Main Cast:
Tom Cruise – Ethan Hunt
Henry Cavill – August Walker
Rebecca Ferguson – Ilsa Faust
Vingh Rhames – Luther Stickell
Simon Pegg – Benjamin “Benji” Dunn
Sean Harris – Solomon Lane
Angela Bassett – Erica Sloane
Michelle Monaghan – Julia Meade
Alec Baldwin – Alan Hunley
Vanessa Kirby – Alanna Mitsopolis (White Widow)
Producers: Tom Cruise, Christopher McQuarrie, Jake Myers, J J Abrams
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Mission Impossible 6: Fallout, is undeniably the “Best of the Franchise” (they say), and Tom cruises on steadily. Despite having only watched MI5: The Rouge Nation, I must say this is a total blown away, much more than a visual treat.
This is one of the Best Action Movies + Tom Cruise movies that I had watched.
It’s so insanely heart palpitating, eyes popping and jaw drooping exciting that leaves you no chance for boredom throughout the intensely packed 2 hour 28 minute movie, weaving through land, water and air with out-of-this-world action scenes.
Being co-producers, Christopher McQuarrie and Tom Cruise lapped the MI series yet to another, higher level. The intensity built up scene after scene, left you gasping for more, yet it left you wondering, if they could even take it further than the previous intense scene.
The scenes all seemed so outrageously REAL that I had no doubt there were no stunt doubles.
True enough, there were indeed NO stunt doubles.
All death defying stunts were performed by the actors, especially Tom Cruise whom we have no doubt is a perfectionist, but he’s got this perfectionist streak with a suicidal instinct. 真的是“玩命“演出。
From doing a HALO jump from the plane 100 times just to perfect that scene, breaking his ankle while he was trying to jump across the building, in fact still running at top speed with a broken ankle, to the motorcycle chase scenes in Paris and London where he was weaving through the narrow streets, the helicopter chase scene and mountain scaling scenes in Kashmir, Cruise shows that he’s giving all that he’s got, not even holding back 1%.
(The infamous scene where Tom Cruise broke his ankle while jumping from one building to another, and yet still running with the broken ankle to perfect that take)
You can’t help but to applaud his professionalism, perfectionism plus pure insanity as an actor, entertainer and stuntman.
Even in 2D, the visual experience was incredible. Couldn’t imagine how much better it would be in 3D.
Best known for his roles in “Top Gun”, “Interview with the Vampire” and definitely his role as Ethan Hunt in the Mission Impossible series, Tom Cruise has re-written the word “Impossible” to POSSIBLE.
He would go to great lengths to bring such remarkable cinematic experience for the movie goers.
Bounds of possibilities and surprises await the audience, as they are in for a sumptuous movie treat.
It has been 2 decades since the 56-year old Tom Cruise took on the role of IMF Agent, Ethan Hunt, but it seems, he’s not gonna slow it down anytime soon.
Just how can anyone be still so alluringly charismatic at the age of 56?
Not many people in their 20s or 30s may be able to hold out such physical exhaustion, let alone someone in his mid 50s. His mental strength and perseverance is something we need to look up to.
The Action and the Scenery
I especially loved the helicopter chase scenes through the fluffy clouds & snowy mountains in Norway. It was absolutely breathtaking.
There was time for us to marvel at the awesome treats that Mother Nature brings us while keeping glued to our seats. It was much to my personal delight that my favourite Eiffel Tower in Paris was featured too.
The hanging-by-a-thread mountain scaling attempts would probably leave your palms in cold sweat as you watched Ethan Hunt and August Walker fight it out.
The Antagonist that You Can’t Hate
It might be cliché, but all ladies love “bad boys”, to a certain extent.
What greater pleasure is it than to watch a good guy turned bad, with such magnetic appeal?
Henry Cavill is better known as Superman, the Man of Steel, but his acting as the villain in MI6, is indeed remarkable. He holds such a big role that I would say, MI6 would be less interesting if he wasn’t cast. He adds so much spice, excitement and visual pleasure to the movie.
We all love handsome, muscular male leads, who not only have the brawns but also the brains.
Be it fighting alongside Ethan Hunt in the “toilet fight” scene, the motorcycle chase scenes or fighting against Ethan Hunt in the “Helicopter” chase scene, August Walker captured much attention as the antagonist, who wanted to blow up the world with Lane.
Rebecca Ferguson, who reprises her role as the kick-ass, Ilsa Faust, brings a more refreshing mood to the male-dominated movie. She’s a female lead who’s capable of not just saving her own ass, but also more than capable to save Ethan Hunt from harm.
There’s still a pretty much mysterious aura about her since she has many secrets that she couldn’t tell. There were also times when you would wonder, if she was a friend or a foe in reality.
Vanessa Kirby’s role as the White Widow was alluring, with some slick action scenes and that “Poison Ivy” appeal, but she didn’t get to showcase much since she has limited screen time. We do not have time for some love triangle too.
Ethan’s weakness is also his strength
Ethan’s weakness is definitely his ex-wife Julia and his “compassionate” nature.
It doesn’t matter if she were still married to him, her life’s still in danger because of her connection to him. To save the world, he needs to make one big sacrifice, and that’s his love life or whoever he feels for.
It is also a taboo in his line of work that he’s got a more “compassionate” nature. Compassion for his friends is his biggest weakness but throughout the movie, while Ethan risks his life to save millions, he never loses sight of any individual/ team mates.
He risked his life to save Luther in a gunfire scene, transferred oxygen mid-air to Walker after he was struck by lightning, re-plan the escape route to save Lane to ensure no civilians are killed, saved a police officer whilst escaping with Lane in his hands, asking Ilsa not to embroil herself so that she wouldn’t be in danger.
He’s still pretty much a flesh and blood, like any other man.
And only such a personality would be able to save mankind.
An Endearing Loveline on its own
While most action movies would leave very little time frame left for emotional scenes or having weak love lines, I must say we do get quite a bit of earnest acting from Tom.
The kind of emotional trauma and turmoil he still has to go through after so many years of fighting and killing is illustrated so aptly; whereby he wakes from his nightmares with the complicated mix of fear, trauma, anxiety, guilt, remorse and feelings of loss, written so explicitly over his face.
The one woman who is always on his mind is his ex-wife, Julia Meade.
He had to fake her “death” in MI3 so that she could live a safe life, but little did he expect that, he would feel so contradictory when he finally “reunited” with her in Kashmir.
She’s doing philanthropic work with her new husband, Patrick in Kashmir, a camp whereby it was planted with the nuclear bombs. It added on to the fact that she would never be safe, as along as she is alive, because of Ethan Hunt.
He was glad to see her alive and happy, but at the same time, a little lost that she has found another man in her life.
However, at the end of the day, he was able to set himself free because of what Julia said.
You cannot forget this line “I’m here where I should be, and so are you”.
It’s a realization for Ethan that Julia is at where she should be and she is happy, the same goes for Ethan.
When the most important women in Ethan’s life were present when he woke up in the “hospital” and whispered something to each other, it seemed like a ceremony of “passing” the baton to the next better player, who would be more apt to stay by Ethan’s side, to brave dangers together with him.
Ethan was able to set himself free and have less emotional burden regarding Julia. At the same time, he may be able to take things slower with Ilsa, who’s steadfast.
I prefer such an ending than one where the male lead needs to lose his loved one to great tragedy and as a form of “revenge”, fights his way out.
It doesn’t have to be such slapstick ending.
You would definitely walk out of the cinema gushing over the adrenaline contentment and looking forward to the next sequel.
Most would think that MI6 should act as the finale for Tom Cruise’s journey as Ethan Hunt after a long 22 years. For one, we can’t imagine how else they can break through the high standards set by MI6. However, I’m sure we are all hoping that he will return with something bigger and better than this.
Because we can tell, he has no intention to call it quits yet.
And truly, only he could make all this possible.
No one else can portray the role of Ethan Hunt better than Tom Cruise.
Without such insane dedication and pride in his work, topped up with that perfectionist streak of suicidal instinct, he couldn’t have made such a great action movie.
There’s a reason why he’s still one of the most popular actors in Hollywood.
We are already looking forward to MI7.
Though we know he’s going to continue to put his life on the line, challenging himself to more “Impossibilities”, we hope he stays safe too.
We want such an actor around, for a long long time.
