Movie Review - Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation

I enjoyed the Mission Impossible TV series from the 80s or 90s and loved the first Mission Impossible movie, but felt the movies had gone downhill from it. This one redeems the franchise.

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation is a 2015 action, adventure, spy film. It's rated PG-13 for language and violence and is appropriate for teenagers and up.

The Good

Action. This is an action movie first and foremost, and the action doesn't disappoint for the most part. The fighting was interesting and intense. The fights were short enough they didn't get boring, but long enough I felt real struggle. They were also filmed so I could see what was going on. Too often directors trying and make them chaotic and confusing so the viewer will feel like they are in the middle of the fight, but I'd rather watch it than be part of it.

Stunts. The stunts were fun, especially the motorcycle chase at the end. I've seen a lot of car chases and motorcycle chases, but never one like that. I actually felt like I was on the motorcycle. It was great!

Pace. The movie was really well paced. I never felt bored, nor did I feel the film was moving too quickly to keep up with.

Story. This movie actually had a pretty good story with international intrigue and espionage. It was nice that it returned to the spy genre instead of being just another over-the-top action flick. They story was actually entertaining a more than an excuse for mindless action scene after mindless action scene. There was some real character development.

Twists. I won't say that the twists were completely unexpected, but there were several satisfying reveals at the end that I didn't completely see coming.

The Bad

Underwater scene. The underwater scene did not convey how difficult it is to hold ones breath for several minutes while swimming.

What I Would Like to Have Seen

I really feel very satisfied with everything in the movie and didn't feel I was missing anything. It would have been nice to see a little more chemistry between characters, but it didn't hurt the film not to have that.

Overall

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation was an entertaining flick and reminded me a lot of the first one. I'd describe this as a really good remake. I was entertained from start to finish and never felt like it dragged. I give it a solid 4.5 out of 5 boxes of popcorn.