Mission: Impossible (4K UHD + Blu-ray + Digital)

This is my third purchase of the M:I films after receiving Rogue Nation & Ghost Protocol. Can't wait to jump into the fantastic UHD picture these all are bound to have. Also, killer cover and interior art. Comes with an I.M.F. circular sticker which is pretty cool. These steelbooks are worth the price!

Is there a place for time proven methods and principles in today's society? This is a message that is part of the subtext of Mission: Impossible. The film deals with a changing world and how people cannot always change with the world around them. Sometimes the decisions that have to be made lead people to new careers while some people are able to adapt to the changing world within their lives.Over time Mission: Impossible has held up to be a successful example of a film adaption of a television series. Though the production of this film was troubled in finding it's direction and focus. Once Brian De Palma was brought on as director, he was able to alleviate these issues. The production team was able to take a concept and vague character profiles from the television series from the 1960s and translate into an engaging espionage thriller.The story follows an American espionage agent (Tom Cruise) who is framed after his team is killed during a mission. He has to unravel the plot against him and prove his innocence without the support of his government. The film also features Jon Voight, Vanessa Redgrave, Ving Rhames, Jean Reno, Kirsten Scott Thomas and Emilio Estevez. The film's plot is in constant motion. It does not stagnate for long and the film does not stop telling the story to hold the viewer's hand to keep up with the plot twists.This film was the first time that Tom Cruise displayed his action star potential. It not only solidified him as an A-list actor but also someone who could be the forerunner for a franchise. He had to display a different range of acting, as at the time a movie such as this was unexplored territory for him; as well as learn to develop physical abilities for his roles which has continued to the present day.. While the direction of the franchise has been doubted throughout it's course this installment set it on it's path.

Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his team go to Prague in an effort to stop someone from selling a list of all the American covert agents stationed in Eastern Europe. Unfortunately, the mission turns into an ambush with virtually the entire team getting killed. The brass figures that Hunt is a traitor who set up his team, so Ethan goes on the run to try and clear his name.The plot of this movie is somewhat convoluted, though perhaps that is reasonable for a film about espionage and counter-espionage. Things move along pretty quickly for the and there are no major lulls in the action. The characters have at least a little depth to them, but this is not a drama built on deep characterization either. The action sequences mostly work well and the highlight comes halfway through the movie when Ethan and crew break into CIA headquarters in what is easily the most memorable part of the film. Unfortunately, the big climax at the end involves a train scene that is so unbelievable (even by action movie standards) that it can only be described as laughable.The other flaw in this movie only counts if you have seen the original TV show or believe that the film should respect the source material in any way. By turning one of the original characters into a traitor, the producers betrayed everything that character ever stood for. The only thing the traitor had in common with the original is the name, so the film could have used the exact same script with a different character name to honor the old show but that wouldn't have had the same shock value. It's a shame that they chose to spit on the show even as they traded on the name recognition to get people into the movie theaters.If this film is judged on its own merits, setting aside the television series, it's a pretty good action movie. The ending was a farce, but the movie was solid up to that point with some scenes achieving true excellence. I would recommend it to those who never saw the original show or can set their knowledge of it aside and just take the movie for what it is.

My favorite

It’s Mission Impossible what’s not to like. If you like action packed movies then this is for you. Looking forward to watching all of them.

This is one of the best action movies of the 90s and one of the best spy/thrillers of all time. It's important to note that this is different in genre from later movies in the M:I franchise - they're great too, but they are more action focused. Tom Cruise never fires a gun in this movie, which is a sign of how much it leans towards the spy/thriller side and away from the action. Despite that it has numerous compelling action scenes including the CIA hacking scene which is in the argument for top 10 tensest action thriller scenes of all time. Yes there are holes you can pick in the plot on a rewatch, and it has a humilatingly dated use of email and internet searches, but the viewer can easily forgive these because of the excitement and thrill ride of a plot. If I could only recommend one Mission: Impossible movie it might still be Fallout, but that's because that movie is so next level good, anybody who missed this would be doing themselves a disservice.