“Mission Impossible”, long fuse of the profitable saga headed by Tom Cruise | The Cinema of What I Tell You

Dear Theo:

We often forget that one of the Hollywood franchises that is in the best health is the one starring Tom Cruise for 27 years. With its ups and downs, the “Mission Impossible” saga is a marvelous execution of cinematographic action and, above all, the umpteenth demonstration that Tom Cruise is one of the biggest stars of all time, perhaps the last for box office purposes as “Top Gun: Maverick” demonstrated last year and continues this summer with “Mission Impossible: Deadly Judgment.” Part 1″. A seventh film for a path that should be reviewed below.

“Mission Impossible” (1996)

Ethan Hunt is a super spy capable of carrying out the most dangerous mission with maximum efficiency and elegance. He is part of a competent team led by agent Jim Phelps, who has reunited his men to participate in a very difficult mission: prevent the sale of a stolen disk that contains vitally important secret information.

Brian De Palma made his mark clear in a top-level espionage exercise, recovering the character from the 1960s television series. A frantic entertainment with an international cast, making it one of the main characteristics of the saga whose protagonist rounded off a year to frame since, although Tom Cruise broke box offices on the one hand, he would also release “Jerry Maguire”, the film that earned him his second Oscar nomination for best leading actor.

“Mission Impossible 2” (2000)

Special Agent Ethan Hunt’s new mission is to stop a ruthless ex-agent turned international terrorist from getting hold of a deadly virus and bringing it into Australia with millions of casualties. To do this, he again has the invaluable help of computer genius Luther Stickell, expert driver Billy Baird and the sensual and exotic international thief Nhye, who had a romantic relationship with the terrorist, but now feels attracted to Hunt.

John Woo threw elegance overboard and put all the cards in the box of the action genre in a choreographic film that used the latest technology of the moment to create quite a spectacle. The least important thing was the conflict and the plot, the most remembered being seeing Tom Cruise hanging from a mountain, one of the most iconic moments in the entire saga, the chemistry he had with the character of Thandie Newton and the music by Hans Zimmer based on the original work of Lalo Schifrin. In addition, we will never forget that the Holy Week processions were confused with the fallas of Valencia.

“Mission Impossible 3” (2006)

After carrying out various missions, Special Agent Ethan Hunt has retired from active duty and has become engaged to his beloved Julia. But, when one of the agents trained by him is kidnapped, he will return to action. He will also have to face Owen Davian, an unscrupulous individual who traffics in weapons and information.

JJ Abrams, enthroned as the new King Midas of audiovisuals (of which the “Lost” series had a lot to do with it), was chosen to continue the Paramount Pictures saga with “Mission Impossible 3” in a film that, in addition to action, gives more weight to romance (with Julia played by Michelle Monaghan) and featuring one of the best villains in the series, the one played by Philip Seymour Hoffman. Also on the tape are other actors of the moment such as Keri Russell (after the series “Felicity”) or Jonathan Rhys Meyers (who seemed called to higher levels after the success of “Match Point”).

“Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol” (2011)

The agent Ethan Hunt, accused of a terrorist attack with bombs against the Kremlin, is disavowed along with the entire organization, when the president launches the “Ghost Protocol”. Left to his own devices and without resources, Ethan’s goal is to rehabilitate his agency’s good name and prevent another attack. But Ethan undertakes this mission with a team made up of fugitives, whose personal motives he does not know well.

Brad Bird made his debut in live action with “Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol” after being one of the emblems of Pixar in a film that sought to return to the origins, enhancing the factor of classic espionage in which, compared to the more routine third installment, it already evidenced the mark that Jason Bourne had left in contemporary cinema. It is still curious that both one and the other saga had Jeremy Renner as their unsuccessful heir.

“Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation” (2015)

With the IMF disbanded and Ethan Hunt left to fend for himself, the team must face off against the Syndicate, a network of highly skilled and trained special agents. These groups are hell-bent on creating a new world order through a series of escalating terrorist attacks. Ethan assembles his team and joins forces with him and renegade British agent Ilsa Faust, who may or may not be a member of this secretive nation, as the group faces their most impossible mission to date…

Unprejudiced entertainment in “Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation” full of adrenaline and a new high point for the saga putting Christopher McQuarrie at the controls, one of the names responsible for the rebirth of Tom Cruise as a star in recent years. In addition, with the reception of Rebeca Ferguson, who with hers Ilsa Faust has established herself as one of the best characters in the entire saga and Hunt’s perfect nemesis / ally.

“Mission Impossible: Fallout” (2018)

Sixth installment of the saga. This time it features Ethan Hunt and his team, along with some familiar allies, in a fight against time after a mission goes wrong.

More than 800 million dollars endorsed “Mission: Impossible: Fallout” being considered by many the best of the entire saga, not only for the action but for the definition of characters, both by Hunt’s group of collaborators and by the greater presence of women (Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Michelle Monaghan and Angela Bassett) who shed part of the misogyny of James Bond. Complex and mature with some spectacular locations and Tom Cruise being quite a challenge to biology as he now demonstrates again in the presumable last two installments of one of the most profitable sagas in cinema with which he will say goodbye this summer and next.

“Mission Impossible” continues to have a fuse and so says the box office, remaining one of the great milestones of commercial cinema that with its unmistakable musical theme, its joyful adrenaline and Tom Cruise risking his life being capable of everything for his audience has formed part of our history over the last three decades.

Nacho Gonzalo