Very run of the mill by today's standards. The vault sequence is classic cinema, for sure, and the bullet train finale is still cool, but everything else is sadly dated. It simply can't live up to how action films have progressed over the years.

Compare this to Ghost Protocol and you'll see how tame it is in pretty much every area (apart from the female co-star; Emmanuelle Béart is smokin hot). Everything is bigger and better now. Stunts, locations, gadgets, dialogue, suspense, action, all-around writing and production value, etc.

This just isn't nearly as much fun as Ghost Protocol, or other similar action thrillers of today. It's still a good film, however, and enjoyable in its own right. I particularly…

December Project: Film #1

Looking back on the Mission: Impossible series, it's very strange to see how a franchise based on a long running television show (and one my grandfather constantly watched reruns of) became one of the most popular movie series of all time. Most TV to Film adaptations just seem to suck.

Although to be honest, I really feel that the series has yet to have a truly GREAT film. Each of them, while all featuring some great memorable factors, hasn't really found that combo that has everything a good action film needs. They're either missing a worthy villain with a good dispatch (see Mission Impossible 2 and Ghost Protocol), or the action is very lacking (See Mission:…

I definitely made the mistake of watch the latest Mission Impossible (Ghost Protocol) before watching any of the previous films. From what I hear the rest of the series pails in comparison, and the first installment has so far confirmed this sentiment.

So first, the good stuff. The score really drives this film forward for me, making what would otherwise eye-rollingly cheesy movements seem very serious and tense. Danny Elfman does a tremendous job here, composing many variations on the theme and augmenting the action sequences perfectly. The plot, while pretty convoluted, was engaging enough for me. The film's biggest strength is that it's much more of a spy-thriller film than an action film. Now don't get me wrong, I…

Can't remember the last time I saw this, and in preparation for getting caught up with the rest of the M:I series over vacation week, the time was right.

I did catch it theatrically in '96, but you know, the only thing I remember about the whole affair is the last 5 minutes when Tom Cruise is hanging on for dear life on top of the bullet train. Fortunately this go round I've got a few keener observations to recall, namely the overall look of the film, and some of the location shooting (thinking Liverpool Street station in London, and the Charles Bridge in Prague) that really worked to great effect.

Just as before, however, I found the soon-to-become-a-series-bad-habit Scooby…

I definitely made the mistake of watch the latest Mission Impossible (Ghost Protocol) before watching any of the previous films. From what I hear the rest of the series pails in comparison, and the first installment has so far confirmed this sentiment.

So first, the good stuff. The score really drives this film forward for me, making what would otherwise eye-rollingly cheesy movements seem very serious and tense. Danny Elfman does a tremendous job here, composing many variations on the theme and augmenting the action sequences perfectly. The plot, while pretty convoluted, was engaging enough for me. The film's biggest strength is that it's much more of a spy-thriller film than an action film. Now don't get me wrong, I…

I decided after watching Ghost Protocol that I am gonna make something of an experience of it, so I'm gonna watch the other three. And maybe Ghost Protocol again for good measure.

But before all that, we find ourselves reaching back a solid 17 years to good old 1996. I was about 5 at the time, and it wasn't until I was about 8 that I originally watched this glorious ridiculous film. I didn't really get it, but I thought the vault heist was exciting because I understood the whole "security is tight" thing.

Fast forward to now. It's 2013, I'm 21 turning 22 later this year, and so begins again the eternal cat-and-mouse game that is Mr. Ethan Hunt's…