I had this feeling that the Box Office had up and abandoned Tom Cruise. His public image having so heavily affected his on-screen talent, that the audiences simply just left their seats.
After Edge Of Tomorrow underperformed in cinemas (which it shouldn’t have, being one of the best action films of 2014), in a way a lot was riding on Mission Impossible – Rogue Nation (which it shouldn’t have, the franchise being a fan-favourite).
And Mission Impossible – Rogue Nation comes through as one of the best in the series so far.
IMF Agent Ethan Hunt (Cruise) has been hunting down an organisation that is the opposite to what IMF are. While IMF fight for peace, this new group called the Syndicate wage war on the world from the shadows, hoping to re-establish it under a new order. With Hunt suspected of creating this new group, it’s up to him to discover who the Syndicate are and reveal them to the world.
With franchise stalwarts joining Cruise once more on-screen, we see Hunt teamed up again with Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg), William Brandt (Jeremy Renner) and Luther Stickwell (Ving Rhames) while being joined by new ally Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson).
With the mystery antagonist certainly hidden away, we are introduced to Alan Hunley (Alec Baldwin), a face for the CIA who are looking to bring down hunt as he scours the world for the Syndicate.
With no romantic plot being thrown in our faces, the films objective is to have Hunt clear his name with the assistance of his team and establish whether or not this Rogue Nation is real. With action scenes that go big, the film starting with the much lauded airplane sequence from the trailers, Rogue Nation is a brilliant addition to the already popular franchise. As is the case with most films this year, it loses traction in its third act, but comes around with a spectacular conclusion that definitely has the audience ready for more Mission Impossible, with the sixth already in development.
It appears that Tom Cruise did not go anywhere.
Summary
With fun action, an amazing cast and a dynamic ending, Mission Impossible - Rogue Nation continues the series winning formula!