Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1 (Vietnamese title: Mission Impossible: Karma Part 1 ) marks the return to the famous action franchise after 5 years of absence.
With a budget of up to 290 million USD, this is the most invested project in the series, and also one of the most expensive blockbusters today. In particular, Tom Cruise caught the attention of himself when he took on dangerous stunts even though he was 61 years old.
Mission to Stop AI
The film is set in a time when artificial intelligence (AI) technology is advancing rapidly. In it, an AI named Entity develops beyond human control. It knows all the top secret information, gradually becoming a danger threatening the future of the world.
In the midst of that situation, agent Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his teammates receive the task of stopping the Entity. They must set out to find two pieces of a special key, containing the source code that can break the AI system.
The more Ethan follows the Entity’s trail, the more Ethan becomes caught up in a war with many different factions, including enemies from the past. He also meets his ex-lover Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), encounters the mysterious female thief Grace (Hayley Atwell), and faces many life-and-death situations.
As in the previous sections, Mission: Impossible 7 still follow the motif of the hero saving the world. However, the screenplay carries the breath of the times when exploiting the topic of AI, delving into the dark side of technology.
The idea is simple but still enough to attract the audience thanks to the lang class script. The screenwriters try to integrate many story lines to increase the depth of the film. Each new character is introduced in turn, plus the return of the old series of characters, continuously bringing surprises through each episode.
The team kept the same formula that made the brand successful. Action elements, spies are cleverly planted to increase the attractiveness. Political and social circumstances are mentioned moderately. In particular, the pace of the film is fast, so it does not cause boredom, does not create a long feeling even though the duration is more than 2 and a half hours.
Action worthy of the budget of 290 million USD
Leading the project is Christopher McQuarrie – who made the success of the previous 2 parts Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) and Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018). He has collaborated with Tom Cruise in a number of other action movies, so the duo almost understand each other, without difficulty in the making of the film.
Throughout the work, the director entertains viewers with thrilling action scenes. He constantly puts the main character in a situation of thousands of pounds hanging by his hair, challenging missions like the title.
The crew limited the use of effects to bring the most realistic footage. Actor Tom Cruise himself also performed the action scenes himself, without the need for a stuntman. Therefore, they have to spend a lot of money to invest in equipment, build a context instead of just using a simple green screen.
The most impressive segment is when Ethan Hunt rides a motorcycle to chase the express train. The character has to launch the car from a cliff at high speed, then parachute in the air. To capture the whole scene, the cameraman also had to parachute after the star to record from behind.
According to Paramount Pictures, this is the largest action scene ever performed in cinematic history. The segmentation was performed at the cliff with an elevation of over 1.5 km. The crew built a model of a slope of 135 m long and 10 m high for Tom Cruise to get the momentum to skydive. If negligence occurs, the actor easily faces the possibility of death.
Another scene is when Ethan Hunt clings to the side of the A400M as the plane is about to take off. From the arrangement of the lens to the angle of the camera, it all creates a sense of stimulation, easy to make viewers get goosebumps.
Tom Cruise class at the age of 61
Mission: Impossible 7 premiere was also when Tom Cruise officially turned 61. But when watching the movie, the audience almost didn’t get the sign of time. Because on the screen, the actor is still in style with a handsome face and beautiful body.
In particular, Tom Cruise convinces viewers with eye-catching action scenes. Every time Ethan Hunt acts is a new mission for the actor. For example, the star had to spend 15 months preparing and practicing before performing the scene of riding a motorcycle off a cliff.
The producer said that Tom Cruise underwent a rigorous training regimen with more than 13,000 motorcycle jumps and 536 practice skydiving times. At the studio, the actor made up to 6 real jumps to get the right scene on the silver screen.
Tom Cruise’s efforts help Mission: Impossible 7 Received positive feedback from critics and audiences alike. The film is certified “Fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes with 99% positive votes from experts. The score on IMDb is also very good, at 8.3/10. Most reviews of the work have brought the action genre to a new level.
Previously, the brand Mission: Impossible always popular, popular with fans of the action genre, spies. The appearance of Tom Cruise helped Top Gun: Maverick nearly $1.5 billion in revenue. Therefore, the producer has high expectations for this work.
The success of the film will also affect the fate of season 8 Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 2 expected to be released next year.