“Ghost Protocol,” the 4th installment of the “Mission Impossible” franchise sees the return of Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames. For this latest installment, the details of the mission hardly matter. It’s the journey towards completion that’s riveting, as it filled with lots of death defying stunts and plenty of explosions.
15 year after the first release (the first “Mission Impossible” was released in 1996), Tom Cruise is back as Ethan Hunt, a professional spy, whose latest mission, if he chooses to accept it, is to stop a nuclear war. Blamed for the terrorist bombing of the Kremlin in Moscow, Hunt, along with the rest of the agency are left without any resources or backup when the President initiates “Ghost Protocol”. Along with his team, they have to find an assassin believed to be carrying to nuclear launch codes and clear the agency’s name.
Photo credit: David James (L-R): Paula Patton, Simon Pegg, Tom Cruise and Jeremy Renner
As they jet from Mumbai to Dubai scaling skyscrapers and donning disguises, it’s a nearly impossible mission to take the plot seriously, but with visually dazzling stunts and plenty of intense moments, the entertainment factor is high in this 4th franchise of a movie based on the ’60s television show. “I loved the show when I was a kid,” says Cruise. “I felt that, as a film, it could take us to different locations, have pulse-racing action sequences and smart, innovative tech. It was the first film I ever produced. As a filmmaker and as an actor, I’m always thinking about the audience. I want to entertain them and give them a new adventure every time.”
Photo credit: Joe Lederer (L-R): Paula Patton and Tom Cruise
Director by Brad Bird, rounding out the cast are Indian star Anil Kapoor, widely known for his performance in the Academy Award®-winning “Slumdog Millionaire,” as an Indian communications magnate, Russian actor Vladimir Mashkov plays a Russian intelligence operative and Paula Patton is Agent Jane Carter. An action-packed thrill ride, “Mission,” which was filmed over a five month period from October 2010 to March 2011, is filled with mind-boggling stunts, rich characters, cool gadgets and stunning locations. In one action packed scene, Hunt slips out of a fourth-story window and, while Russian operatives wait for him to give up, grabs his belt, leaps from the building ledge, slides down a nearby power line to the roof of a moving van and rolls off safely onto the street.
Photo credit: David James (L-R): Jeremy Renner plays Brandt and Tom Cruise plays Ethan Hunt
“These are the hardest movies to make,” affirms Cruise. “It’s always about coming up with a fresh story – how do we make it interesting and keep up the suspense?” The first three films were huge hits, collectively grossing more than $2 billion worldwide and with several exciting and suspenseful sequences “Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol” will likely follow suit.
Photo credit: David James (L-R): Paula Patton plays Jane and Lea Seydouz plays Sabine Moreau
Samantha Ofole-Prince is a journalist and movie critic who covers industry-specific news that includes television and film. She serves as the Entertainment Editor for Trendy Africa.
Leave a Reply