Mission: Impossible (1996)
Mission: Impossible Review
Mission: Impossible is a 1996 action spy film directed by Brian De Palma and starring Tom Cruise. It is the first entry in the franchise and it is incredibly weak.
The story in particular is very uninspired. It is always too complex, but complex in a bad way. It is convoluted and difficult to follow. But the problem is that I wasn’t invested in it nearly enough to even want to follow it, let alone understand it. It moves at a weird pace and seems almost like a TV show than a movie which is expected as it is based on a TV show. But it is mostly boring and tired.
The characters in Mission: Impossible are also very mediocre. Ethan Hunt is such a forgettable and typical protagonist that is of course cocky and arrogant. I disliked him and the rest of the characters are all forgettable. However, I did like the acting and Tom Cruise in particular is pretty good and this movie started his action career. He is a good fit for the role and is especially good in action sequences.
Speaking of action, it is mostly too over-the-top and ridiculous in nature. That is why I did not enjoy it. But I acknowledge its impact on the genre and I did like that famous scene in the middle which is so influential and of course quite iconic by this point. That was suspenseful and intriguing, but the rest is just flat.
It is weakly directed by Brian De Palma and awfully paced with such a weird, problematic pacing. The structure is so poor. The character development is non-existent almost and the story is unimpressive. Some of the action is good and that is the only reason to watch this movie along with the score which is just fantastic, not only in its hugely popular theme which is superb, but also in other scenes that are lifted by good choices. The score is the only impressive aspect of Mission: Impossible. It is unoriginal and the use of gadgets is only mildly entertaining at times and the whole film overall is not fun. It is also very unrealistic, at times ridiculous and always convoluted and typical. It is dated at times and it is such a weak, very uninspired way to start a franchise.
