Since December of last year, The Bishop, Don "Mack" Donald, has been sending in movie reviews, that I haven't run. Why? Usually because his reviews are so close to the date of release, that I am deluged with reviews. But let me give you a bit of an idea about the man's tastes. ANY GIVEN SUNDAY --2/10, WHERE THE HEART IS --1/10, AMERICAN PSYCHO --7/10, KEEPING THE FAITH --2/10, ROAD TRIP --8/10, VIVA ROCK VEGAS -- 4/10, VIRGIN SUICIDES --10/10, GLADIATOR --3/10 and BATTLEFIELD EARTH --1/10. Alright, so that gives you an idea of range as to what this guy likes and dislikes... do you agree/disagree... whatever, it gives you perspective on this 10/10 review he gives MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 2...
Mission : Impossible 2 by The Bishop Don "Mack" Donald
Presiding over the Memorial Day weekend with authority no summer film should ever have, MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 2 rockets out of the gate and provides thrills and spills that raise the bar for summer entertainment so high, I find it hard to even consider another film being this superb. Of course, there might be better films to come, but for now, M: I-2 takes the cake.
In yet another high adventure for the Impossible Mission team, Agent Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) must travel down under to Australia to stop former agent Sean Ambrose (EVER AFTER’s Dougray Scott) from terrorizing the world with a deadly biochemical. With the help of a thief (BELOVED’s Thandie Newton) and a fellow agent (Ving Rhames, reprising his role from the first film), Hunt must track down and destroy the virus before Ambrose can profit from it. M: I-2 also features an unusually strong supporting cast that includes Anthony Hopkins, Brendan Gleeson (THE GENERAL), and Rade Serbedzija (THE SAINT).
It has been stated clearly in the publicity that Cruise wanted the new IMPOSSIBLE to look and feel nothing like it’s predecessor. Like a James Bond cycle of films in which a new director comes in a give each chapter a fresh look and feel. M: I-2 accomplishes this with great success through the guidance of new director John Woo (THE KILLER, FACE/OFF) and screenwriter Robert Towne (CHINATOWN). Where the first IMPOSSIBLE film was a cool slice of post-Cold War paranoia, an underrated spy film with inspired action sequences, and the only real interesting TV Show spin-off film of the 1990’s, M: I-2 is 180 degrees different. While the film retains it’s espionage origins with delightful results, M: I-2 is more of an operatic event. A film of such grand moments and sweeping narrative changes that no other modern film would dare touch for concern of looking the fool. M: I was good, but M: I-2 is fearless.
The differences between the two films can be seen right away in Jeffery Kimball’s gloriously crisp cinematography. Capturing the alluring swelter of an Australian summer, Kimball photographs M: I-2 like a stained glass window. The colors pop and the action is clear as a bell. The film is stunning to behold, a real rarity in an action film. Towne’s script is also coherent and cohesive. The knee-jerk reaction to the 1996 original for most people was to grumble that the film lacked logic. While I’m positive that a case could be made for this argument, M: I-2 wisely makes the choice and stops every 15 minutes to clarify just what in the hell is going on. If you pay attention, it’s all pretty easy to follow.
While all eyes are on Tom Cruise in M: I-2, the real star of the film is dynamite action director John Woo. Having made giant strides in his English-language action films to somehow squeeze in a sense of beauty amid all the mayhem, Woo has single-handedly created some of the most kinetic (1996’s BROKEN ARROW) and profound (1997’s FACE/OFF) Hollywood action films ever. Woo takes M: I-2 to places I would never have thought this series could go. He gives the proceedings a soul and takes creative risks to insure this aesthetic. Some might snicker at Woo’s melodramatic tendencies - and many people do - but I applaud any director who takes the time to make a simple love story as dramatically heart-pounding as a car chase. It’s Woo’s gift for storytelling that makes M: I-2 such a resounding success. And as for action? There is nobody quite like Woo. A genius at staging stunts, Woo outdoes himself in M: I-2. His trademark visual flair and suspension of disbelief are still in full effect, but working within the story’s rigid structure of tension, Woo’s typical berserk style is oddly muted. It is only in the film’s last 25 minutes that the old Woo we know and love comes out to play. It’s welcome to see Woo working so diligently at sustaining mood, but when the action lurches forward (you can literally feel the film lift you up), it feels as pure as a pixie stick. That sinister rush of action just ignites the screen, but at the same time compliments all that has come before it.
That’s not saying that Tom Cruise just plays dead and let’s Woo do all the work. He returns to the permanently wound-up Ethan Hunt role with a strict agenda: to make him human. Cruise’s Hunt character this time around is given a love interest (the lovely Newton) and an unusual amount of time to become a true bad-ass. It fits Cruise to a tee. By becoming an living action figure, Cruise can rely on Woo to fill in all the necessary dramatic elements and just leave him to concentrate on spinning backflips and one wheel motorcycle tricks (both being featured in the film’s absolutely brilliant climax). It’s a strong Cruise performance, backed up by other actors who would normally seem out of place in this type of film, but appear to stay afloat this time out.
Yes, I gush, but M: I-2 is really that good. It’s rare to see a summer film - much less any film - live up to it’s hype and deliver the goods with such authority. My only concern is that when this film makes it’s truckloads of money (I’m betting it will), and talk comes around about making a third installment of this series, how are they going to top this one? I guess that’s part of the fun of going to the movies. ------- 10/10
The Bishop
