"at eight films in the franchise, it is more spectacle, style over substance at this point, and whilst that is breathtaking, it did feel like it was lacking"

Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is the latest instalment (possibly final) in the Mission: Impossible franchise, led by the legendary Tom Cruise and whilst in my opinion, it isn’t the best of the franchise, it is a worthy successor to the previous entry Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning.

Originally conceived as the second part to a two part story started in Dead Reckoning (and bizarrely it still says Part One on the home entertainment release, which is rather confusing, since they made a big deal about it in 2023, they should’ve stuck to their guns in my opinion), it still is Part Two, even if they don’t call it that but it does still feel like a full story, as did its predecessor, but it does feel as though there is a lot of set up, even though the majority of the groundwork was done in Dead Reckoning.

It also isn’t as clever with the gadgets as in previous entries in the series, but that doesn’t detract from the enjoyment and tension felt in the film. However, at eight films in the franchise, it is more spectacle, style over substance at this point, and whilst that is breathtaking, it did feel like it was lacking.

The cast are wonderful, however I did feel the absence of Vanessa Kirby’s White Widow which does make sense since her story ended on the Orient Express in Dead Reckoning, but I would have liked to have seen her or an acknowledgement at the very least. That being said, Hayley Atwell shines in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, having so much to do as super thief Grace, she really has become the emotional centre to the team led by the aforementioned Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt, who is solid as usual. With solid performances from Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg as Luther “Phineas Freak” Stickell and Benji Dunn respectively. Seeing the inclusion of Angela Bassett’s Erika Sloane, and the evolution of that character was wonderful, Henry Czerny’s Eugene Kittridge is a great foil to Hunt, and Esai Morales’s Gabriel is a menacing villain, keeping the tension and pace from the previous film, as he looks to take control of The Entity.

The addition of Hannah Waddingham was great, it is always awesome seeing her on screen, and whilst her role is  small it is meaningful to the story, same with Katy O’Brian with the obvious stand out in my opinion being Tramell Tillman; his interactions with Cruise’s Hunt got a lot of laughs in my screening, and tying it back to previous films in the series was a nice touch, I won’t spoil the big one here, but it was a welcomed inclusion, rewarding long standing fans of the series, showing that character’s lives move on even when they aren’t seen on screen.

As always, Christopher McQuarrie further proves why he is a sought after talent in Hollywood, however after four instalments, I would like to see him do something else, and maybe some different collaborations since he has worked with Cruise on atleast eleven projects, so it’ll be nice to see him expand his pool and I think the franchise will thrive with different voices.

The music is great, adding to the tension and spectacle and the stunt work is second to none, I’m so glad that the Academy are finally honouring stunt work. There are at least two instances that are worth the price of admission alone, I won’t spoil them here but they are worth seeing in IMAX, the bigger the screen the better as far as I’m concerned.

Whilst I was never bored during Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, with all is globe hoping, I do feel that it was about 20 minutes too long, but I don’t know where I’d trim it, since it does flow rather well, and whilst it is reported to be the last film in the franchise, I don’t believe it will be. If it continues, it needs to be smaller, not as globe hoping as this one, I’d see a ninth, so bring it on!