Image Courtesy of Amazon.com
Own it on DVD October 30, 2006
Director
J.J. Abrams
Cast :
Tom Cruise……….Ethan Hunt
Ving Rhames……….Luther Stickell
Keri Russell……….Lindsey
Philip Seymour Hoffman……….Owen Davian
Laurence Fishburne……….Brassel
Billy Crudup……….John Musgrave
Simon Pegg……….Benji Dunn
Michelle Monaghan……….Julia
Jonathan Rhys Meyers……….Declan
Maggie Q……….Zhen
The Movie
While it didn’t make nearly as much money as it was projected to be, Mission Impossible: III was proof that even an excessive amount of personal craziness from Tom Cruise wouldn’t stop people from flocking to theatres worldwide to see it.
Cruise returns as Ethan Hunt, IMF agent and resident super-spy. He’s retired from active duty, training newer agents, when he has to come out of retirement to take on the latest villain in Owen Davian (Philip Seymour Hoffman). Luther (Ving Rhames) returns to assist Hunt as well as a new cast of supporting IMF agents. Declan (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) is an export in transportation, background specialist Zhen (Maggie Q), fresh recruit Lindsey (Keri Russell) and wisecracking Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg). Up in the balance is the current love of his life Julia (Michelle Monaghan), caught up in the struggle between the arms dealer and the IMF agent.
The unique thing about this third film in the series is that it isn’t the last part of a trilogy. The unique thing about all three movies is that they are stand alone films showing us different versions of a character from three different directors. Brian De Palma in the original introduced the character in a traditional spy story marked with his trademark story-telling style. John Woo showed us a more operatic, Hong Kong style action movie and hero with the sequel. J.J. Abrams, creator of “Lost” and “Alias,” develops the third film in a different way than the other two. Whereas the first was an action thriller and the second an action movie proper, the third installment is a spy thriller in the mold of a Bond movie.
And that’s what Mission: Impossible III is best compared to. Abrams knows how to craft a story on television in episodic fashion, but his debut on the big screen is moderately well-crafted considering the usual pratfalls and plot contrivances of the genre. The film moves smoothly from action sequence to plot mechanism as Abrams connects the film’s points effortlessly. This is also a well edited and well photographed film; Abrams has obviously taken the time and effort to make the film’s action sequences (it’s centerpiece) its best feature. There’s a lot of creativity in the action sequences as well, as the standards from the first two films are exceeded by the difficulty and grace of the third’s stylized sequences. Having also helped write the film, Abrams knows the material and the sort of story that is trying to be told; he’s able to bring some life into some clunky and cliché spy thriller writing. It’s not a great story, which holds back the film from being a great movie, but it’s serviceable in the capable hands of Abrams.
In an action movie, having great action sequences is a must for it to be good. The other thing that generally ensures quality is a good villain. And fresh off an Academy Award winning performance in Capote, Philip Seymour Hoffman joins Alan Rickman (Hans Gruber in the original Die Hard) in the rare air as one of the best action movie villains of the last 20 years. Davian isn’t an over the top cliché of a villain nor is he a monster. He’s a bad guy so evil and so ruthless it’s almost delightful to watch. Hoffman takes the role very seriously as he does the little things well. His mannerisms and his vocal inflections give a menacingly evil light to his character, who is a bad guy so deliciously evil that one can’t help but cheering for Cruise’s Ethan Hunt to overcome the odds.
Hoffman chews so much scenery in the film that the rest of the cast is a bit over-looked; the thrust of the film is his battle with Hunt, of course, but the cast is loaded with so much talent that it’s almost criminal how little Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg and Laurence Fishburne are used in comparison. Most action films center on a couple of large stars, and Cruise delivers another good action performance as the heir apparent to James Bond in American spy cinema, but a cast this loaded seems a waste.
The Video
Presented in a widescreen format, the latest Cruise vehicle has a terrific transfer. Abrams’ vision of the Mission: Impossible universe comes through clear and concise. The colors are well-separated, coming through wonderfully.
The Audio
Presented in a Dolby Digital 5.1 format, the score comes through loud and clear. This DVD transfer has a well-developed sound, using the entire Dolby system to generate a terrific home viewing experience.
The Extras
The first disc has several extras, including a Commentary by Tom Cruise and Director J.J Abrams. There are the usual Deleted Scenes, five in all, and all are deleted for relatively obvious reasons. There are two extensions onto the opening action sequence, which are interesting but ultimately add nothing of value to the film. Excellence in Film is a compilation of clips from Cruise’s career via the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, shown after he received the 2005 Kubrick Award for Excellence in Film. Previews for Transformers, World Trade Center and the DVD compilation pack dedicated to Cruise entitled The Tom Cruise Collection.
The second disc has eight in-depth featurettes. Mission Action: Inside the Action Unit focuses on the stunt work and action sequences that comprise the appeal of the film. Cruise talks about the quantity of action he was involved in, as Cruise hadn’t done the sheer quantity before in a film. This feature is rather interesting as it talks about how they prepared for the work before Cruise had even practiced, as he was doing all of his own stunts, and they show some interesting behind the scenes footage of the stunt professionals figuring out the best ways to do it before Cruise would do the stunt for the camera. They show Cruise working with the stuntmen as well and it’s interesting to see him discussing action sequences and stunt work with the professionals; there’s a true dedication to his craft you normally don’t see often.
Visualizing the Mission looks at the pre-visualization techniques used for the film. Cruise and Abrams discuss how they were going to do some of the action sequences and exactly how they were going to be able to film it. It saved them a lot of money for the action sequences, as it saved them time and gave them a good understanding of what they wanted to do and what they didn’t want to do with the big budget effects. Inside the IMF is a look at the cast of the film. Abrams’ goal with the film was to bring together a team that worked well together. It’s interesting to hear them speak about one anothe’s roles in the film, and it’s even more interesting to hear the cast and crew discuss Cruise and Hoffman and their respective parts.
Mission: Metamorphosis is a feature that looks at the prop work for the film. One of the hallmarks of the film has been the mask situation, whereby Tom Cruise and others have been able to assume the identity of others by using a mask fitted over Cruise’s face. This feature focuses on the “mask-making” machine used to solve the mystery of how the silicon masks are made. It’s interesting to see the creative side unveiled on this aspect of the film, as the machine incorporates a lot of good prop work as well as some well-timed CGI. Scoring the Mission is a look back at the film’s music; nothing really of note is said beyond the musician’s wanting to record the signature song as well as they could.
Launching the Mission is a look at the film’s premieres around the globe as Cruise goes from premiere to premiere through various means of transportation. Moviefone Unscripted: Tom Cruise/J.J Abrams is a unique feature as Cruise and Adams interview one another with questions submitted by the general public. It’s interesting to see the two go back and forth discussing the film. Tribute Montage: Generation Cruise has been included on both special editions of the previous films in the Mission: Impossible franchise and is a montage of his roles throughout the years, originally broadcast on the 2005 MTV Movie Awards show. There are also the original Theatrical Trailers included as well.
The Inside Pulse
While Mission: Impossible III may have been the first sign that audiences want Tom Cruise to return to the state of mind he was several years ago, i.e. before he was known for his erratic behavior. While it still made plenty of money both foreign and domestic, it’s hard to say whether or not it could’ve been a bigger money-maker if it hadn’t had the distractions of its main sta’s eccentricity. It’s still a good film and one of the top action films of 2006, however, and comes with a DVD absolutely loaded with quality extras. Many DVDs are two disc sets if only to be able to charge more for a single disc’s worth of extra features; Mission: Impossible III is over-flowing with terrific extras that make the two disc edition well worth it.
| The DVD Lounge’s Ratings for Mission Impossible III: 2-Disc Collecto’s Edition | |
