I finally rewatched this after seeing this many, MANY years ago and it was much better than I remember (all I remember is being confused)
>solid plot
>they generally didn't go too far with technobabble and keep it mostly realistic
>great cast
>great acting
>solid twists
>action scenes are well filmed and enjoyable
Is there better espionage kino?
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This is what james bond films should have evolved to.
Brian de Palma is an excellent cinematographer and MI truly shows this:
>the opening in prague
We follow cruise as his crew gets picked one by one
All those spyshots that comes together in the flashback
>the security room
The scenery, editing and the shots here are classics. You still remember alot of the images because their so iconic and the suspense is real
>the copter/train ending
That final scene has an intense ending, allthough perhaps a little bit silly with the masks
I don't know how I feel for the plot, it works really good for what it is, a sort of lengthier version of the tv-show I guess, but I don't think it's that great.
It's interesting to compare MI to MI2. John Woo is a better action director but that is all there is. The latter has a sillier plot, is less intense and suspenseful because the direction has shifted from thrill to entertainment (cinematography, soundtrack, plot, etc). Cruise is still the same.
>I don't know how I feel for the plot, it works really good for what it is, a sort of lengthier version of the tv-show I guess, but I don't think it's that great
I mean yeah, the plot isn't some game changing thing, it's just the glue that holds the basic espionage themes together. It's character driven not plot driven.
>It's interesting to compare MI to MI2
All MI's beyond the first are action films foremost with minor espionage themes.
Also name a film with a more iconic/memorable original soundtrack/theme song.
The face to face between Phelps and Hunt, in the train station, where the latter understands the truth (with the flashbacks), makes the first Mission Impossible a masterpiece.
That scene may be my favorite of all time, in any movie.
>"Why jim, why?" having a different meaning for both of them
Should I watch the other M:I films? All but II are better rated than the original for most review sources, however modern reviewing is garbage so I don't know how to take that.
They are all just action set piece movies right? Are they actually worth it?
MI : 2 is fun but in a weird way. John Woo's flamboyant style is fascinating, and offers many laughs. But it is mostly a guilty pleasure.
I don't like MI : 3, actually I don't remember much about it but that's mostly because I don't like JJ Abrams' style either.
Ghost Protocol is great. Keep in mind that every MI are marked with their director's style. Brad Bird's cartoony style is everywhere in Ghost Protocol, and I really think it is one of the best action movie from the last ten-fifteen years. The plot is classic but pretty efficient in my opinion, and the finale act is full of suspense. Pretty thrilling movie, but don't search any credibility, it is not what the movie is trying to achieve.
Rogue Nation leave me so-so. It is a good movie, with insane stunts (following what Ghost Protocol had started), but I find the plot a little messy and McQuarrie's style is not as obvious as Woo, De Palma or Bird's, which makes it a little less personal (which go against the initial philosophy of the saga). Still a good movie nevertheless.
The most refreshing thing was how few SPLOSIONS it had and just focused on the story and characters instead which was pretty novel at the time. Too bad the sequels more more about SPLOSIONS
I always found it very interesting that Brad Bird did an M:I film, given that he was only known for brilliant family friendly animations at that point.
>character or plot driven films
>novel
>in 1996
I mean, not really... Today sure it would be out of the ordinary but I doubt so much back then. It was 20 fucking years ago.
The only mission impossible that wasn't over the top, actually a good film that kinda carried what the original show carried.
It was the late Schwarzenegger/Stallone era of big buget action movies, even the later (and mostly terrible) Bond movies had to cater to that
>I always found it very interesting that Brad Bird did an M:I film, given that he was only known for brilliant family friendly animations at that point.
In a book I have about Tom Cruise career, Cruise says that he saw The Incredibles and was blown away, and decided he wanted to work with him. So he told Bird that if he ever wanted to do a live action movie, they will do it together. During Ghost Protocol pre-production, Tom Cruise told the crew to watch the Incredibles and analyse how Bird directed the action sequences.
On a side note, he also said, about the Burj Khalifa scene, that anyway he was gonna die if he fell from the 3rd floor, so why not doing the stunt from th 124th. The stunt crew actually thought the scene was going to be CG, but Tom insisted to do the stunt anyway, despite the fact that nobody would notice that it is not him climbing the tower. So they had to build a reproduction of the facade for Tom to practice before shooting the scene on the actual tower.
You gotta love the man's dedication to his work.
But it was still an area when action was it's own real genre, instead of everything now being Action + films themes spliced in
Those were action movies and this was a spy movie. Now they are action movies with spy themes.
>despite the fact that nobody would notice that it is not him climbing the tower.
If one thing is more film immersion breaking than any other it's noticing a stunt double. Which is what makes Cruise films so refreshing is it's almost always going to be him and never a double trying to look like him and failing.
The face to face between Hunt and Kittridge is perfect too. Lot of intensity in the performances and the unusual camera angles.
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>that waiter probably died
Yeah, I love the way the tension is built up throughout the scene.
I always thought that the first MI was a lesson of filmmaking, even if I love Ghost Protocol.
Another thing about that, and is the reason more actors should do their own stunts, is that it makes shit awkward when you have to keep cutting or showing strange angles to try and hide the fact you've got some stunt goof trying to pretend to be someone else.
>great cold open
>catchy title sequence
>immediate spy sequence, no ramp up
>plot very straight forward
>enjoyable, relatable and sexy main character
>cute femme fatale
>great villain
>near GOAT spy sequence
>dat ending wit da train doe
No question that this is the best serious spy film. Casino Royale is a close second.
I think there is a fear factor that keeps actors from doing their own stunts. Cruise himself said that of course he is scared, but that he had to deal with it and go along with the stunt.
I think that at this point, after running after the Oscar in the late 90's early 00's (after he failed to get it for Magnolia), he just want to have fun and doing crazy shit in his movies is a way to have fun, and to please the audience along the way. Cruise always way respectful of his audience, and late Cruise want to have fun with them.
I love M:I 1. It's my favorite.
The thing I felt weird about was how Ethan was putting evryone's life on the line (the NOC list members) to get to the killer of his crew.
I think I heard somewhere that DePalma wanted Ethan to be a potental bad guy as far as the audience was concern (was he just pretending to look for the killer when all he wanted was the complete NOC list to sell to the highest bidder?), but that the studio made him loose that angle in favor of a sympathetic good guy Ethan all the way.
Cruise can do some of his own stunts because it's his production company.
Maybe there is something like that, but it goes beyond that. During the shooting of War of the Worlds, a stunt was supposed to be done either digitally or by a stuntman (I don't remember exactly), as Spielberg requested. But when Cruise noticed that the stunt was going to be done without him, he jumps on into a harness and did it himself.
So maybe he has a minimum authority concerning his stunts, but these different exemples show that the stunts were supposed to be done without Cruise.
Maybe he thinks that Scientology made him immortal?
Yeh I love this movie, it's a good time. The early/mid 90s was a great time for genre flicks overall.
I think he just understands that doing stunts digitally or with stuntmen can hurt the overall film and look bad.
Ontop of that he is probably some high thrill seeker so he can't stop himself either. That and he CAN get away with it.
I don't know. I know that he said he enjoys doing his own stunt.
To further my point in the book, it is said that for MI : 2, they didn't show the rushes for the rock climbing scene during its shooting to the Paramount producer Sherry Lansing because Cruise didn't want "Sherry to have a heart attack". Whereas it is an urban legend or not, it kinda proves that Cruise wasn't supposed to make his own dangerous stunts (we know for sure it is something he is used to do, since he does the pool shots in Color of Money himself, but the MI stunts are on another level).
Apart for the fear factor, maybe actors don't do their own stunts because of the producers and insurances, I guess there is a lot of money going on here.
I keep hoping MI would return to the style of the first but I know it's not going to happen. As much as I liked the last one I can't help but feel that the silliness and the "dude just turn your brain off lmao" approach is getting stale
I'm going to watch this after I finish Pitch Black.
What should I make to eat?
Yeah, I kinda agree with you, but I think that the last MI are not as dumb as you think they are, especially regarding Cruise's career and specifically Ethan Hunt's character development. But yeah, returning to an atmsophere close to De Palma's MI would be great, breaking the late lighthearted tone of the saga. But some parts of Rogue Nation kinda remind me of MI 1's atmosphere (gloomy city by night, walkways wet from the rain, feeling of a cold night, for instance). It is kinda coherent since, if I recall, Rogue Nation is the only one referencing the events of MI 1.
This fucking grand scene from MI2 though... so dark for the series
Steak with half-baked potatoes and caramelized onions.
Yeah, there are a lot of good stuff in MI 2, this scene for example, and some filmmaking effects are classy (call me crazy but the transition effets with the spanish dancers when Hunt see Nyah for the first time are top notch and kinda stuck with me ever since), but the problem with MI 2 is that a lot of stupid things counterbalance the good.
Are there any doves in MI2? This is important.
>doves
Of course there are. Check the link shared by the other user, timestamp 2:20.
I don't like steak
I still can't believe people (even critics) thought M:I 1 was too "complicated."
I thought it was complicated when I first watched it with my dad when I was about 12
DePalma has a style that is very reminiscent of Giallo movies and of Hitchcock.
Hors D'Oeuvres: pâté of foie gras on rye toast
Main Course: testaroli with pesto
Dessert: tiramisu with Yorkshire tea
>eating while watching films
disgusting