Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol Review

Since 1996 the Mission Impossible series has thrived in the action genre, delivering exhilarating action, high tech gadgets and nail biting escape sequences. Fifteen years later. Tom Cruise returns again with a new team to take on the fourth entry in the series, Ghost Protocol.

Ghost Protocol follows on from the third; during an interception of an important file in Moscow, the Kremlin is blown up and the blame placed solely on IMF. The secret organisation is disavowed, leaving Ethan Hunt and his team (now comprised of Benjie Dunn, Jane Carter and later William Brandt) as the only means to prevent a nuclear war between the USA and Russia. It’s an interesting plot filled with much more humour than previous titles, mostly thanks to Simon Pegg taking a welcomed frontal role this time around, but the deepest tale lies between Hunt and Brandt. They share a deep connection that builds solidly through the film up to its ending, sure to trick any audience. The sense of loss is present in both Ethan and Carter through the film but much more so in Tom Cruise’s character. A member of their team named Hannaway is killed at the beginning of the film. The audience is meant to assume that Carter and Hannaway were in a relationship but the emotion isn’t conveyed very effectively. Paula Patton’s performance came off as one dimensional to me. All the audience really learns about her character is that she’s a tough as nails agent who gets in a short fight with a French assassin. (Played by Léa Seydoux)

Two villains stand against the team, the first being Kurt Hendricks, the true mastermind behind the Kremlin explosion and Anatoly Sidorov, a Russian secret service agent chasing after the team he blames for the Kremlin’s destruction. The latter of the two isn’t nearly deep or developed enough as an antagonist and Hendricks, while a suitably sinister villain in his own right, lacks the pure evil of Owen Davian. The film is much less gritty than its predecessor with no torture scenes or explosive charges being planted in people’s heads. The movie focuses much more on Ethan’s team and it’s definitely a step in the right direction for the story, ending up being much more coherent than MI3’s somewhat conspiracy ridden story.

Ghost Protocol gives what you’d expect from the series. While the action scenes don’t soar as high as MI3’s explosive bridge battle though the Taipei Tower climb in Dubai and the race to stop a launched nuke at the end of the flick are no slouches, creating tense scenarios. The gadgets are also awesome, most notably the gravity suit, suspended not by a wire but a mini robot controlled by Benjie. The Lamborghini with a windscreen built GPS is a spectacle for any vehicle lover while the projected screen used in the Kremlin infiltration generates new bounds for the series stealthy moments. If there’s one issue it’s that some gadgets rely on real technology such as Apple products which does slightly diminish the sense of wonder.

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol is a great action film that has ended the 2011 year in movies well. If you’re a fan of action or have waited five years since the last instalment, be sure to check this one out

Rating: 4/5 Stars