‘Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation’ Movie Review 0 1034

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For a franchise that’s celebrating its 20th anniversary next year, Mission: Impossible is still managing to find new ways to be relevant and most importantly entertaining. When J.J. Abrams made his directorial debut with M:I 3, he not only included the series’ most memorable villain played by the late-great Philip Seymour Hoffman, but he ushered in a bigger scope that somehow still managed to retain an up-close-and-personal sense of danger and characterful importance.

Ghost Protocol upped the ante in terms of sheer scale and physical stunts, with Tom Cruise climbing the side of the world’s tallest building. And now Rogue Nation tries to takes things to another level with every fibre of its being. The result is a blockbuster that’s thoroughly entertaining, delivering an inventive mix of action set-pieces to rival the best of ‘em.

This time the IMF has been disbanded on the recommendation of fed-up CIA director Hunley (Alec Baldwin, often hilariously indistinguishable from his deadpan 30 Rock persona). This leaves Tom Cruise’s agent Ethan Hunt out in the cold as he tries regardless to track down “The Syndicate,” the so-called anti-IMF rogue organization of ex-secret agents from around the world hell bent on exacting world scale attacks. With the help of old pals Benji (Simon Pegg), Luther (Ving Rhames), Brandt (Jeremy Renner) and is-she-or-isn’t-she-bad Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), he must try and stop The Syndicate while being hunted by the government.

While it’s not as relentlessly, well, fast and furious as something like Mad Max: Fury Road, it provides arguably the summer’s most well-paced blockbuster in terms of placement and variety of action sequences. The marketing for the film has dutifully placed the image of Cruise hanging on the outside of a plane as it takes of at the forefront, drawing in mass audiences with the fact that the 53-year-old superstar actually performed the stunt himself. But Rogue Nation has far more tricks up its sleeve than that, presenting it in a throwaway side-plot that has nothing to do with the main thrust of the story. From that opening, surprisingly short sequence onwards it consistently manages to surprise, no mean feat in an age when audiences know more than ever before about a movie before seeing it on the big-screen.

For all its modern gadgets and globe-trotting adventuring, Rogue Nation is a pleasingly old school film at heart. It’s the closest in spirit to the original ‘60s TV series since Brian De Palma’s 1996 cinematic reboot and makes it feel more like a team effort than ever before. Hunt is a world class secret agent – one really does wonder who would win if he ever went up against Bond and Bourne – but he’s nothing without his team and the film always has that in the back of its mind, if not right at the forefront.

And it’s the camaraderie between the team that’s part of why the film is so enjoyable, each serving their own distinct purpose – they’re better drawn as characters than they’ve ever been – and Pegg’s sardonic yet loveable computer expert Benji providing lots of welcome comic relief from the often breath-taking action sequences. Bringing Swedish stunner Ferguson into the mix is a brilliant move; she more than holds her own against Cruise in the action sequences and, rather refreshingly, she’s not just there as a piece of eye-candy, a stand-out as much, if not more, for her brains and fighting skills as her beauty. Sean Harris makes for a subtly menacing villain, controlling things from behind the curtain like a terrorist Wizard of Oz, although it would have been nice for him to come out to play a little more than he does.

Reuniting with his Jack Reacher director Christopher McQuarrie (he also wrote Cruise vehicles Valkyrie and Edge of Tomorrow), there’s a slick effortless to the action sequences that really help sell the more outlandish moments, finding ways to make what would otherwise be been-there-done-that sequences – notably a showdown above an opera performance – fresh and interesting to look at. From the aforementioned plane sequence to a terrific car/motorcycle chase through the old streets of Casablanca, you’re never short of eye-popping, “how did they do that?” action.

It’s a fairly convoluted plot wrapped inside a simplistic premise, with enough twists and turns to make a Bourne screenwriter’s head spin, but lest we forget McQuarrie wrote one of the kings of keep-you-on-your-toes American cinema – The Usual Suspects – so he makes sure it never gets tied up in knots and most importantly, always keeps things thoroughly compelling. There are times when the plot verges on high farce, namely when it brings a certain British political figurehead into the mix, which can be a bit of a distraction from the action but it has charm to spare and thus just about gets away with it.

There a few other niggles to be had here and there when it comes to plot contrivances needed to things going quickly from A to B but it’d be hard to complain about Rogue Nation in its entirety. As an overall piece of summer blockbuster, it delivers the goods and then some. It’s a film that, with its penchant for genuine stunts, lack of reliance on CGI and a lead actor that prides himself on putting himself through the action ringer for the sake of movie-going spectacle, still provides a breath of fresh air even five films in.

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I'm a freelance film reviewer and blogger with over 10 years of experience writing for various different reputable online and print publications. In addition to my running, editing and writing for Thoughts On Film, I am also the film critic for The National, the newspaper that supports an independent Scotland, covering the weekly film releases, film festivals and film-related features. I have a passion for all types of cinema, and have a particular love for foreign language film, especially South Korean and Japanese cinema. Favourite films include The Big Lebowski, Pulp Fiction and 2001: A Space Odyssey.

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Tolkien Biopic to Be Released in May 0 5287

10th May, 2019 is when Tolkien will be released to the world, an autobiographical film that will revolve around the early days of legendary author J.R.R. Tolkien before he became the literary giant that he is today.

Here on Thoughts on Film we are big fans of his work and the recent films made by Peter Jackson. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings (LOTR), are responsible for originating a universe that has gone on to inspire movies, animation, fiction, and modern media interpretations.



This is why Tolkien is regarded by many as the greatest fantasy author of all time. His creative stamp can be seen nearly everywhere in modern media. There’s the direct reinterpretation of his work in the recently released action roleplaying game Middle Earth: Shadow of War, where players are thrust into a major role in Tolkien’s literary canon. George R.R. Martin, who originated the now globally-popular Game of Thrones series on HBO, openly reveres LOTR as the inspiration for his work, citing the early death of Gandalf in Fellowship of the Ring as having a profound effect on his “own willingness to kill characters at the drop of a hat.” On the web, more Tolkien-inspired work can be found on leading slot portal Slingo and its many online titles dedicated to the fantasy genre, including Amazon Queen, Fae Legend Warrior, and Magic Castle, all of which feature elements that can be traced back to the author’s massive body of work. Technically speaking, the same can be said of nearly every major fantasy brand out there today, from Dungeons & Dragons to Magic: the Gathering. In short, almost every type of entertainment that features western fantasy can be traced back to the works of Tolkien.

In the upcoming Tolkien movie, the man will be played by Nicholas Hoult, whom is best known for Mad Max: Fury Road and Hank McCoy in the most recent X-Men movies. And now, the actor’s versatility will be tested as he steps into the shoes of the most iconic fantasy writer of all time. Starring alongside Hoult will be the actress Lily Collins as Edith Bratt – the woman whom Tolkien loved above all and is reportedly the inspiration for all “elven princess characters” in the LOTR series.

Helming the film is director Dome Karukoski whose CV includes 2017’s Tom of Finland, a critically acclaimed chronicle of the life and works of the controversial artist of the same name. And while media outlets haven’t yet heard from either the cast, director, or crew of the film, an official synopsis of the movie has been released via Collider. “Tolkien explores the formative years of the orphaned author as he finds friendship, love and artistic inspiration among a group of fellow outcasts at school. This takes him into the outbreak of World War I, which threatens to tear the “Fellowship” apart. All of these experiences would inspire Tolkien to write his famous Middle-earth novels.” It sounds like a real treat for film, literature, and Middle Earth fans.

Feature: 2019 Oscar Predictions 0 4031

I think it’s fair to say that the run up to this year’s Oscars has been a little messier than usual, from unexpected and bizarre wins at other awards shows (Vice winning Best Editing at the BAFTAs, anyone?) to ridiculous decisions by the Academy to change the show around.

The latter has proved a particular point of contention with both those in the industry to onlookers on social media, with choices such as not letting all the songs be performed to introducing a Best Popular Film category (whatever that means) to not airing four categories live; Editing and Cinematography proved a particular issue, sending the folks of Film Twitter into a Hulk-like rage.

Thankfully all of these decisions except for the one to not have a main host have taken the walk-back of shame; I look forward to Clint Eastwood talking to an empty chair again. Of course there’s still the issue of plenty of thoroughly deserving films, filmmakers and performances not being up for any Oscars at all (*cough* Toni Collette! *cough*) but of course that’s not an issue unique to this year.

The show must go on, as they say, and I thought a week out from this year’s ceremony I’d throw my hat into the ring as far as predictions goes. Below I’ve listed what I think will win in each category, as well as what I personally would like to see pick up that little gold man come next Sunday evening.

Best Picture

Want to win: A Star is Born
Will win: Green Book

Lead Actor

Want to win: Bradley Cooper (A Star is Born)
Will win: Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody)

Lead Actress

Want to win: Olivia Colman (The Favourite)
Will win: Olivia Colman (The Favourite)

Supporting Actor

Want to win: Richard E. Grant (Can You Ever Forgive Me?)
Will win: Mahershala Ali (Green Book)

Supporting Actress

Want to win: Emma Stone (The Favourite)
Will win: Regina King (If Beale Street Could Talk)

Director

Want to win: Alfonso Cuarón (Roma)
Will win: Alfonso Cuarón (Roma)

Animated Feature

Want to win: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Will win: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Adapted Screenplay

Want to win: BlacKkKlansman
Will win: BlacKkKlansman

Original Screenplay

Want to win: First Reformed
Will win: The Favourite

Cinematography

Want to win: Roma
Will win: Roma

Documentary Feature

Want to win: Free Solo
Will win: Minding the Gap

Foreign Language Film

Want to win: Roma
Will win: Roma

Film Editing

Want to win: BlacKkKlansman
Will win: Bohemian Rhapsody

Sound Editing

Want to win: A Quiet Place
Will win: Bohemian Rhapsody

Sound Mixing

Want to win: A Star is Born
Will win: Bohemian Rhapsody

Production Design

Want to win: Roma
Will win: The Favourite

Original Score

Want to win: If Beale Street Could Talk
Will win: Black Panther

Original Song

Want to win: Shallow (A Star is Born)
Will win: Shallow (A Star is Born)

Makeup and Hair

Want to win: Mary Queen of Scots
Will win: Vice

Costume Design

Want to win: Black Panther
Will win: The Favourite

Visual Effects

Want to win: Avengers: Infinity War
Will win: Ready Player One

Animated Short

Want to win: Bao
Will win: Bao

Live Action Short

Want to win: Marguerite
Will win: Marguerite

Documentary Short Subject

Want to win: Black Sheep
Will win: Lifeboat

Do you agree? Disagree? Feel free to leave your predictions/wishes for the winners below or tweet @TOF_UK or @rosstmiller.

Roll on Sunday!