Mission Impossible 4 : Ghost Protocol (2011) Review

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Synopsis:

No plan. No backup. No choice.

The International Monetary Fund is shut down when it is implicated in a global terrorist bombing plot. Ghost Protocol is initiated, and Ethan Hunt and his new rogue team must go undercover to clear their organisation’s name. No help, no contact, off the grid. You have never seen a grittier and more intense mission than this.

Review

Mission Impossible 4. Yes you read correct; it’s the 4th in the franchise, so it’s no longer a trilogy. Sometimes there is a perfectly good reason or logic for a film to enter the quad region in its series, either to further a story line or perhaps reboot the franchise. I did wonder which direction this particular film was going to branch off into. I watched the trailer twice (Yuck) and happy to say it doesn’t give too much away in the film, it can actually throw you off in some scenes. MI4 does add a bit further to the story of the previous versions (not by much though), but I also felt as if it was rebooting itself for future films. I am felicitous to say I really enjoyed it.

I am sure by now you know what the Mission Impossible movies are all about. We have an elite team of agents, and they have to stop an evil mastermind or villain. Even though the story can be slightly clichéd or predictable at times, it doesn’t take you away from the picture at all. We are speedily introduced to our team, which I liked very much. I was glad to see a whole new team aside from our leader Mr Hunt (Tom Cruise). They fit very well, with decent acting all round from our cast, some nice banter, add in a splash of humour just at the right moments and it makes for entertaining dialogue. Every team member gets their time to shine and add their own unique feel to the characters, so it didn’t feel one sided by certain cast members at all, which I was slightly concerned about. The story isn’t hugely original, but you knew that already and I am quite sure is not the reason you want to watch this film. We do get a small cameo, which I was very happy to see.

Talking about why you would want to watch this flick, is the special effects and action scenes. I felt they were awesome! With a great blend of different ideas, which sometimes you aren’t sure how are going to end up. Explosions, car chases, fight scenes, it’s very much fast paced so strap in tight! To be honest this really should be the new James Bond, just in team mode. There are some hair-raising shots that even had me squirming in my seat or made me “whoa” out loud. They really are extremely well done and are one of the key factors in these films which I would have to say the Director pulled off marvellously.

The film wouldn’t be much if we sat in the same position for any length of time, and gladly we do not. By traversing a variety of beautiful locations, it gives us a nice taste of the different lands, so nothing gets stale. It almost feels as if each area we visit is a different stage for another part of the mission, so it’s always exciting to see what the team is going to get up to next, once we have so called “landed”.

The movie- as fun as it was, did have its fair share of plot holes and predictability; some are quite blatant and some not so much. With a title such as this, they have to bend some of the rules or else you wouldn’t have the same motion-picture we have today. The pros do outweigh the cons quite considerably in this edition of the franchise.

At the end of the day, Mission Impossible 4 sets out to throw us into adrenaline rushing moments of action, special effects and espionage! That it does and very well I might add. It has minor downfalls, but nothing too major. I was in a rather full cinema and from what I could hear around me, the audience thoroughly enjoyed it too. It’s a popcorn fun flick that you can’t take too seriously; cause really, where’s the fun in that? The film is in its first week of showing and has managed to gross $85Million dollars thus far.

Worth the watch if, you are a fan of the franchise, are an action fan or want a movie that you don’t have to think too hard about and want to walk out with a smile on your face.

Trailer

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