Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation review: high on style, low on substance

Rogue Nation opens on Ethan Hunt (Cruise) tracking down The Syndicate, a group of evil agents ("the anti-IMF," as Simon Pegg puts it) that no one seems to believe exists, led by the anti-Hunt (a surprisingly beard-and-emotion-free Sean Harris). Why is The Syndicate so bad? Because we’re told they’re bad; aside from one (relatively) minor act of espionage, the movie fills in pieces with several lines of exposition. We’re supposed to hate them because of their ideals and capabilities — because Hunt hates them — not because of anything we really get to see. At the same time, the IMF is dissolved, leaving Hunt with few resources outside his own (admittedly impressive) arsenal of wits, safe house gadgetry, and obsessive sense of right and wrong. Mission: Impossible isn’t exactly known for taut storytelling, but the problem here is that there’s very little emotional investment offered for the audience.


Of course, the throughline is just an excuse to tie together a series of action sequences, which for the most part shine brightly — chief among them is Cruise hanging off the side of a plane, which has been played up during the marketing campaign as this movie’s holy-shit-Tom-Cruise-actually-did-that moment. Unlike the time Cruise actually climbed the Burj Khalifa in Ghost Protocol, though, this scene doesn’t quite elicit the same visceral feelings as the tower climb. It's also much shorter — if you've seen any of the trailers, you’ve pretty much seen the whole scene. The other sequences are impressive, a mixed bag of the great (one prolonged scene at an opera house shines as the film’s best) and the maybe all too familiar (a pretty by-the-numbers car chase).

 
That said, even the most rote sequence is exciting, thanks in large part to Cruise himself. Ethan Hunt is reckless and risk-taking; he rarely comes away from a fight without a few bruises, cuts, bullet wounds, or various near-death experiences. There’s an air of levity interspersed between the scuffles — a self-awareness that made Brad Bird’s entry (2011’s Ghost Protocol) so compelling — which carries over for the most part here. Cruise nails these moments, projecting at times both confidence and incredulity that he survived yet another precarious situation
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Joining Cruise is computer whiz Benji Dunn (the always-talented Simon Pegg) and de facto femme fatale Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), who is without question the best part of the film as a fully-realized, very capable, complicated foil to Hunt (note: not a love interest). The few remaining speaking roles — including older computer whiz Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames), secret agent project manager William Brandt (Jeremy Renner), and Alec Baldwin — are woefully underused but make the most of their screentime with wit instead of weaponry.

"I think this movie is a really great popcorn film and has what I would want in a movie."

— Tom Cruise at the  Rogue Nation premiere
Not that anyone else in this movie matters except Tom Cruise. Mission: Impossible is and has always been about Cruise wanting to push the limits of what an action star can do for the camera. But for all its style — and there is a lot of style, not to mention more than a little luck at some precarious moments — Rogue Nation feels lacking in substance. With Skyfall, Sam Mendes gave us a reason to care about James Bond, a flawed killer. The Fast & Furious franchise, which at this point is just pretty much a good vs. 

evil thriller with cars, has turned into the new high point for ridiculous stunts (some practical, some CG) and yet still manages to tug on our heartstrings every time Vin Diesel says the word "family." There’s no reason we can’t be blown away by big explosions and strong emotional choices, and Cruise is more than capable at delivering such a nuanced performance.