'Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning Part One' Is Top-Tier Tom Cruise
The pandemic was a hard time for everyone, of course, but it was especially rough for Tom Cruise. In December 2020—flustered by the virus's rapid spread—Cruise berated London's Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning Part One crew for breaking COVID protocol. I'm not going to defend the man. He wasn't exactly the nicest guy when he yelled, "We are not shutting this f**king movie down!" But Cruise, like most of us at the time, didn't really understand what we were in for yet. Top Gun: Maverick star knew he was going to jump off a cliff on a motorcycle, which is something he would probably do no matter what, movie or not. But he couldn't have predicted how completely unstuck in time Dead Reckoning Part One would feel in July 2023, when it would eventually hit theaters. The delay might've even helped the film.
Let me explain. It all starts with Dead Reckoning's central villain—an omniscient A.I. system referred to as "the Entity." Like the Eye of Sauron from Lord of the Rings, this all-seeing, sentient technology now makes decisions on its own with global consequences. Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his merry band of spies embark on a mission to acquire a key that can shut the A.I. down. Think Frodo, Mount Doom, the Ring, and you're on the right track. Dead Reckoning Part One is the seventh film in a nearly 30-year-long franchise, and if Tom Cruise wants to turn it into James Bond meets Lord of the Rings, I'm all here for it.
Still, that doesn't stop everyone from constantly explaining how computers work to us as if we've never even owned an email address. Mission Impossible's writing has not improved, but its seventh entry, at the very least. hits an entertaining level of camp. Ethan, I think the Entity knows all of our passwords?! Luckily, the A.I. puts a human face to its plan, by choosing newcomer Gabriel (Esai Morales) to act on its behalf. Gabriel has a secret past with Ethan Hunt as well.
Incidentally, another random plot decision makes the film feel incredibly relevant. Unbeknownst to any of our central characters, Dead Reckoning Part One's first scene clues us in on a submarine disaster in which the the Entity killed its entire crew. It wouldn't be too farfetched for audiences to connect this scene to the recent OceanGate disaster, where a tourist submarine imploded on its way to explore the wreck of the Titanic. But Cruise and co. couldn't have known any of this when they set out to make Dead Reckoning Part One. Hell, they couldn't have even known how bogged down the entertainment landscape would be by A.I. adversaries by the time their film finally premiered.
Still, Cruise does know action. And that's where, if you're interested in seeing MI's seventh entry, you should buy a ticket right now. The motorcycle jump that we mentioned? It's breathtaking. Of course, Cruise doesn't stop there. His mission, should he choose to accept it, is to challenge death by making these movies for us. Dead Reckoning Part One also features a long car chase through Rome, a fistfight in a tiny alley, an airport heist, and a final escape—which I won't spoil. Fans and critics often say this of the MI films, but the stunts alone truly make the entire experience worthwhile.
Far more entertaining that Gabriel or the Entity is their assassin: Paris, who is played by Pom Klementieff. Howling and laughing on her way to kill Ethan Hunt, the crew is completely shaken by a Looney Tunes, Harley Quinn-esque murderer. Especially since the Entity is such a static, unphysical villain, it's a stroke of genius to cast Klementieff as a human fighting like she's made of knives.
Still, the star is Mr. Cruise himself. It may not surprise you that what drives the excitement for Dead Reckoning Part Two isn't how they'll stop the Entity from controlling the world—but how Tom Cruise will top himself yet again. Maybe he needs to know how long he can breathe in space? Or Cruise wants to parachute into a volcano? Hell, I'd like to see him drive a car straight up the Empire State Building. Either way, he'll continue sparring with the Entity. Our 61-year-old hero is clearly on a mission to look at this digital god in the eye and ask, "What else do you have for me?!" Of course, we're often asking the same of Cruise—and he delivers time and time again.
You Might Also Like
