem like a step backwards from Mission: Impossible - Fallout. Most scenes, when considering the movie is nearly 3 hours long, is quite limited or superfluous otherwise. But all of that pays off in the final act, trust Mr. Cruise. Because that brings us to the biplane chase sequence.

After 150 minutes of absolutely no motorcycles and cars chasing each other, though plenty of Cruise sprinting, the red and yellow old-school biplanes going after each other in South African skies is something that should adequately feed all the ravenous audiences. It's suspenseful, it's engaging, it's REALLY dangerous; though the villainous Gabriel character is still bland and bad, like the previous entry.

The diversity, without throwing into our faces what their genders are, is probably the quintessential example of how these things should be done. Hannah Waddingham in charge of aircraft carrier was something that really paid off. I didn't like the "lady boy" person wearing that vest and donning horrible hairstyle in that submarine. Angela Bassett seemed a natural as a president and didn't feel forced to assume a masculine aura just because she's a female US President. Thanks to all the brilliant women in the movie to forsake that awful cliché line "you don't think a woman can do it" - you show them subtly rather than preaching non-stop about such superfluous substance like in some Marvel movie.

Overall, a decent enough Mission: Impossible movie but a brilliant actioner, nonetheless, given how the series has always fared when compared by Hollywood's standards. Kudos to Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie.

7.5/10.

Hats off to Agent Cruise, the only man who can make my heart race that fast. His 40-year dedication to extreme, practical stunts is why the MI saga holds an elevated position in action cinema. Whether his return to underwater sequences or clinging to a moving plane at 140 mph, Cruise really is the last man standing against CGI other than Nolan. Just for the action scenes, Final Reckoning deserves to be watched in an IMAX theater, preferably with comfortable seating options unless you want a backache from all the clenching.

But, there's always a but, the movie's storytelling is much worse than its prequel. The first hour of the film is surfeited with explanatory dialogue and contextualization, which becomes quite frustrating pacing-wise. Stylistically, there's also a superfluous amount of frontal close-ups and Dutch angles, which are really cheap choices for an epic finale. I loved the Entity in Part One because its mission remains unclear even to the end, but this movie blows that setup and we're again relying on one hero to save us from nuclear armageddon. To double down on that decision, the film spends its entirety adding stakes to this supposed world destruction by using countdowns numerous times and allowing the gloomy tension to pervade every scene, as the story is so self-serious it becomes too heavy and hard to immerse in.

In conclusion, The Final Reckoning is complete, it does bring back the nostalgia, but has a bit of issue executing its ambition.

Ignore the critics. This was an absolutely fun and super entertaining movie. It was long but never dragged. In fact from the moment I sat in my seat I was at the cinema for over 3 hours. But it never felt like that.

The climax with the bi-planes was superb and one of the best and most exciting action scenes I've ever seen.

For me, this was one of the best Mission Impossible films. Loved it. Have no idea why some of the critics have panned it. Then again what do they know? It's all about having fun on the big screen and this is exactly what Tom Cruise does best. He's an absolute master in it. Highly recommend!