Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning (2025), Dir Christopher McQuarrie, Paramount Pictures, 5☆☆☆☆☆. Review: Matthew Alicoon
Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning (2025), Dir Christopher McQuarrie, Paramount Pictures,
5☆☆☆☆☆. Review: Matthew Alicoon
“What is Cinema? – This Film Is Your Answer”
Running Time: 171 Minutes
Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning picks up after the events of Dead Reckoning, following Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team in a race against the clock, to find the Entity. The Entity is an artificial intelligence tool that is established can destroy the world.
It is worth starting this review by stating a rapturous applause is needed for Tom Cruise here, for creating one of the best and most awe-inspiringly audacious franchises you have ever seen. Practical filmmaking gets pushed to an insurmountable peak, with this film being the most expensive entry in the franchise costing a whooping $300-400 million. However, when you consider the insurance probably needed for Tom Cruise to perform the stunts, the cost feels less like excess and more like an investment for a cinematic spectacle.
Focusing on the narrative, admittedly there are faults specifically if you are hardcore fan of this franchise. Certain aspects of the Entity’s logic feel inconsistent with its purpose from Dead Reckoning. However, it does constantly feel like classic Mission Impossible escalated on an impeccably time-ticking level. Gabriel (Esai Morales) sadly does not hold a candle up to prior villains Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Sean Harris and Henry Cavill failing to bolster the sheer powerhouse of terror, they exuberated as performers. At times, the film feels like a clash of two halves from Christopher McQuarrie’s and Erik Jendressen’s screenplay unsure of who to put the front and centre.
However, I am going to scrap my critical faculties here and break the rules. Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning is a breath-takingly compelling thrill ride from start to finish, that dynamically moves with such a strong sense of ticking-clock tension throughout. My 5 stars comes from the fact I think Tom Cruise is the holy saviour of cinema. Every time, you think Tom Cruise has outdone himself, he keeps coming back bigger and better. As a viewer, you cannot take your eyes of the sheer spectacle and magnitude of the stunt work throughout this entire series. The submarine sequence was anxiety-inducing and my jaw was wide-open throughout the whole of the plane sequence. The plane sequence might be the best stunt in this whole series for me. Christopher McQuarrie’s exquisite direction needs to be highlighted here, as this is action that feels crystal clean. Tom Cruise is terrific too, carry a complex moral burden with real conviction. The soundtrack by Max Aruj and Alfie Godfrey is beautifully harmonious to the momentum of the film. Simon Pegg also shines here, with his character Benji given more responsibility and it was great to see his character’s evolvement throughout this franchise .
In the end, The Final Reckoning was an incredibly compelling piece of entertaining. I will never wrap my head around, how they film these stunts. The dedication and entertainment value this cast and crew has provided us for a number of years is evident – in every frame. From an entertainment perspective, this gets an 11/10. Go and see this in IMAX, to see what practical filmmaking looks like at its finest.
Cast
Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt
Hayley Atwell as Grace
Ving Rhames as Luther Stickell
Simon Pegg as Benji Dunn
Esai Morales as Gabriel
Pom Klementieff as Paris
Henry Czerny as Eugene Kittridge
Angela Bassett as Erika Sloane
Crew
Director – Christopher McQuarrie
Screenwriters - Christopher McQuarrie & Erik Jendresen
Producers – Tom Cruise & Christopher McQuarrie
Cinematographer – Fraser Taggart
Editor – Eddie Hamilton
Music – Max Aruj & Alfie Godfrey