Tag: Mission: Impossible III

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One Review

The key to the Mission: Impossible movies are the set pieces that continue to wow us in a way few other franchises do. This has been amped up in the Christopher McQuarrie era that began with 2015’s Rogue Nation, continued with Fallout three years later, and now with Dead Reckoning Part One. Tom Cruise and his director appear determined to outdo themselves when it comes to Romanian car chases and battles set aboard the Orient Express and motorcycle stunts that defy gravity. In the seventh M:I saga, there’s also a welcome dose of humor that’s occasionally reminiscent of Roger Moore’s Bond stretch. We’re not talking Moonraker. I’m referring to the high point of that run in 1977’s The Spy Who Loved Me where elements of the plot might be borderline silly, but we don’t care because the stunts and choreography are thrilling us.

Cruise’s Ethan Hunt has entered the elder statesman portion of his service to the Impossible Missions Force (IMF). He should be making retirement plans. However, disavowed MI6 colleague Ilsa (Rebecca Ferguson) is partially responsible for the latest assignment. She possesses half of a key that could unlock the secrets to the Entity, an AI device that’s working overtime to retire defense systems across the globe. Their mission that they always choose to accept is finding the other half of that key to bring this dangerous new world to a semblance of order. The usual colleagues Luther (Ving Rhames) and Benji (Simon Pegg) join in while master thief Grace (Hayley Atwell) is a fresh addition. For her set of skills, she’s sought after by arms dealer Alanna (Vanessa Kirby) from Fallout to broker her own deal with the key. Yet Grace might be exactly the kind of recruit that IMF employs. She’s absolutely a value add with Atwell’s spirited performance.

There are callbacks in Dead Reckoning that dive deeper into our main character’s backstory than ever before. It’s well established that Ethan will do whatever it takes for his profession and we’re getting more clues as to why. I suspect the fleshing out will go on in part two. The screenplay does a commendable job of (for the first time) explaining why the IMFers keep accepting these missions rather than politely declining. Another form of callback comes with Kittridge (Henry Czerny), who hasn’t been seen since his iconic appearance in 1996’s original. His duplicitous presence is a bonus.

With the notable exception of Philip Seymour Hoffman in M:I III (2006), villains haven’t overshadowed the heroes in the quarter century plus canon and that’s accurate here. Esai Morales as Gabriel is a shadowy figure whose motives may not see the light until the second part. Considering the Entity he represents, he’s not actually the main antagonist. When it comes to those opposing IMF, Kirby and Pom Klementieff as a quietly deadly assassin are the most memorable.

Ultimately it’s those lengthy chases and fights that make Dead Reckoning the summertime adventure delight that it is. I’d put it a tad behind 2011’s Ghost Protocol and predecessor Fallout in the official rankings. Cruise and McQuarrie know their formula. Nobody does it better, it makes you feel bad for the rest, and it can make the rest look artificial.

***1/2 (out of four)

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One Box Office Prediction

Paramount hopes to post franchise best numbers for Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, Tom Cruise’s action series that began some 27 years ago and has now reached its seventh installment. It opens Wednesday, July 12th and is the third M:I pic in a row directed by Christopher McQuarrie. Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, and Henry Czerny (returning for the first time since part 1) reprise their roles with Hayley Atwell, Esai Morales, and Pom Klementieff as newly assigned cast.

With a 98% Rotten Tomatoes rating, Reckoning is receiving the same acclaim that greeted predecessors Ghost Protocol (2011), Rogue Nation (2015), and Fallout (2018). Perhaps most importantly, this should benefit from being Cruise’s follow-up to last year’s box office phenomenon that was Top Gun: Maverick. It was easily summer 2022’s (and the year’s) largest grosser and the goodwill left over could launch this Mission to new heights.

In order to do so, Part One (part two is out in a year) would need to top the $61 million that Fallout took in five summers ago in its debut. With a Wednesday head start, a five-day haul over $100 million is certainly achievable.

The Mission movies traditionally leg out nicely throughout the season. With the exception of Ghost Protocol, all have premiered in summer. Many older filmgoers that will make the theatrical trek may not rush out opening weekend.

I’ll project low to mid 70s for the Friday to Sunday earnings as it should come awfully close and potentially exceed nine figures from Wednesday to the weekend’s end.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One opening weekend prediction: $72.7 million (Friday to Sunday); $102.3 million (Wednesday to Sunday)

Oscar Predictions – Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One

Arriving five years after Mission: Impossible – Fallout and one year following the biggest hit of his career, Tom Cruise returns as IMF agent Ethan Hunt in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One on July 12th. The seventh feature in the franchise that began in the summer of 1996 looks to be one of this season’s largest domestic and worldwide earners.

The review embargo ended yesterday and the current results are a sizzling 98% on Rotten Tomatoes. That’s currently the highest of the group though the last three entries have all topped 90% – 2011’s Ghost Protocol (93%), 2015’s Rogue Nation (94%), and Fallout at 97%. While Reckoning can boast the best percentage for now, numerous critics are putting it in the middle as far as best of for the series. In other words, don’t expect this to nab a Best Picture nomination like Cruise’s phenomenon Top Gun: Maverick did last year.

While the Daniel Craig James Bond pics and the Jason Bourne movies can boast nods from the Academy, the six previous M:I installments have netted a surprising total of zero mentions. It’s too bad a stunt category doesn’t exist, but it’s also been ignored in Sound and Visual Effects.

Sound seems to be the strongest chance though I wouldn’t count on it. Oppenheimer and certainly Dune: Part Two likely have reserved spots and if Fallout couldn’t make that cut, it might be 0 for 7 for this franchise. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…

Top Gun: Maverick Box Office Prediction

***And a final update for Top Gun: Maverick as my prediction rises again to $113.4 million for the three-day and $138 million for the four-day. That it gives it the #2 all-time Memorial Day for both frames.

***Blogger’s Update (05/25): Significantly up-ticking my estimate once again. Now projecting a three-day of $103.7M (good for second biggest Memorial Day Friday to Sunday) and $124.4M for the four-day (third largest all-time). Sky is increasing the limit…

**Blogger’s Update (05/24): Estimate updated from a three and four-day projection, respectively, of $75.6M and $98.8M to $86.6M and $104.9M. That now gives Maverick the #7 largest Memorial Day weekend three-day and #6 four-day

It could be a record breaking memorable weekend for Tom Cruise as Top Gun: Maverick finally lands in theaters. The long gestating sequel arrives 36 years after the original made Cruise a superstar. The wait was only supposed to be 33-34 years, but production delays and COVID postponements altered the plan.

Joseph Kosinki, who previously directed the lead in 2013’s Oblivion, directs. Costars include Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Glen Powell, Ed Harris, Monica Barbaro, and Val Kilmer reprising his role as Iceman. Critics have certainly indicated this is worth the wait. Budgeted at a reported $150 million, reviews are impressive with a 97% Rotten Tomatoes score. There’s even Oscar buzz as it will surely be a contender in Sound and Song (with Lady Gaga crooning “Hold My Hand”).

Paramount is hopeful that Maverick will take the breath and money away from moviegoers over the Memorial Day frame. The loud buzz generated by critics should make this soar even higher than previously anticipated.

In doing so, we could see Tom cruise to a personal best opening. Somewhat surprisingly, his all-time largest opening is War of the Worlds at $64 million for the traditional Friday to Sunday period. Mission: Impossible – Fallout (the last flick to feature Cruise four years ago) is close behind at $61 million.

Maverick will, of course, have a four-day tally. That’s familiar territory for Cruise as the first three Mission: Impossible tales premiered over Memorial Day with the second one doing $70 million from Friday to Monday. However, it opened on the Wednesday before to bring its gross to $91 million.

First things first. I do believe Tom’s latest sequel will achieve his highest three day take ever. I also suspect there will be some projections for Maverick that will be too high. A four-day take of over $100 million is absolutely doable (and my prediction could rise in the coming days), but I’m skeptical. That’s uncharted territory for Mr. Cruise. A Friday to Sunday haul in the mid 70s seems likelier. If that happens, it should achieve mid 90s for the whole frame. That would give it the ninth best Memorial 3 day start – in between Solo: A Star Wars Story ($84 million) and The Lost World: Jurassic Park ($72 million). It would rise a spot to 8th for the four-day between the same two features at $103 million and $90 million, respectively. And that would be a memorable start indeed.

Top Gun: Maverick opening weekend prediction: $113.4 million (Friday to Sunday); $138 million (Friday to Monday)

For my The Bob’s Burgers Movie, click here:

The Bob’s Burgers Movie Box Office Prediction

Mission: Impossible – Fallout Movie Review

The Mission: Impossible franchise has now reached its sixth feature and its 22nd year of existence, providing the seemingly ageless Tom Cruise with a hit making series that continues to deliver. That’s a rather remarkable accomplishment and Fallout belongs in the upper echelons in terms of bang for your buck entertainment.

Truth be told, there’s been no total dog yet in the Mission sagas. My one minor complaint about its predecessor, 2015’s Rogue Nation, was its lack of directorial vision. Christopher McQuarrie and his large squad of tech and stunt wizards pulled off some impressive action sequences in that picture. However, unlike the previous four pics, it didn’t feel quite as distinctive. Part 1 was certainly a Brian De Palma experience and the first sequel was all kinds of John Woo (for occasionally better and more for the worse). Same goes for J.J. Abrams and Brad Bird in the next ones (Ghost Protocol still stands as my personal favorite).

McQuarrie is the first filmmaker to return in the director’s chair. I must admit that maybe I just didn’t fully recognize his stamp on the series the first time around. These latest missions are all about spectacle and not really concerned with melding the mayhem to its maker’s vision. In Fallout, that’s pretty much perfectly OK even more so than in Rogue. That’s because the team of people making the action are the best at it. We’ve seen plenty of car chases, helicopter battles, and bathroom brawls in our time. This franchise excels at it in ways few others do.

Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF squad (including Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames) pick up two years after the events of the fifth installment. Learned Mission watchers know the plot will likely be convoluted and a secondary consideration. That’s true here, but let’s go over the basics. We have lost plutonium that IMF must find or risk nuclear attack. Part 5’s villain (Sean Harris) is involved. Ethan is forced to partner with a bulky CIA agent (Henry Cavill). MI6 agent Ilsa (Rebecca Ferguson) from Rogue resurfaces. She continues to be one of Hunt’s more interesting partners. And the short-lived wedded bliss that we witnessed Ethan in during part 3 with Michelle Monaghan becomes a focal point. Oh… and there’s plenty of double crosses. And those masks. Fallout also features the most satisfying use of a CNN anchor ever committed to film.

Of course, all of this leads to Ethan globe-trotting from London to Paris to Kashmir. And the song remains the same: our hero is the only one capable of figuring out how to keep the world from crumbling. What’s often startling is just how much care is expended in creating the impossible situations he finds himself in. McQuarrie’s biggest contribution may just be the go for broke style vibe to Ethan’s dangerous exploits. As always, Cruise is a more than willing subject and he even broke his ankle during one stunt.

Cruise and McQuarrie simply refuse to allow Mission to coast on auto pilot. The franchise continues to come up with new and exciting ways to put our mega star in peril. Six films in, that is quite a feat.

***1/2 (out of four)

Mission: Impossible – Fallout Box Office Prediction

Now in its 22nd year of existence, Tom Cruise’s signature franchise keeps rolling along as Mission: Impossible – Fallout, the sixth offering in the series debuts stateside next weekend. Christopher McQuarrie is the first director to come back behind the camera (he made 2015’s predecessor Rogue Nation) for repeat work after Brian De Palma, John Woo, J.J. Abrams, and Brad Bird made their stand-alone entries. Returning cast members from previous installments include Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames, Michelle Monaghan, and Alec Baldwin. Newcomers include Henry Cavill and Angela Bassett.

The buzz for Fallout indicates it could be a high mark in the long running franchise. The Rotten Tomatoes score stands at 93% with some critics claiming it’s the best of the bunch thus far. It’s particularly being praised for its action scenes and stunt work (which actually caused its mega-watt star to break an ankle on set). Even with the generous helping of sequels and genre pics out there (Skyscraper will be in its third weekend of release with The Equalizer 2 in its second), this series seems to be going strong.

In order to achieve the largest opening of all the M:I features, Fallout would need to top the $57 million achieved 18 years ago by part 2. Rogue Nation came close three summers ago with $55 million. I believe this should have enough juice to do so with a low to mid 60s gross.

Mission: Impossible – Fallout opening weekend prediction: $63.6 million

For my Teen Titans Go! To the Movies prediction, click here:

https://toddmthatcher.com/2018/07/18/teen-titans-go-to-the-movies-box-office-prediction/

Oscar Watch – Mission: Impossible – Fallout

For 22 years now, the Mission: Impossible franchise has been a sturdy and profitable one for its star Tom Cruise. Two weeks from now, the sixth picture in the series Mission: Impossible – Fallout hits theaters stateside. Early reviews have been quite impressive with some critics hailing it as the best movie of the bunch so far. One prominent critic went as far to say it’s the best action flick since Mad Max: Fury Road. The Rotten Tomatoes score stands at 96%.

In case you forgot, Fury Road got itself a Best Picture nomination. That seems highly unlikely for Fallout, but it’s fair to speculate whether voters will choose to honor it in any way. If they do, it would probably be in a technical category or two with Sound Editing and Sound Mixing being the most obvious. Fallout is being hailed for its amazing action sequences (if there was an Oscar category for Best Stunts, that race could be a wrap).

Of the five Mission‘s that have preceded this, they have a collective Oscar nod count of zero. Just that fact makes it a long shot that part 6 receives any attention. However, if some of the tech category voters want to throw it a bone, it’s not out of the realm of possibility.

My Oscar Watch posts will continue…

Summer 2006: The Top Ten Hits and More

Last week, I brought you top ten summer movies – along with other notable pics and flops – of 1996. Now it’s time to recount what was before our collective eyeballs 10 summers ago in 2006.

As I do with these lists, we’ll count down the top ten and then mention some others that made their mark, both positively and negatively.

10. The Devil Wears Prada

Domestic Gross: $124 million

Meryl Streep received her 267th Oscar nomination (or something like that) for this hit comedy which also helped break Anne Hathaway out of Princess Diaries mode.

9. Mission: Impossible III

Domestic Gross: $134 million

It may be in the top ten, but part 3 of this franchise that has now five entries is by far the lowest grosser (making $81 million less than part 2). This did give J.J. Abrams his first big directorial break and, as you may know, he’s moved forward with some other well-known franchises.

8. Click

Domestic Gross: $137 million

10 years later, he may be relegated to Netflix territory, but the critically drubbed Click gave us Adam Sandler when he still had no problem reaching the century club and then some.

7. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby

Domestic Gross: $148 million

Of the five Will Ferrell/Adam McKay collaborations, Ricky still stands as the highest grosser of them all. It’s first, not last.

6. Over the Hedge

Domestic Gross: $155 million

Dreamworks animated raccoon tale was a nice hit, even if it didn’t approach Shrek territory.

5. Superman Returns

Domestic Gross: $200 million

Coming nearly 20 years after the latest Supes flick, Superman Returns was Bryan Singer’s eagerly awaited reboot of the franchise. Yet its $200 million domestic gross was definitely on the lower end of expectations and critics and audiences were a bit disappointed. Seven years later, it would be rebooted once again with Man of Steel.

4. The Da Vinci Code

Domestic Gross: $217 million

Tom Hanks and Ron Howard teamed up for this adaptation of Dan Brown’s mega-selling novel and box office returns were heavenly, even if critics were quite mixed. Two sequels – 2011’s Angels & Demons and this fall’s Inferno – followed.

3. X-Men: The Last Stand

Domestic Gross: $234 million

Brett Ratner took over this franchise from Bryan Singer (busy with Superman) for film #3. Its reputation now is in tatters and is widely considered a mediocre experience at best. That said, it’s the highest grossing X pic domestically of all time – a full $1 million ahead of 2014’s Days of Future Past.

2. Cars

Domestic Gross: $244 million

It isn’t considered one of the greatest Pixar pics, but it still managed to pace second in summer 2006. The Paul Newman voiced effort would spawn two sequels – one in 2011 and the next coming in summer 2017.

  1. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest

Domestic Gross: $423 million

This summer features a Johnny Depp sequel flop (Alice Through the Looking Glass), but 10 years ago – he was the king of the summer with this follow-up to 2003’s The Curse of the Black Pearl. It easily blew all competition away.

And now for some other notable movies of the season:

Little Miss Sunshine

Domestic Gross: $59 million

This little indie comedy/drama became a critics darling and struck a chord with audiences and Oscar voters. It was nominated for Best Picture, Supporting Actress (Abigail Breslin), and gave Alan Arkin a win in Supporting Actor.

An Inconvenient Truth

Domestic Gross: $24 million

Former Vice-President Al Gore’s feature-length slideshow on global warming was a massive hit as documentaries go (it currently stands at 10th all-time).

And now for the flops of summer ’06:

Miami Vice

Domestic Gross: $63 million

Based on the iconic 80s cop show and directed by its creator Michael Mann, Miami Vice suffered from a reported troubled production and grossed less than half of its $135 million budget.

The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift

Domestic Gross: $62 million

This is the one and only example of a Furious flick being listed as a flop as the series would majorly rebound when Paul Walker and Vin Diesel returned for part 4 a few years later.

Poseidon

Domestic Gross: $60 million

Audiences didn’t get on board for director Wolfgang Peterson’s remake of 1972’s The Poseidon Adventure, grossing just $60 million domestically compared to its $160 million budget.

Lady in the Water

Domestic Gross: $42 million

This is when it really started to go downhill for M. Night Shyamalan. Critics ridiculed it and it broke his streak of four hits in a row (The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Signs, The Village).

Snakes on a Plane

Domestic Gross: $34 million

The trailer got all kinds of publicity with Samuel L. Jackson expressing his displeasure at what was going on in the title. That buzz didn’t end up translating into much, however.

The Wicker Man

Domestic Gross: $23 million

OK, it’s another Nic Cage bomb, but it would gain notoriety later for this gem of a clip…

And that’ll do it for now, my friends! Next summer, you can be sure I’ll be bringing you a recap of summers 1997 and 2007!