This review will self destruct: A review of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One

The high-quality consistency of this series is in no small part due to the efforts of one superhuman actor. He is the glue that holds these films together.

This MVP has finally returned in the latest installment, “Dead Reckoning Part One.”

I am referring to, of course, Henry Czerny, who reprises his role as Eugene Kittridge, the director of the IMF (Impossible Mission Force). Czerny played Kittridge with slimy amoral aplomb in the first installment of the series way back in 1996, and it’s as if he never went away.

What, you were thinking of someone else?

“Dead Reckoning” takes us on a whirlwind jaunt across the globe, with on-location scenes set in Namibia, Abu Dhabi, Rome, Venice and the Austrian Alps. In each locale, adrenaline maven and sexy sexagenarian Tom Cruise keeps increasing the stakes for action from one breathtakingly kinetic scene of stimulation to another.

Intermingling the action, the filmmakers carefully sprinkle a robust sense of humor, a little bit of melodrama and a cool gadget or two. Honestly, these “Impossible” movies have wrestled the championship title of this particular genre of movie from those folks across the pond with the double-oh designation.

In chapter seven, the plot taps into our current zeitgeist with a self-aware artificial intelligence computer that aims to take over the world. Our protagonists face no mean task, as this algorithmic monstrosity can predictively sniff out the aims and means of our all-too human heroes.

In fact, so challenging (hence the “impossible” designation) is this mission, that it will take a second 150-plus minute film to accomplish the task at hand. “Dead Reckoning” was, from the start, intended to be broken up into two movies. The good news is that both were filmed simultaneously, and the next episode is due without much of a wait, next June 28.

Normally, this would ring the Hollywood alarm bell, the one that goes off when studio executive greed meters pass a certain red line (I’m looking at you, “The Hobbit”), but with this movie, it’s very welcome. Cynicism takes a back seat when a movie is so rapturously made. It is truly a movie maker’s movie. The creative team, including the director Christopher McQuarrie, (who also co-wrote the script with Bruce Geller and Erik Jendresen) seemingly put a lot of love and effort into this endeavor.

Too, the crew of stunt actors must be applauded. Practical action filmmaking as opposed to CGI is quite welcome these days. I suppose Cruise is one of the main perpetrators against green screen jurisprudence, and he is happily guilty of all charges.

Series regulars Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg are a bit sidelined, but are effective in their small parts. Newcomer to the series, Hayley Atwell (from the indie film concern known as the Marvel Cinematic Universe) is the standout among all performances. No stranger to big budget ensemble casts, she’s an excellent addition to the team and does not wither in the incandescent glow of the lead.

Another comic movie export Pom Klementieff (“Guardians of the Galaxy”) is superb as one of rich man’s ChatGPT’s unhinged minions. Rebecca Ferguson reprises her role as former MI-6 operative Ilsa Faust with her usual brand of beauty, elegance and manslaughter. And Vanessa Kirby is great as best frenemy forever, The White Widow.

I suppose when one gets an invite to be in a Cruise movie, one accepts without question (please leave the Scientology jokes at home), but there are a shocking number of famous and popular character actors playing tiny roles, including Cary Elwes, Mark Gatiss, Charles Parnell, Indira Varma and Rob Delaney.

The craziest part? This worthy film isn’t even the best movie of the franchise (for the record, from best to worst, it goes 6, 3, 7a, 1, 5, 4, 2). The bar is that high. The true impossible mission is getting movie 7b to the top of this list. I’m sure they will accept it.