Neverending story: A review of Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning

The movie launches with an expository miasma attempting to help catch audiences up on current developments and situations since the end of the previous installment. No one loves a slow burn to start a movie more than I do. However, in this case, the payoff does not match the initial investment.

A terrifying and sentient artificial intelligence called the Entity from the previous movie has now taken over the world (i.e. ChatGpt after a handful of more unchecked upgrades), and sets its virtual sights on the eight (or nine since Israel still plays coy) nuclear arsenals on Earth. For some reason, it intends to use the nukes to kill all humans.

Not surprisingly, there is a high-risk, one-shot-in-a-billion way to stop the Entity which involves the insertion of this thing into that thing without those things happening first. To secure these MacGuffins, our heroes travel to locales far and wide, performing feats of bravery and violence, nearly figuratively and literally drowning in mortal danger to save the world.

One noteworthy aspect of the movie that absolutely does not fail is the action. The “Mission: Impossible” series has some of the most thrilling, eye-popping stunts ever seen, a lot of them done practically with real life stunt performers, including by action movie god Cruise himself. With every new entry into the franchise, we wonder, how can he top this? And somehow he does.

Here’s the difference though. The previous episode, “Dead Reckoning Part One” also had a long running time (just eight minutes fewer), but it didn’t seem like it, because that movie’s amazing cinematic feats of action and pleasurable stress were tastefully leavened with delightful bouts of wit, never getting crushed under the weight of its own seriousness.

“Final Reckoning” has none of that. It feels like riding a roller coaster at a loved one’s funeral.

There is a very glaring lack of fun. In its stead, they offer bits and pieces of nostalgia using flashbacks and callbacks from each of the past seven movies. A good idea for sure, but not enough to make up for the utter lack of joy.

Shrewd readers of this review may have noticed discrepancies in the naming conventions of these two films. The prior movie was called “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One.” This new one has altered it to “Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning.” I used Google to try to figure out what happened to “Part Two,” and fittingly, a Google A.I. overview replied “This change occurred after the first part had a less-than-expected box office performance, prompting Paramount to shift the marketing strategy.”

Whether this is true or not, only the Entity knows, but maybe they also decided to shift the storytelling vibe thinking Part One was just too tongue-in-cheek for audiences. So perhaps they decided to pivot to the opposite end of the spectrum, deleting all fun.

Deciding to lean forward into the serious elements was a bad choice and the strategy falls on its face. I understand that for the finale of one of the finest movie franchises ever, a moment of silence was a fitting way to bid farewell. Just maybe not 171 of them.