Mission: Impossible - films and tv series

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  • BondJasonBond006BondJasonBond006 on fb and ajb
    Posts: 9,020
    MI is not James Bond.

    Age doesn't matter a bit. It's a team.
    How old was Jim Phelps in the series? For how long was that character around played by the same actor??
    Tom Cruise can do MI well into his sixties and slowly build up a successor if he wants MI to continue past him.
  • Posts: 3,274
    How old was Jim Phelps in the series?
    Jim Phelps doesn't climb around the tallest buildings in the world or hang on to doors on airplanes taking off. Ethan Hunt does.
  • Posts: 709
    Just saw it today, liked it a lot, maybe the best or most enjoyable of the MI series. Rebecca Ferguson was fantastic, I bet EON watch it and think Damn, where was she when we were doing auditions! I think she will be more memorable than either of this year's Bond gir- er, women, (sorry Lea! Hey, prove me wrong :) )

    Anyway, I noticed a lot of similarities, some perhaps too close for comfort, to recent Bond movies (as well the vague stuff I know about as the upcoming one). Of course, there will always be similarities in competing series about globetrotting spies, I remember Ghost Protocol started bringing Bond-like elements into the series (possibly not a coincidence that this was after MI3 was the lowest grossing in the series) - there was a PTS style action scene followed by credits, gadget-laden car, Cruise wearing a tux and infiltrating a billionaire's party etc. And the Bond dial seemed to be cranked up even more in Rogue Nation. Here's a list of some things I remember :
    -PTS with a big John Glen-esque aerial stunt, leading into credit sequence
    -Fighting backstage at an Austrian opera (QOS)
    -Hunt stumbling onto an assassination mission (SF)
    -Former MI6 Agent(!) forming SPECTRE/QUANTUM-like organization
    -Hunt disappears for several months after a mission goes bad (SF)
    -Heavy amount of filming in and around London, complete with a somewhat low-key, scaled down finish (which I liked), avoiding the usual big showdown with explosions and gun battles etc. Same sort of tactic/style as SF.
    -Government hearings over whether MI6/IMF should be disbanded
    -Alec Baldwin's character basically follows Ralph Fiennes in Skyfall beat for beat. A bureaucrat who is initially opposed to MI6/IMF, he later gets caught up in the action, sees the wisdom in Hunt/Bond's way of doing things, and becomes the new M/boss character at the end
  • Posts: 3,274
    Is it a coincidence that the 2nd act of the last three movies are the highlight of each movie?
    MI3: Breaking into the Vatican and kidnapping the villain + the bridge action setpiece
    MI4: Dubai
    MI5: Morocco
  • Posts: 4,619
    I just came back from the cinema, and thought the movie was really solid. Maybe not quite as good as Ghost Protocol, but I loved how different this movie was from the 4th mission. Rebecca Ferguson was amazing and her character Ilsa Faust was the perfect female lead for a 21st century big budget action film. For the record, I don't expect Spectre to be as good as this film.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    @PanchitoPistoles, that's how I still see it: solid and very fun, but not as good as 'Ghost Protocol.' And just like everyone else seems to agree, Rebecca Ferguson blew me away with her role.
  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    For the record, I don't expect Spectre to be as good as this film.

    I don't think that's a surprise to anyone.

    However, RN really upped the ante with the action set pieces. SP I'm sure will be a deeper, substance-filled and more layered film and prospectively we may get some amazing action that will surprise us; I have high hopes for the Rome car chase...BUT...RN at this point has raised the bar and SP has a lot to live upto.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    In terms of pure, raw action, I don't expect to go into SP and be as entertained as I was with 'Rogue Nation.' I just want a solid, all-around great Bond film.

    In terms of action for this year, though, absolutely nothing can or will beat 'Mad Max: Fury Road.'
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    I liked the trailer, but i liked the trailer for GP too, and that sucked. I will watch this when it airs on tv.
  • Posts: 11,119
    Just saw the film. And in all honesty, I think it's slightly better than "Ghost Protocol". It's grittier, but also better shot on the whole. The cinematography is wonderful. "Skyfall"-esque wonderful. And the action doesn't feel like over-the-top skycraper-walking. No, it enhances the plot. Frankly, the action was way more Bond-esque.

    But most importantly, the acting was top-notch.

    I will write a larger review later, but I also felt utterly charmed by this film in that Tom Cruise and co. were definately inspired by the Craig-era of Bond films :-). Certain action setpieces, camera-shots, a slight political theme....loved it. I just hope in the near future we fans don't get confused by what a Bond film is and what an M:I-film is :-O.

    Dear United States Bond fans? You have your own spy-franchise now that will always be among us ;-).

    Quick ratings of the "M:I"-films so far (Plus in between the Daniel Craig Bond films):

    8.5/10: "James Bond 21: Casino Royale"
    8.5/10: "James Bond 23: Skyfall"
    8.0/10: "Mission: Impossible 4 - Rogue Nation"
    7.5/10: "Mission: Impossible 3"
    7.0/10: "Mission: Impossible 5 - Ghost Protocol"
    6.0/10: "James Bond 22: Quantum Of Solace"
    5.5/10: "Mission: Impossible 1"
    4.5/10: "Mission: Impossible 2"
  • BondJasonBond006BondJasonBond006 on fb and ajb
    Posts: 9,020
    @Gustav_Graves

    as much as I admire you, your ranking of the MI's makes me cry X_X

    M:I (1996) 5.5 out of 10??
    M:I2 4.5 out of 10???

    that's harsh. Brian De Palma has made a masterpiece with M:I.
    If anything only CR would be ranked higher in my book.

    RN is much too new to be ranked by me (I only give my final verdict after seeing a movie three times of which at least once has to be on TV).
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who loves M:I-2 as much as I do. It's probably my favorite in the series. The last time I watched it, though, the problems with it really did stand out, but still, it's very good.
  • BondJasonBond006BondJasonBond006 on fb and ajb
    Posts: 9,020
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who loves M:I-2 as much as I do. It's probably my favorite in the series. The last time I watched it, though, the problems with it really did stand out, but still, it's very good.

    Problems? Where? What? Why? :))

    Hey my two favourites are M:I (1996) and M:I2 !!
    Especially M:I2 has so many truly amazing sequences! And it stays that relevant with its Day Of The Dead sequence ha ha!!
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    @BondJasonBond006, finally, we do agree on something! I knew it was bound to happen eventually. :)

    Some issues like the awkwardly edited and overly...sexual appearing?...car chase between Ethan and Nyah. I'd say some of the dialogue feels awkward and out of place, but overall, it's my favorite in the series. The finale is one of my favorites in an action movie, and that incredibly impressive motorcycle-stoppie kill he performs on the guys in the car (after leaving the bunker compound) blows me away.
  • Posts: 4,619
    My ranking of the M:I films:

    1. Ghost Protocol - 7/10
    2. Rogue Nation - 7/10
    3. MI - 7/10
    4. MI 3 - 6/10
    5. MI 2 - 4/10
  • Posts: 725
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    In terms of pure, raw action, I don't expect to go into SP and be as entertained as I was with 'Rogue Nation.' I just want a solid, all-around great Bond film.

    In terms of action for this year, though, absolutely nothing can or will beat 'Mad Max: Fury Road.' [/quote]

    Yes. While RN was very well done, it is not close to MM's quality. Though I enyjoyed RN, what nagged at me after seeing it, was that Cruise was very clearly copying Bond at every turn. Cruise is getting away with it because the film is very well done with very good action sequences and perhaps most importantly, Cruise cleverly moved RN up before SP to make it look like like the more original film. I bet that we will get a lot of SP reviews that constantly (and unfairly given RN is doing the copying) harp on how similar, and possibly even redundant SP is to RN, unless of course SP is brilliant which is a lot to hope for.

    For me, there is absolutely no doubt that the primary reason RN was moved up at great strain to the director was to open before SP. Now SP will get the redundant tag. There is something not quite cricket going on here. Bond has of course been copied right and left by other spy films this year, but RN is the most blatant because it is not doing it with a twist, or a smile. It's just copying every Bond trope it can possibly get away with. Cruise has been moving MI into Bond territory since before RN, but it is at it's most obvious in RN.
  • BondJasonBond006BondJasonBond006 on fb and ajb
    Posts: 9,020
    @Creasy47
    @smitty

    I have seen MMFR with the Dolby Atmos system.
    I've never experienced anything like it audiovisually! I tell you I felt the shock waves on my body and the floor was vibrating all the time! Not to mention the real surround sound experience in general.

    The fantastic thing is they will release MMFR with the Dolby Atmos track on Blu Ray (at least in the German-language regions).
  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    I just remembered Hunt even sports a beard too during his time away.
  • Posts: 725
    I'm open to criticism here that I'm being unfair to Cruise re his copying Bond so heavily in RN. Maybe I'm wrong as there are no original ideas left for these films, but MI just seems to have moved way into Bond's world.
  • BondJasonBond006BondJasonBond006 on fb and ajb
    Posts: 9,020
    But MI has moved into Bond's world since M:I2 ! And of course on purpose, some scenes can even be viewed as homages to Bond.
    And the more he "copies" from Bond, the better. It works.
  • Posts: 725
    It's just been very obvious to me that Cruise has systematically been turning MI into his Bond clone. I have read numerous reviews which note how similar MI has now become to Bond, but he has mostly received no criticism at all about it in the press because his MI films have been mostly very good and often better than the Bonds he is copying. Compare it to how Bond has been bashed over copying Bourne. Bond became gritty like Bourne, but, unlike MI copying Bond, Bond didn't copy all of Bourne's themes and plot elements. Seems a bit inconsistent.
  • BondJasonBond006BondJasonBond006 on fb and ajb
    Posts: 9,020
    The difference is MI has not just copied Bond but paid tribute or/and made many homages.
    Bond just plain copied Bourne to get the latest filming style into Bond. That backfired somewhat. And of course only in QOS.
    Bond borrowed heavily of The Dark Knight as well, again just to get the latest filming trends into Bond, but they didn't stop at that, they even copied The Joker.

    Let's just say, the producer's shouldn't look for current movie trends to copy.
    They can be original at their own (at least they were able to in the past).
  • Posts: 725
    Someone posted a while ago that there aren't any original ideas left in all of these actions films. They just recycle the ideas. But MM for me was different. Even though it was the 4th film in the franchise, it was so inventive and smart in the story and direction, that it was just terrific. My favorite action film in years. It would be so great if SP could also hit it out of the park, but I don't know if they can do it. It will be really tough. The one sad note for me about MM, is that it deserved to have earned twice the BO it did. It had the kind of visual excitement that should have translated very well to WW markets. Crazy business.
  • Posts: 709

    smitty wrote: »
    It's just been very obvious to me that Cruise has systematically been turning MI into his Bond clone. I have read numerous reviews which note how similar MI has now become to Bond, but he has mostly received no criticism at all about it in the press because his MI films have been mostly very good and often better than the Bonds he is copying. Compare it to how Bond has been bashed over copying Bourne. Bond became gritty like Bourne, but, unlike MI copying Bond, Bond didn't copy all of Bourne's themes and plot elements. Seems a bit inconsistent.

    Yeah. Did you see my post on the previous page? I wrote out a spoiler list of all the Bond things I recognized in Rogue Nation. I noted that Ghost Protocol began to bring a few Bond tropes into the film (PTS-credits, gadget car, Cruise in a tux infiltrating a billionaire's party), and I think this was a reaction to Mission Impossible III being a relative financial disappointment. That latched onto a different spy for inspiration - JJ Abrams' Alias, and the 'spy relationship drama' didn't particularly excite anyone (Hunt's "relationship" basically gets a one scene wrap-up cameo in the next movie). So I think they saw the resurgence of Bond's popularity and decided to move in that direction a little more.
  • edited August 2015 Posts: 725
    Yes. I should have quoted you on it. I know that they have copied elements from Bourne and Batman, but I don't think it has been as extensive as the way MI has been copying Bond. They have copied almost every key Bond element.
  • jake24jake24 Sitting at your desk, kissing your lover, eating supper with your familyModerator
    Posts: 10,591
    Just saw it and really enjoyed it. My overall enjoyment however would have been better if there hadn't been a projection issue at my IMAX theatre that caused the film to become blurry. Also, it's worth noting that the Spectre trailer wasn't shown at the beginning.

    On another note, forgive me if this was already discussed, but there is a scene in RN filmed at Blenheim palace which I can't help but think is very similar to the Spectre Blenheim scenes. When the SP scenes were being filmed, I distinctly remember seeing a set photo of the parking lot, where an AM DB6 was seen. In Rogue Nation, the same car can be seen in the very same parking lot. Can anyone explain this?
  • edited August 2015 Posts: 3,274
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    In terms of pure, raw action, I don't expect to go into SP and be as entertained as I was with 'Rogue Nation.' I just want a solid, all-around great Bond film. In terms of action for this year, though, absolutely nothing can or will beat 'Mad Max: Fury Road.'
    Biggest dissapointment this year. So Max loses his car two minutes into the movie, and spends almost the rest of the movie driving around the wasteland inside or on top of a tanker with a bunch of supermodels with the lead lady looking like a boy, escaping from a bunch of morons, with the main freak looking like the predator from that Arnold movie? It felt like the standard Michael Bay movie to me. Not much of a story here but plenty of CGI action (that looked really, really good I must add). But really not my cup of tea. This movie suffers from really, really sloppy storytelling, and Hardy hardly says anything in the movie. Waste of his talent.

    However, regarding RN/SP, we know that SP will have more action setpieces (*) than RN. Although a great movie
    RN really only had one - the car/motorcycle chase in Morocco.
    SP has four.

    SP will be the actionmovie of the year. I'm almost certain.
    dinovelvet wrote: »
    Mission Impossible III being a relative financial disappointment. That latched onto a different spy for inspiration - JJ Abrams' Alias, and the 'spy relationship drama' didn't particularly excite anyone
    It did get much better reviews than MI:2, however.

    MI:3 is by far my favorite of the series, and one of the best actionmovies in my collection. It has the best and most menacing villain of the five, some of the best action setpieces I have seen, Cruise at the pinnacle of his career and some great dialogue, especially from Lawrence Fishburne.

    No wonder that J.J. Abrams is now one of the most sought-after directors in Hollywood.

    (*) My definition of an action setpiece: 1) Duration: more than one minute 2) stunts 3) Open space, meaning usually outdoors.
  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    Posts: 13,978
    I have not seen Rouge Nation. but my ranking of the first 4 films looks like this:

    1. Mission: Impossible 3
    2. Mission: Impossible
    3. Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol
    4. Mission: Impossible 2
  • Posts: 11,119
    Ooowh, by the way dear Bond fans. I spotted her ;;). And I'm not lying. During the Blenheim Castle sequence there are a few shots of all those expensive cars. And if you look closely, you can see her: The Aston Martin DB5 B-).

    I had one slight feeling of "How sweet and utterly charming Mr McQuarrie, giving a cameo to Bond's car :-)". It's so nice if directors refer to Bond films in such a delicate, respectful way :-).
  • jake24jake24 Sitting at your desk, kissing your lover, eating supper with your familyModerator
    Posts: 10,591
    Ooowh, by the way dear Bond fans. I spotted her ;;). And I'm not lying. During the Blenheim Castle sequence there are a few shots of all those expensive cars. And if you look closely, you can see her: The Aston Martin DB5 B-).

    I had one slight feeling of "How sweet and utterly charming Mr McQuarrie, giving a cameo to Bond's car :-)". It's so nice if directors refer to Bond films in such a delicate, respectful way :-).
    See my post above. And I think it was the DB6.
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