Mission: Impossible 2 (2000) 3 stars out of 4. Starring Tom Cruise, Thandie Newton, Dougray Scott, Ving Rhames and Anthony Hopkins. Story by Ronald D. Moore and Brannon Braga. Screenplay by Robert Towne. Directed by John Woo.
"Mission: Impossible 2" is really two movies in one.
The first is an action-packed thriller complete with outlandish students, flying bullets and Hong Kong-style martial arts encounters.
The second is a love story borrowed from Alfred Hitchcock's "Notorious," in which the hero's lover is asked literally to sleep with the enemy.
Somehow legendary screenwriter Robert Towne ("Chinatown") - adapting a story written by Ronald D. Moore and Brannon Braga - and director John Woo ("Face/Off") are able to merge these two in a seamless outing that will leave audiences gasping.
"Mission: Impossible 2" is a critic-proof movie. No matter how many flaws, shortcomings or nitpicks I can point out, people are going to ignore them and flock to this film.
And, honestly, there is no reason why they shouldn't.
"M:I2" is everything you want a summer movie to be: visually arresting, an easy-to-follow plot, tons of pyrotechnics and two gorgeous stars.
One is Tom Cruise, reprising his role as Ethan Hunt. The other is Thandie Newton, one of the most beautiful actresses to grace the screen today.
Their scenes together smolder with sexual chemistry.
The film's plot centers around a deadly virus supposedly held by a renegade IMF agent named Sean Ambrose (Dougray Scott). Hunt's mission, which he accepts, of course, is to retrieve the virus as well as its cure.
To do this he is told to recruit Nyah Hall (Newton), Ambrose's former love interest. Nyah also happens to be a professional thief.
The attraction between Nyah and Hunt is instantaneous as they first meet in Seville, Spain, with the throbbing beat of flamenco music heard in the background.
As is his custom, Woo uses many slow-motion shots and close-ups. He is especially fond of extreme close-ups of Newton, who is very easy to look at.
Cruise looks buff and sculpted. His babyish face is beginning to take on some character giving him a semi-rugged countenance that suits him.
Scott, who played Prince Henry in "Ever After," does not seem that formidable a foe. He appears a bit too soft, too vulnerable to be an out-and-out, over-the-top villain.
Also in the cast is Ving Rhames again playing computer genius Luther Stickell, and Anthony Hopkins in a cameo as Hunt's boss.
"M:I2" is a visual treat. Set pieces include a car chase involving Nyah and Ethan as well as a hair-raising motorcycle duel between Hunt and Ambrose. "M:I2" is stylish, stunning and loud.
The musical score by Hans Zimmer alternates from a pounding action motif to a romantic flamenco love theme for the scenes between Ethan and Nyah.
The movie's main drawback is that it's not really "Mission: Impossible" as created by Bruce Geller. The TV series emphasized brain over brawn. The IMF team would play mind games, use masks, illusions, create train rides, earthquakes, all to confuse and bedevil their target into surrendering that week's McGuffin.
"M:I2" plays more like a James Bond outing. True, both Hunt and Ambrose use masks to disguise themselves to learn information, but that is basically the only tip of the hat to the TV series.
Too many gunbattles and too many hand-to-hand encounters gives "M:I2" the feel of encroaching into 007 territory.
However, that aside, "Mission: Impossible 2" is an extremely entertaining vehicle, a testosterone-filled escape. It's a slam-bang way to begin the summer.
Bob Bloom is the film critic at the Journal and Courier in Lafayette, IN. He can be reached by e-mail at bloom@journal-courier.com or at bobbloom@iquest.net Reviews by Bloom, an associate member of the Online Film Critics Society, is can be found on the Internet Movie Database Web site: http://www.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Bob+Bloom
The review above was posted to the
rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the
review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright
belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due
to ASCII to HTML conversion.
Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews