Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One

Cruise's action adventure is a triumph, full of physical jeopardy and Hollywood setpieces par excellence.

The film can be enjoyed as irrefutable proof of what can be done with this type of proposal when placed in the right hands. [Full review in Spanish]

Like a motorcycle leaping off a mountain, this movie has very high highs and very low lows... But as soon as the action started, especially the last action set pieces, I could've rolled right into the sequel immediately.

The stunts are enough to make it a good time… They’re not enough to make it a great movie, or even a great Mission: Impossible movie. Like its AI villain, Reckoning may have become too self aware.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is absolutely a mixed bag of tricks. The high points are stratospheric, but the low ones are frequently head-scratching.

Adrenaline-pumping sequences, flirtatious interludes, high pitch drama and a save-the-world plot do their jobs. However, something about the process doesn’t feel new.

Blending a good mix of easily identifiable stakes and intricate psychological strategizing that feels like six dimensional chess at times, it is a film with constant momentum and breakneck pacing.

The fact that the now 61(!)-year-old Cruise is still willing to push his physical limits to this level for the sake of doing cool stuff on screen is as admirable as it is truly insane.

The movies are built around death-defying showcases of suspense and bravado that grow increasingly more mind-boggling with each sequel.

Dead Reckoning is a victim of its own high standard. By now, we know how superlative the Mission: Impossible series can be. Anything less feels like a step down, and a step down felt unthinkable until now.