Mission: Impossible (1996)
Directed by Brian De Palma

Film Review

As an attempt to revive an iconic sixties television series concept, Mission: Impossible is far from successful; fans of the series would argue that the film betrays the series in virtually every respect.  However, as a fast-moving, adrenalin-pumping action-adventure romp, director Brian De Palma certainly delivers the goods.  With its masterfully choreographed action set-pieces and hair-raising climactic tussle (in the Channel Tunnel), Mission: Impossible is one of the most exciting and compelling American thrillers of the decade, a remarkable achievement given that the plot hardly makes any sense at all and has more holes than a warehouse full of Swiss cheese.  Despite receiving mixed reviews, the film was a phenomenal box office success and took almost half a billion dollars worldwide - not bad for a film that had a budget of a mere eighty million dollars.

A keen fan of the original series, Tom Cruise took the initiative to make the film, the first for his newly created production company, after Paramount (the owners of the original show) had half-heartedly struggled to bring Mission: Impossible to the big screen for many years.  Pre-production for the film was shambolic, and neither Cruise nor his director were happy with the script they ended up with.  This shows in the end result.  Whilst the film's action scenes are flawlessly executed (in particular the nerve-racking heist sequence, a nod to Jules Dassin's Rififi and Topkapi) there is very little in the way of logic and cohesion to knit them together.  Mission: Impossible is essentially the cinematic equivalent of an adolescent joy ride.  You don't have the time to stop and try to make sense of the plot; if you did, the whole thing would fall apart in an instant.

Cruise is at his best when he is playing the resourceful action hero, so Mission: Impossible allows him plenty of scope to indulge his penchant for gymnastics and action heroics (the actor famously performs virtually all of his own stunts, some of which were exceptionally risky).  The serious acting he leaves to his classy co-stars, who number such talented performers as Jon Voight, Emmanuelle Béart, Jean Renor and Kristin Scott Thomas, all excellent.  Vanessa Redgrave absolutely revels in her role as a shady arms dealer, her crackling scenes with Cruise being the film's one fleeting concession to humour.  Peter Graves was invited to reprise his role as Jim Phelps from the original television series but he declined, apparently disgusted by the way the character turns out in the film.

The spectacular commercial success of Mission: Impossible guaranteed that there would be a sequel and Mission: Impossible II hit the cinema screens in 2000, with John Woo in the driving seat.  Since, there have been a further two sequels and another is mooted to be in the offing.  Whilst it may be far less cerebrally challenging than the television series that spawned it, the popular Mission: Impossible film franchise still has plenty of mileage, although none of the later films in the series can match the sheer energy and visual flair of the first IMF big screen outing.  Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to sit back, disengage your logic chip and just enjoy one of the gutsiest action thrillers of the 1990s.  This review will self-destruct in five seconds...

Film Synopsis

Led by Jim Phelps, a crack team of the Impossible Missions Force (IMF), a covert branch of the CIA, assembles in Prague.  Their mission: to prevent an American diplomat from stealing a list identifying all western intelligence agents operating in Eastern Europe.  The mission goes horribly awry.  Phelps and most of his team are apparently killed before they can catch their man.  The only survivor is Ethan Hunt, who is appalled when he discovers the truth about the night's operation from his director, Eugene Kittridge.  It transpires that the mission was a set-up to discover the identity of a mole in the IMF organisation.  With every other member of his team dead, Hunt is the obvious suspect.  Realising he has been set up, Hunt beats a hasty retreat and begins his own mission: to expose the IMF mole and clear his name.  Hunt is surprised when Phelps' young wife suddenly turns up out of the blue...