It's been a few years now since we saw the ending of No Time to Die but Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One proves that James Bond has well and truly been found dead in a ditch. Tom Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie are making action spy movies that are reminding us exactly how these films should be made. Tom Cruise is a movie star on another level, and it's films like Mission Impossible that remind us what action blockbusters should be like, with the 61-year-old providing us with the movie of the summer for the second year running.
Cruise's Ethan Hunt and his IMF gang are back with yet another impossible mission as a new terrifying artificial intelligence, along with an old foe from Ethan's past, threaten the safety and security of the entire world. Familiar favourites from the gang return — including Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames, Rebecca Ferguson and Vanessa Kirby — as well as Henry Czerny's Eugene Kittridge who hasn't been seen since the first Mission. But it is perhaps the new additions of Hayley Atwell, Pom Klementieff, Esai Morales and Shea Whigham that help Dead Reckoning reach the heights of its predecessor Fallout.
It's these characters that keep the film going, giving the spectacular set-pieces depth and meaning. The incredible action scenes would have little emotional weight if we didn't truly feel the love Ethan has for his friends. The bond between Ethan's IMF team is stronger than ever and the introduction of Hayley Atwell's unpredictable Grace makes for a really interesting match. Pom Klementieff's quiet assassin Paris also helps fuel extra tension and nail-biting fight scenes.
Unsurprisingly however, it's the action scenes that stand out in Dead Reckoning. The incredible moment teased in the trailers —Tom Cruise riding a motorbike off a cliff before parachuting onto a train — really is a jaw-dropping sight to behold. You truly feel the danger with Tom Cruise once again risking injury (or worse!) for our entertainment. It's clear as day watching these stunts on screen that they are real and not CGI, and the film is so much better for it.
But every single set-piece in the film is spectacular and absolutely riveting to watch. And there are plenty of them. Dead Reckoning feels like a true globetrotting spy movie as we move from Abu Dhabi to Rome to Venice and more with stunning sequences in each location. With Dead Reckoning moving at pace between locations and scenes, the 2 hours and 43-minute runtime absolutely flies by.
As part one of a two-parter there may be concerns that, much like Across the Spider-Verse or Fast X, it doesn't have its own conclusion. But thankfully Dead Reckoning does a fantastic job of wrapping itself up so that it continues the franchise's tradition of standing on its own whilst simultaneously leaving you itching for more.
Thanks to the incredible work from Cruise and co, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is fresh, unpredictable, and perhaps one of the most self-referential, funniest instalments of the franchise yet. Including mind-blowing action scenes and consistently engaging character moments in between, it's a force to be reckoned with. An action spectacle that must be witnessed on the biggest screen possible, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is set to be one of the best movies of the year.
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One releases in UK cinemas on July 10th.
