Brian de Palma’s intention with Mission Impossible wasn’t exactly turning it into a billion dollar film franchise that, even now, has multiple entries planned for the future but that is exactly what he managed to do. Continuing on from the successful television series, the first film version of Mission Impossible pays homage to the show while also making it very clear in the first act, it is going to be its own thing.
The story follows IMF (literally Impossible Missions Force) member Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) as he works to try and figure out the mole in the taskforce who resulted in the death of his entire team, whilst he has been framed to be the mole himself. Recruiting Emmanuelle Beart, Jean Reno and Mission Impossible regular, Ving Rhames, Cruise surrounds himself with a solid team with whom he can bounce off of with great rapport.
The plot itself has received many a criticism for being hard to follow. The script did go through several iterations and many writers, but the plot is actually fairly simple and compliments the action greatly.
The opening sequence set against the gorgeous backdrop of Prague is a great introduction to the purpose of the IMF and Hunt himself, whilst also adding drama and suspense with the deaths of Hunt’s team. The thrilling final act action sequence involves a helicopter following a train through a tunnel and Hunt on top of said speeding train, chasing the villain of the story.
The most iconic moment, however, comes midway through the film. Hunt is lowered by wire into a CIA vault that is heat, sound and pressure sensitive - anything above a whisper, a drop of sweat, an increase of temperature by a degree will set off the alarm. Ridiculously tense, well thought-out and just purely entertaining, de Palma and his team make sure to keep the audience on the edge of their seats for this sequence and it steals the movie, raising it from fun action flick into something truly special.
A solid action espionage movie that completely works as a standalone, but also works as an introduction to movie icon, Ethan Hunt, who has even greater missions to come.
Score: 74/100