Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol

Director: Brad Bird
Starring: Tom Cruise, Paula Patton, Simon Pegg, Jeremy Renner, Michael Nyqvist.
Written by: Josh Appelbaum,  Andre Nemec (Screenplay), Bruce Geller (TV series).
Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense action and violence.

I grew up on action movies. As a child with a hyper-active imagination, the intricacies of plot and acting didn’t matter much to me. I was just there to see the every-man action hero prevail over the seemingly insurmountable evil that stood before him. I craved fistfights, explosions, and one-liners, but most of all, I wanted to live through these icons and believe that I too was capable of something extraordinary.

"Did I leave the stove on?"

Regrettably, these films are an endangered species. Sure, we’ve got a superhero for every color of the rainbow now but it’s not always easy to relate to the tribulations of genius billionaires (both bat-clad and iron-suited alike) and adolescent web-heads, especially when their adventures rely so heavily on whimsical powers, supernatural villains and special effects.

Enter Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, a refreshingly old-school action flick whose sole goal is to dazzle its audience, not through CG wizardry but through the humanity of its stars (and the insanity of Tom Cruise.) The tension is relentless, the set-pieces are thrilling, and the team dynamic among Cruise and his cohorts is compelling enough to make-up for the film’s lack of a memorable villain.

The story’s simplicity is mind-boggling: Dude's got nuclear launch codes. Stop dude with nuclear launch codes. That’s it. Oh, and then there’s Ghost Protocol: that ominous fine print that reads something like, “Should your mission be compromised, the government will disavow any knowledge of your existence.” You’ve probably heard something to that effect in numerous spy films before, but here the plot device is actually put into motion and brilliantly ups the stakes for our heroes by leaving them without back-up.

The Cruise Crew

Ethan Hunt (Cruise), the man that redefines the term “impossible,” is back with a team comprised of: the butt-kicking babe, Jane (Paula Patton), the wise-cracking hacker, Benji (Simon Pegg) and the unwitting “analyst,” Brandt (Jeremy Renner). Pay no heed to my back-of-the-box descriptions of these characters. They all defy the pitfalls of action-film clichés by being fully-developed people with conflicting feelings regarding the extreme situation they’ve been put in. Each one is personally invested in the mission beyond the world-ending consequences should they fail.

Unfortunately this attention to detail also makes it glaringly obvious that the antagonist, Kurt Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist), is as flat and docile as his name might imply. Arguably, the villain should be the most interesting character in an action film. The hero can be excused for lacking a defined personality because he/she acts as the avatar for the audience. The bad guy, however, should always act as the good guy’s MacGuffin -- driving them indefatigably towards their goal -- by taking a unique stance against something that is universally accepted as “good.”

A truly great villain can even evoke sympathy towards their plight by truly believing their actions are to the benefit of mankind. This is something that is hinted at throughout the film but, ultimately, it doesn't work. Hendricks harbors none of the characteristics of a great nemesis. He lacks menace. And his rationale for why he wants to destroy the world is never elaborated further than “life needs to start over sometimes.” It’s incredibly frustrating to see such a provocative philosophy go to waste in an otherwise top-notch thrill-ride.

See what I mean?

Though I will admit, said thrills do almost make up for this oversight. Director Brad Bird (making an undeniably impressive live-action debut) has streamlined the Mission: Impossible franchise into a breathless adrenaline generator; able to turn even the simplest of tasks -- such as hopping onto a meandering train cart -- into an opportunity to keep the viewer on edge. Bird and co. hop from set piece to set piece at a dizzying pace and compromises nothing in the process. There are at least three scenes here that rival the best that similar films have to offer.

The high point of high points is the much-hyped Burj Khalifa climb, where Cruise clambers up the side of the world’s tallest building. You might want to bring an inhaler, because it’s every bit as asthma-inducing as the ads will have you believe. The vertigo-afflicted among us have been warned.

Renner has exceptional balance

Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol is so much fun that it forced the kid in me to claw his way to the surface. I can imagine myself reenacting the insanity onscreen by climbing up trees, chasing down neighborhood kids on bicycles and fighting for an object that will “save the world.” For me, that’s the best praise I can give an action film. Sure, the plot isn’t anything original. And maybe the villain doesn’t live up to the standards set by the likes of Hans Gruber and the Terminator, but when you have a movie as expertly made as this, it doesn’t matter. Ghost Protocol ranks among the classics of the genre and is easily the best film in the M:I franchise

4.5 out of 5