Mission: Impossible 3
Directed by: J.J. Abrams
Written by: J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci
Starring: Tom Cruise, Ving Rhames, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Maggie Q, Laurence Fishburne, Simon Pegg

Well I guess summer is officially here, with the first big budget blockbuster flick out of the gates. With a stop and start production, changes in cast and director, Mission: Impossible 3 finally makes it to the screen, and the wait was worth it.

When Mission: Impossible 3 was first announced and Joe Carnahan was going to direct I was very excited. I thought he was the right guy for the job and could really make a cool, action-packed film. Then he left over ‘creative differences’ and J.J Abrams was hired as his replacement. My excitement level went down, I mean he hadn’t directed a movie before and I was a little nervous. I wasn’t sure if this Abrams guy would be up to the challenge. Then I started to see trailers and TV spots and I was once excited again. Very excited. J.J Abrams was up to the challenge. He actually destroyed any challenge that was set for him and made one sweet movie.

This time around we find Ethan Hunt living the good life in suburbia. He’s retired from being a field agent, and now just trains new ones. He’s got a woman in his life, and he’s about to start a family. Heck, he even drives a Volvo. At first glance this doesn’t seem to be the same Ethan who weaved through a bunch of lasers or scaled a mountain… oh but wait, he then gets a phone call and we find him in a 7-11 getting the rundown on his next mission from some guy in a suit. Yep this is the Ethan I remember.

Ethan is recruited to save an agent in the field, someone who has been taken hostage while on a mission. He agrees and he is assigned a team of super cool agents that will help him out, all played by Ving Rhames, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, and Maggie Q. While on his agent-saving mission, Ethan learns of a bigger plot that he must try and stop. It seems some rich dude named Owen Davian, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, is planning on selling some biological weapon that could destroy the world. It seems Owen Davian has also kidnapped Ethan’s new wife. Now Ethan’s got to save his wife as well. Jeez.

The action in Mission: Impossible 3 is top notch. Abrams has clearly watched some action movies in his lifetime and it shows. The man knows how to direct an action scene, and if there’s one thing the movie has lots of, it’s action. You’re pretty much pulled into action scene after action scene from the very beginning, and hey there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. I paid for an action movie and I got one. The script is also solid and it stems from the guys that do Alias. It takes you all over the world and we get to see Ethan in some really beautiful locations, and then blowing those locations up. I’m happy.

You have a great bunch of characters spanning from the straight faced boss played by Laurence Fishburne to the goofy tech guy played by Simon Pegg, and of course Ving Rhames has his share of quick one-liner jokes. Everyone plays well off of each other and all are entertaining to watch. I would have liked to see more of super villain Philip Seymour Hoffman. If there’s one thing I had a problem with, it was that you have this great character but you don’t really understand his motive for all this chaos. I wanted a cool super villain world takeover plot and it just wasn’t there.

Mission: Impossible 3 is a great summer movie that will entertain you and isn’t that forgettable like some other summer movies are. It has a great cast, great action, and a great story. — James

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Recommended If You Like: Mission: Impossible, Mission: Impossible 2, True Lies, War of the Worlds