Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol

Director:  Brad Bird
Cast: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton, Simon Pegg, Michael Nyqvist and Tom Wilkinson
Releasing in cinemas: 15 December 2011
Rated: M

First, a confession - I love spy movies. Whether it’s the low-key, John Le Carre type (for example, the upcoming Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) or the tech-driven and outrageous James Bond type, I’m a sucker for the shadowy world of espionage. The latest in the highly successful Mission: Impossible franchise is plainly in the second category, but with some deft direction and a solid script, this turns out to be one of the better examples of the genre.

This is the fourth in the series, which has a somewhat patchy history. Brian de Palma’s 1996 original - complete with the famous ‘hanging from a wire’ scene - set a very high benchmark for those that followed. John Woo’s 2000 follow-up was, sadly, six kinds of awful; and J.J. Abrams’ 2006 MI3 proved to be watchable without being particularly memorable. Now Brad Bird has the reins. Bird, you may recall, shot to fame as the director of three excellent animated films - The Iron Giant, The Incredibles and Ratatouille. This is his first foray into live action features, and he handles himself creditably.

Working from a script by Josh Applebaum and Andre Neméc, Bird barely pauses to catch breath as his story propels the characters around the globe. This is particularly effective in this genre, as it sweeps the audience along and makes it easier to gloss over any plot holes (of which there are plenty, if you’re minded to minutely analyse this kind of movie).

My main quibble is that the script is largely, though not entirely, a re-run of de Palma’s film - a mission ends in disaster, requiring Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) to strike out with his team to find the real culprit. I’m over-simplifying things of course, but you have to wonder how this crack team of secret operatives manages to have so much bad luck.

The film starts with a bang as IMF agents Jane Carter (Paula Patton) and Benji Hunt (Simon Pegg) break Hunt out of a Russian jail. Quite why he’s there is something of a mystery; but he’s sorely needed to pull off a new ‘impossible’ mission. This involves breaking into the Kremlin to retrieve stolen nuclear launch codes to prevent them falling into the hands of a shadowy extremist (Michael Nyqvist) hell-bent on provoking nuclear war. The whole thing goes pear-shaped however when a huge explosion rocks the Kremlin, and Hunt’s team is implicated.

A meeting with the Secretary (Tom Wilkinson) confirms that Hunt and the IMF have been disavowed, and the US has invoked the ‘ghost protocol’ to ensure responsibility for the whole affair stops with Hunt. When the Secretary is assassinated however, Hunt decides he must stop the madman to both avert a global apocalypse and to clear his name. In the process, he acquires the services of the Secretary’s policy advisor, Brandt (Jeremy Renner), who turns out to be pretty handy with both fists and weapons.

The film flits from Russia to Dubai to India as the apparently disavowed but remarkably well-equipped team seek to prevent the maniac from unleashing Armageddon. Along the way, Bird stages some remarkable set-pieces, including the initial Kremlin scenes, a terrifying rope-dangling act in Dubai and the climactic battle in a high-tech Mumbai car park.

The cast, led by the seemingly ageless Cruise, give largely convincing performances - when they’re not dodging bullets or throwing punches, which is much of the time. Cruise, now 49 years old, still makes for a dashing leading man and slips into the role of Hunt like it was a comfy pair of shoes. Paula Patton (Precious) is a svelte sidekick, and her battle with an assassin played by French actress Léa Seydoux (Midnight in Paris) is a highlight. Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker) does no harm to his burgeoning reputation, and Simon Pegg (Paul) provides some moments of levity amongst the mayhem. Michael Nyqvist, seen in the Swedish ‘Millenium trilogy’ movies (i.e. Girl with the Dragon Tattoo etc) appears in his second English-language film this year; but this is far better than his previous, the Taylor Lautner vehicle Abduction.

Though not without its faults, I thoroughly enjoyed Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol. There’s something quite intoxicating about the blend of high-risk espionage, exotic locales and great gobs of action. It’s pretty mindless entertainment, but sometimes, that’s just what you want.

David Edwards