MISSION : IMPOSSIBLE - THE FINAL RECKONING : Tuesday 20th May 2025.

I saw the heavily promoted, much hyped and highly anticipated M Rated 'MISSION : IMPOSSIBLE - THE FINAL RECKONING' earlier this week, and this American spy action film is Co-Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Christopher McQuarrie. This film serves as a direct sequel to 2023's 'Mission : Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One' and is the eighth and possibly the final film in the 'M:I' franchise. McQuarrie's previous feature film Directing output takes in his debut in 2000 with 'The Way of the Gun', which he would follow up with 'Jack Reacher' in 2012, 'Mission : Impossible - Rogue Nation' in 2015, 'Mission : Impossible - Fallout' in 2018 and 'Mission : Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One' in 2023. The first seven films in this hugely popular and successful franchise grossed a total of US$4.14B at the global Box Office from combined production budgets of US$1.5B, with this eighth instalment costing somewhere in between US$300 and 400M, making it one of the most expensive films ever made. The film had its World Premiere screening in Tokyo on 5th May, was screened at the Cannes Film Festival on 14th May and it set for a worldwide release from this week onward although a handful of territories (including Australia) saw its release brought forward to 17th of May.  

Picking up two months after the events of 'Mission : Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One' IMF agent Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise, who also Co-Produces here) in the opening scene places a VHS tape into his recorder and its plays back a message from the US President Erika Sloane (Angela Bassett) who urges him to come out of hiding and to hand over the two piece cruciform key which he still has in his possession. Once played the tape self destructs within five seconds. And so the trusty band of IMF Agents reassemble and with Ethan and Grace (Hayley Atwell) they go after Gabriel (Esai Morales) who is looking to take control of the 'Entity A.I.' and to bring the world to heel. However, Gabriel captures Ethan and Grace and coerces Ethan into retrieving the core module, revealed to be the 'Rabbit's Foot' (reference 'M:I:III'), from the sunken Russian submarine Sevastopol for him, which would give him control over the Entity's source code. Ethan and Grace escape with the assistance of IMF agent Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg) and new recruits Paris (Pom Klementieff) and Theo Degas (Greg Tarzan Davis). Following a foot chase in a system of disused tunnels adjacent to London's Underground train lines, in which Gabriel successfully evades Ethan, the team uncover a device that Gabriel used to communicate with the Entity, which shows Ethan a vision of a coming nuclear apocalypse. Ethan realises the Entity needs access to a secure digital bunker located in remote South Africa to ensure its survival.

Ethan sends his team, under the leadership of Benji Dunn, to retrieve the Sevastopol's coordinates, while he rejoins Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) to disarm a nuclear device Gabriel planted in London. Luther tells Ethan that he developed a malware for the Entity called the Poison Pill, but that Gabriel had stolen it the night before while Luther was sleeping. Sacrificing himself, Luther stays behind in a vain attempt to stop the bomb, giving Ethan just enough time to escape the bomb's blast. 

Ethan surrenders to President Sloane, who urges cooperation due to the Entity's escalating control over global nuclear systems, with all but four of the world's nuclear armed countries still in control of their nuclear arsenals - Russia, China, the UK and the USA, with the other five having lost control to the Entity already. With only four days before it launches global strikes, Ethan convinces Sloane to let him act independently to locate the Sevastopol, against CIA Director Eugene Kittridge's (Henry Czerny) objections, and that of others including Serling Bernstein (Holt McCallany) the Secretary of Defence; General Sidney (Nick Offerman) the Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staffs; Walters (Janet McTeer) the Secretary of State; Richards (Charles Parnell) the Director of National Intelligence; Angstrom (Mark Gatiss) Head of the National Security Agency; and Jasper Briggs (Shea Whigham) a US Intelligence Agent. 

Ethan's team travel to St. Matthew Island in the Bering Sea, home to a Cold War–era sonar station that detected the Sevastopol's sinking. They locate former CIA analyst William Donloe (Rolf Saxon) (reference 'Mission : Impossible'), who was exiled to the island decades earlier after a covert break-in at CIA headquarters, courtesy of one Ethan Hunt. Donloe reveals he memorised the Sevastopol's coordinates after recognising the sonar signature. As Grace, Benji, Theo and Donloe’s wife Tapeesa (Lucy Tulugarjuk), hold off an occupying unit of Russian special forces in a firefight, Donloe transmits the coordinates by Morse Code to Ethan, who by now has joined the aircraft carrier USS George H. W. Bush in the North Pacific Ocean to dive to the Sevastopol wreck. 

Ethan takes a deep dive inside a specially designed suit used by the dive-master into the icy cold waters of the Bering Sea. After overcoming several obstacles inside the stricken Russian submarine, he retrieves the Podkova module containing the Entity's original source code, but accidentally triggers the wreck to slide down the continental ice shelf. Narrowly escaping through an empty torpedo tube but having to exit from his dive suit, Ethan suffers from decompression sickness and drowns during the ascent to the surface, but is rescued and revived by Grace and Tapeesa using a makeshift decompression chamber. Reunited with his IMF team, Ethan outlines his plan to use the Poison Pill to upload and isolate the Entity on a one of a kind five dimensional physical drive created by Luther before he died, and so trapping it from the outside world. 

Ethan suspects Gabriel is already waiting at the South African bunker with the Poison Pill, aiming to seize control of the Entity by forcing Ethan to surrender the Podkova module. The team arrives at the bunker in South Africa only to find it abandoned except for Gabriel and his henchmen. He reveals another nuclear device with a twenty-minute countdown, demanding the module. Ethan agrees, but the handover is interrupted by Kittridge, who wants the US to control the Entity. 

The bomb is activated in the ensuing gunfight in which Benji sustains a bullet wound to his stomach. Gabriel flees the scene, knowing that Ethan will pursue him. Paris performs emergency surgery on a critically injured Benji as he falls in and out of consciousness, while guiding Grace to reboot the bunker systems to trap the Entity. Donloe buys the team enough time for everyone to escape safely before the bomb detonates.

Ethan chases Gabriel in a biplane and climbs onto Gabriel’s plane mid-air. Gabriel fails to shake him off despite numerous attempts to do so, and jumps with a parachute while the plane is flying upside down, but is killed after hitting the plane’s rudder head first. Ethan finds a second parachute, escapes with the Poison Pill, and connects it up with the Podkova module mid-descent, so allowing Grace to finish the upload. 

Kittridge and Briggs find Ethan and land their helicopter close by to collect him. Kittridge is frustrated when Ethan hands over the destroyed module of the Sevastopol while Briggs, who is revealed to be James Phelps Jnr., the son of Ethan's original team leader Jim Phelps (Jon Voight - reference 'Mission : Impossible') and makes peace with him. The IMF team reunites in London's Trafalgar Square at night time, where Grace gives Ethan the Entity, now safely isolated on Luther's 5D drive, and after acknowledging each other from a careful distance, the team fade into the crowd and go their separate ways.

Here, as with the previous three instalments, Director and Producers McQuarrie and Cruise have delivered us an action spectacular that doesn't let up on the practical thrills and spills, and death defying stunt work that this franchise is probably best known for. Cruise's commitment to his craft is on full display here once again as he pushes the boundaries of his stunt work all in the name of giving his audience a realistic experience to savour. The production values are top notch, but then for a budget of between US$300 and 400M that is to be expected, and the supporting cast are all on point. The plot however, left me feeling a little meh!, and how one man alone could save all of humanity from nuclear annihilation left me feeling just a tad incredulous. That said, 'Mission : Impossible - The Final Reckoning' is a fitting end, or so we are led to believe, to this multi-billion dollar taking franchise that has plenty of nods to those prior seven instalments, and leaves the door open for further offerings, should we choose to accept it, and whether Tom Cruise is up for another impossible mission to save 'those we hold close, and those we'll never meet'! At a running time of just ten minutes shy of three hours, this film will not leave you wanting. See it on the biggest screen you can.

'Mission : Impossible - The Final Reckoning' merits four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a possible five claps. 

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

BLACK PANTHER : WAKANDA FOREVER - Monday 14th November 2022.

I saw the M Rated 'BLACK PANTHER : WAKANDA FOREVER' this week, and this American Superhero film is based on the Marvel Comics character of Black Panther, as portrayed by Chadwick Boseman in the 2018 film 'Black Panther', and who tragically died from colon cancer in 2020. This is the sequel to that 2018 film and is the thirtieth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and is once again Directed and Co-Written by Ryan Coogler. The film saw its World Premier screening in Hollywood on 26th October, was released worldwide last week having cost US$250M to produce and having so far grossed worldwide US$401M, has generated largely positive critical acclaim and is the final film in Phase Four of the MCU.

The film opens up with Princess Shuri (Letitia Wright) frantically trying to synthetically recreate in her lab the heart-shaped herb that could potentially save the life of her dying brother King T'Challa of Wakanda. The Queen Mother of Wakanda Ramonda (Angela Bassett) enters the lab with tears in her eyes proclaiming that her son, Shuri's brother and the King of Wakanda, T'Challa, has passed away and now joins their ancestors. 

We then fast forward a year and a joint expedition force by the CIA and US Navy Seals is somewhere in the mid-Atlantic Ocean. Deep down on the seabed is a vibranium detecting machine that has located a source of the world's strongest metal thought previously to exist only in Wakanda. The expedition is attacked and wiped-out by a group of blue-skinned water breathing ocean dwelling superhumans led by Namor (Tenoch Huerta) the King of the underwater city of Talokan. The CIA later lay claim that Wakanda was responsible for the attack on the mid-Atlantic expedition. Later, Queen Ramonda is invited to attend something resembling the United Nations where she is pressed by other countries to share their vibranium, but she flatly refuses believing that they would use it against Wakanda and to bring about widespread destruction. 

On the first anniversary of T'Challa's death, Ramonda takes Shuri out into the bush so they they can grieve together and burn their funeral ceremonial robes on the camp fire as is the custom. Namor appears out of the river confronting them both, having easily evaded Wakanda's advanced security systems. Blaming Wakanda for the vibranium race, he gives them an ultimatum - deliver to him the scientist responsible for the vibranium-detecting machine, or he will attack Wakanda without mercy.

Okoye (Danai Gurira) convinces Ramonda to allow her to take Shuri with her to locate the scientist - after all what could possibly go wrong? They learn from CIA agent Everett K. Ross (Martin Freeman) that the scientist in question is Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne), a nineteen year old student at MIT, and arrive at the university to confront her, and convince her to come to Wakanda with them. The group is tracked down and pursued first by the FBI and then Namor's warriors, who defeat Okoye before taking Shuri and Williams to the underwater city of Talokan to meet with Namor. Back in Wakanda and Queen Ramonda is angered to say the least that Okoye failed to safeguard Shuri, and so strips her of her title as General of the Dora Milaje. Ramonda then travels of Haiti to locate Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o) who has been living there since the blip and who did not return to Wakanda even for T'Challa's funeral. Ramonda enlists Nakia's help to locate and return Shuri and Riri to Wakanda. 

Namor meets with Shuri and shows her his underwater kingdom of Talokan, which he has protected since the 16th century and is rich with vibranium. Bitter at the surface world that once rejected him, Namor meets with Ramonda and offers an alliance with Wakanda against the other nations of the world but promises to destroy Wakanda first if they don't cooperate. Nakia helps Shuri and Riri escape, and Namor retaliates with an attack against Wakanda's capital city, during which Ramonda drowns while saving Riri. Namor vows to return in a week with his full force, as the citizens of Wakanda are relocated to the mountains for their own safety.

Meanwhile, Ross is arrested by his ex-wife and new CIA Director, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), for covertly exchanging classified intelligence with the Wakandans. Using a remnant of the herb that gave the Talokan's their superhuman abilities from a bracelet given to Shuri by Namor, she reconstructs the heart-shaped herb and ingests it in liquified form, giving her superhuman abilities. She then meets with Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) in the Ancestral Plane, who urges her to seek revenge. 

With her new super powers Shuri puts on a new upgraded Black Panther suit and is quickly accepted by the other Wakandan tribes as the Black Panther. Despite M'Baku's (Winston Duke) strong desire for peace, Shuri is determined to exact vengeance on Namor for Ramonda's death and orders an immediate attack on Talokan. Preparing for battle, with Ayo (Florence Kasumba) assuming the mantle of General of the Dora Milaje, Shuri bestows the new Midnight Angel body armour upon Okoye, who in turn recruits Dora member Aneka (Michaela Coel) to join her. Riri creates an Iron Man type powered exoskeleton suit to help the Wakandans in battle. 

The Wakandans lure Namor and his warriors to the surface as a battle ensues, with the relentless Talokan's seemingly gaining the upper hand. Shuri traps Namor in a fighter aircraft, intending to dehydrate and therefore weaken him. The aircraft crashes on a desert beach and a fight ensues. Shuri gains the upper hand and releases an explosion which burns into Namor's back causing him to fall onto the sand just out of reach of his life giving ocean. Shuri holds a spear to Namor's throat, but realises the similarities between their life journey's and implores him to yield, offering a peaceful alliance between their nations. Namor accepts, and their fight ends.

Namor's cousin, Namora (Mabel Cadena), is angered at Namor's surrender, but he reassures her that their new alliance will allow them to conquer the surface world at some point in the future. Riri returns to MIT with the blessing of Shuri who extends the warm hand of friendship leaving behind her exoskeleton suit, while Okoye rescues Ross as he is being transported to captivity. In Shuri's absence, M'Baku steps forward to challenge her for the throne. Shuri visits Nakia who has returned to Haiti where she burns her funeral ceremonial robe allowing herself to finally grieve over T'Challa. In a mid-credits sequence, Shuri learns that Nakia and T'Challa had a son who is now eight years old, and that his name is Toussaint (Divine Love Konadu-Sun), who Nakia has been raising in secret away from the trials and tribulations of Wakanda and the throne. Toussaint reveals his Wakandan name is T'Challa, Prince T'Challa the son of King T'Challa.

'Black Panther : Wakanda Forever' pays a fitting tribute to the passing of King T'Challa, aka Black Panther, and indeed Chadwick Boseman that is heartfelt and emotional without being forced or contrived. The roles of Bassett, Huerta, Wright and Nyong'o especially are right on the money with each of them delivering compelling and relatable performances that keep the story grounded with a sense of realism. The CGI effects and the continued world building of Wakanda is impressive enough too, as are the action sequences which are delivered at an effectively staged pace so as to allow for characterisation development to come through in between and which is likely to bode well for the story arc when 'Black Panther III' eventually hits our screens at some future date. That said, the second act stagnates a little and I found my mind wandering and asking myself when was the pace going to pick up, and at 161 minutes runtime, this is over extended by twenty minutes I suggest. 'Wakanda Forever' was unlikely to hit the dizzying heights of the first 'Black Panther' instalment but when it boils down to the continuation of the story and establishing a foundation upon which to further build the next film in the 'Black Panther' franchise, then this film delivers on that premise. As of earlier this month, Director and Co-Writer Ryan Coogler and Kevin Feige, the Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment were revealed to have discussed a potential third Black Panther film.

'Black Panther : Wakanda Forever' merits three claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a potential five claps.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

MISSION : IMPOSSIBLE - FALLOUT - Tuesday 7th August 2018.

'MISSION : IMPOSSIBLE - FALLOUT' which I saw at my local multiplex this week is the sixth instalment in the Tom Cruise action franchise based on the popular '60's television series, that since 1996 has been dusted off every five years or so with another big budget high octane screen offering. The franchise launched with Brian De Palma's first film adaptation in 1996, followed by John Woo's Directed 'Mission : Impossible 2' in 2000; then J.J. Abrams took over Directing duties with 'Mission : Impossible III' in 2006, then Brad Bird assumed the mantle in 2011 with 'Mission : Impossible - Ghost Protocol' followed by Christoper McQuarrie in 2015 with 'Mission : Impossible - Rogue Nation'. These first five films have grossed at the worldwide Box Office a combined US$2.8B from a collective Budget of US$650M. Now in 2018 Christoper McQuarrie returns to the Directors chair for 'Mission : Impossible - Fallout' which he also wrote. Tom Cruise Produces too, as he has all other films in the series to date. The film has received universal acclaim from Critics, with many praising it as the best in the series so far with the cinematography, action set pieces, stunt work, storyline and cast performances as being particularly credit worthy. The film cost US$178M to Produce and has so far raked in US$360M since its release Stateside last week.

The film opens up with Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) woken from his slumber in a Belfast safe house. He is delivered the ubiquitous package detailing his next mission . . . .  should he choose to accept it. Set two years following the events of 'Mission : Impossible - Rogue Nation' in which Soloman Lane (Sean Harris) was captured with what remains of his secretive anarchic organisation 'The Syndicate', reformed into a terrorist group operating across the world known as 'The Apostles'. Hunt's mission is to prevent the sale of three plutonium cores to the group on behalf of their client, one John Lark whose true identity remains a mystery. Hunt's pre-recorded message self destructs within five seconds, and next we find him in Berlin where he meets up with colleagues Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg) and Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) to arrange the purchase of said plutonium cores. However, the mission goes awry, leaving Hunt a choice to either sacrifice the cores or sacrifice Luther being held at gunpoint. He chooses to save Luther's life, and lo and behold the cores disappear into the night, courtesy of The Apostles.

The team quickly home in on Nils Debruuk (Kristoffer Joner) and set an elaborate trap to make him confess his involvement and hand over the blueprints for his three portable nuclear weapons as well as releasing valuable information relating to The Apostle's next move. Director of CIA Erica Sloane (Angela Bassett) instructs Special Activities Division operative August Walker (Henry Cavill) to shadow Hunt as he attempts to retrieve the plutonium, much to the distrust of IMF Secretary Alan Hunley (Alec Baldwin).

Hunt and Walker HALO (High Altitude Low Opening) parachute jump into Paris, where they infiltrate a fundraiser party at a lavish venue where John Lark is set to buy the cores from The Apostles. They track a man whom they suspect to be Lark to a Gents WC, where a fight breaks out between Lark, Hunt and Walker in which Lark gains the upper hand over the other two, but is shot dead unexpectedly by the emergence of Isla Faust (Rebecca Fergusson).

To ensure the successful execution of the mission, Hunt impersonates Lark and meets with an arms dealer Alanna Mitsopolis, aka The White Widow (Vanessa Kirby) acting as a broker, on the basis that she will not be aware of the true identity of Lark. Agents of The Apostles have been sent to kill John Lark and The White Widow, but she and Hunt escape from the private party in a hail of bullets, knives and fist fights with a room full of guests and panicked onlookers. The White Widow has fallen for Hunt's rouse.

Believing Hunt to be Lark, and in order to secure the plutonium, The White Widow tasks him with extracting Lane from an armoured convoy transporting the fugitive through Paris. She hands over one of the plutonium cores as a payment in kind for the mission. Hunt and his team attack the convoy but not as planned, pushing the armoured vehicle into the Seine so saving the lives of numerous Police Officers who would have been collateral damage, and sending the perpetrators into complete disarray. A straight jacketed Lane is extracted from the now completely submerged armoured vehicle by Benji Dunn and bundled into the back of a waiting speed boat and Luther Stickell.

Walker and Hunt drive a panel van as part of their getaway chased down the back streets of Paris by The White Widows henchmen. They then decamp to getaway motorcycles as the van becomes wedged at the end of a narrow street. Successfully evading the Police, but only narrowly, Hunt is picked up in the speed boat by Dunn and Stickell and a hooded and still straight jacketed Lane.

The team of three and a captured Lane now make for a lock up garage in which is stowed their getaway car - an olive green BMW from yesteryear. Upon raising the garage door they are greeted by a random female Police Officer who suspecting that something is not quite right pulls her gun and orders the three and their hooded and bound captive to freeze. Whereupon four of The White Widows goons arrive to take charge of the situation and reclaim Lane. In the standoff the Police Officer is shot but in a non-life threatening way, and the four goons are all rapidly dispensed with courtesy of Hunt. A high speed car chase ensues across Paris, with Hunt skillfully dodging traffic, pedestrians, motorcyclists and all manner of obstacles while also avoiding The White Widow's forces, the Police and Ilsa, who is under orders to kill Lane to fulfil her mission for MI6 and to be able to walk free following her exploits of two years ago when she joined the IMF and Hunt's team. The mission to extract Lane remains successful, whereupon The White Widow instructs the team to deliver Lane, and Ilsa, to London.

Meanwhile, also in Paris, Walker has secretly met with Erica Sloane and spun her a yarn how Hunt is in fact the elusive Lane, and has framed him by doctoring the evidence found on the man they believed to be Lane and who they killed at the party earlier. Walker hands over the dead mans mobile phone containing all the 'evidence' that Sloane needs to incriminate Hunt. Sloane needs little convincing and orders Walker to put an end to the mission by whatever means necessary, even if it means taking Hunt, and his team, out.

The action now moves to a London safehouse in which Alan Hunley confronts Hunt about being John Lark, based on the fabricated evidence presented by Walker to Sloane. Hunt denies these accusations naturally and incapacitates Hunley to continue with their mission. Benji Dunn masks up as Lane for the purposes of the trade with The White Widow, leaving the real Lane under the charge of Walker while Hunt and his crew go off to make the deal. After being asked to monitor Lane, Walker unwittingly reveals himself to be the real John Lark, in association with Lane. But Benji Dunn and the real Lane did the switcheroo and pulled a fast one on Walker which they recorded for all posterity, with Sloane watching in remotely, while Hunt, Stickell and the real Lane were still in the building.

At this Sloane has instructed a shadow CIA team to take Lane, Walker, and Hunt’s team in. The CIA team though has been infiltrated by The Apostles and Walker orders them to attack the IMF team. Hunley is stabbed and killed in the ensuing fight by Walker, who then escapes on foot across London.  Hunt, after bidding a fond farewell to a dying Hunley, chases Walker on foot aided by Benji Dunn guiding him remotely as a result on implanting a tracking device in Walker's neck during the fracas at the safehouse. Walker leads Hunt on a chase across roof tops to the Tate Modern art gallery, where Walker escapes with Lane in a waiting helicopter on the rooftop, but not before making a threat against Hunt's ex-wife Julia (Michelle Monaghan) as added security for Hunt to no longer meddle.  

Using the tracking device still in Walker's neck leads the team to a medical aid camp somewhere in the foothills of Kashmir. Faust deduces that Lane intends to detonate the two remaining nuclear devices at a river that crosses the borders of China, Pakistan and India so contaminating the water supply to a third of the world's population. Upon arrival at the camp, Hunt comes face to face with Julia and her new husband Patrick (Wes Bentley) who are both working as Doctors providing voluntary medical aid to the locals. Walker had set up Julia to be there to raise the incentive for Hunt. 

Lane activates the nuclear weapons choosing to stay behind as his work is now done, but seeing to it that Walker leaves quickly so as to be out of harms way when the atomic blasts come, which is counting down to fifteen minutes hence. Lane hands the detonator key to Walker who exists in a helicopter. Hunt takes off in a second helicopter clinging to a payload hanging below, leaving Dunn, Stickell and Faust to locate the two nuclear devices and attempt to disarm them within the next fifteen minutes. Hunt clambers up the dangling payload and into the cockpit of the helicopter dispensing with the pilot and co-pilot before taking the controls. All the while Hunt is negotiating mountainous terrain, cavernous ravines, glacial landscapes and deep valleys under a barrage of machine gun fire from a mightily pissed off Walker in hot pursuit. 

Hunt and Walker continue to engage in aerial combat each from their own helicopter, before Hunt uses his chopper to ram Walker's helicopter out of the sky, causing the two downed aircraft to come to rest on a snow covered cliff edge. Narrowly escaping the remnants of two destroyed helicopters, the pair fight high up on a flattened cliff edge, where Hunt eventually kills Walker by sending him to his death wearing a helicopter necklace that explodes in a ball of flame a couple of hundred metres below. Ethan gains control of the detonator while Stickell, Dunn, Faust aided by Julia, deactivate the bombs with one second to spare. With the two cores safely recovered, Sloane arrives on the scene having sent a rescue helicopter to air lift Hunt off the precipice. Sloane hands Lane over to MI6 aided by The White Widow who has secretly been working undercover for MI6 to infiltrate Lane and his network. Faust is cleared of any wrongdoing and is off the hook with MI6. Hunt, Stickell and Dunn can say Mission : Accomplished, and the world is safe, for another day at least!

'Mission : Impossible - Fallout' is by far and away the best in an escapist action franchise that just keeps on improving with age. Here the Cruisemeister just reaffirms his position at the top of the ladder in terms of balls out epic big screen action commercial cinema where he chooses to do all his own practical stunts for added realism instead of giving way to green screen CGI enhanced effects, and all credit to ya Tom. He jumps, leaps, runs, climbs, clings, fist fights, kicks, shoots and is involved in a foot chase, a car chase, a motorcycle chase, a helicopter chase, jumps from a plane at 25,000 feet and saves the world all in the space of two and half hours of action packed adrenalin fuelled high octane fast paced drama. All the while, the story is believable, the action sequences of which there are many are delivered with a deft touch, the locations spectacular, and Hunt is presented as human after all with emotions, regrets, feelings and a vulnerability that perhaps we have not seen in previous instalments. This is a well rounded film in every respect - from the performances, the pacing, and the practical effects and the McQuarrie/Cruise combo has proved a sure fire winner here that elevates this franchise much further up the food chain. See it on the big screen while you can - you won't be disappointed.

'Mission : Impossible - Fallout' warrants five claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard, out of a possible five.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

BLACK PANTHER : Sunday 18th February 2018.

I saw 'BLACK PANTHER' last weekend, and herein Marvel Studios unleash another Superhero into our movie going world in this stand alone origin offering of 'Black Panther' (aka King T'Challa of the fictional African nation of Wakanda). The character created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby first appeared in the comic book 'Fantastic Four #52' in 1966 and depicts T'Challa as the King and protector of Wakanda. Along with possessing enhanced abilities achieved through ancient Wakandan ritual, T'Challa also relies on his genius intellect, rigorous physical training, martial arts skills, access to cutting edge technologies and accumulated wealth to ward off his enemies. Back in 1992 Wesley Snipes first muted his desire to work on a Black Panther film, and over the following ten years the project was further developed but eventually came to nothing. Then in 2005 Marvel announced that Black Panther was one of ten characters from its portfolio that would be developed as part of its Cinematic Universe. In 2011 a Scriptwriter was hired, and in 2014 the project was greenlit. Chadwick Boseman was cast in the role of T'Challa and made his first appearance in 2016's 'Captain America : Civil War' in which his character sides with Iron Man/Tony Stark. And so here we have this eighteenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Directed and Co-Written by Ryan Coogler for US$200M. The film Premiered in the US at the end of January and went on general release around the world last week. The film has received widespread critical acclaim, noting especially the Direction, casting, action sequences, costume design and, in a first for Marvel starring a predominantly black cast. Box Office receipts so far stand at US$492M.

The film opens with a montage of scenes depicting the history of Wakanda, and how centuries ago five African tribes went to war over a meteorite containing vibranium (Wakandan vibranium absorbs sound waves and other vibrations, including kinetic energy. Absorbing sound waves, vibrations, and kinetic energy makes this metal stronger. Captain America's shield is made from vibranium). A warrior consumed a 'heart-shaped purple coloured herb' that was affected by the metal and gained superhuman capabilities. He became the first 'Black Panther', and united all tribes (except the Jabari Tribe who declined) to form the nation of Wakanda. Over time, the Wakandans used the vibranium to develop advanced technologies and wealth but isolated themselves from the world by posing as a poor Third World country, for fear that they would be exploited and overthrown if their mineral wealth was ever discovered.

We then jump to 1992, to Oakland, California where we see a bunch of young boys shooting hoops in their apartment block backyard. King T'Chaka (John Kani) pays an unexpected visit to his undercover brother N'Jobu (Sterling K. Brown). Black market arms trader, smuggler and all round gangster Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis) gained access to Wakanda secretly and stole a small quantity of vibranium. T'Chaka accuses his brother of collaborating with Klaue, a fact that is verified by N'Jobu's friend and fellow Wakandan undercover citizen Zuri (Denzel Whitaker). T'Chaka orders N'Jobu to return to Wakanda and stand trial for his crimes, but when he refuses and turns on Zuri, T'Chaka kills him, albeit reluctantly. A young lad in the back yard drops his basketball, and looks up to the sky to see two rotating circles of blue light hover above the apartment building and then disappear at great speed into the night sky.

We now are in the present day, and after King T'Chaka is killed, his son T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) is the rightful heir to the throne. After extracting his love interest Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o), an undercover Wakandan spy and War Dog, from a rebel convoy deep in the Nigerian jungle, T'Challa and Okoye (Danai Gurira) the head of the Dora Milaje, the all-female highly trained and very capable special forces of Wakanda, who serve as T'Challa's trusted and fiercely loyal bodyguards, return to Wakanda to be with his mother Ramona (Angela Bassett) and younger sister Shuri (Letitia Wright) for the coronation ceremony.

At the ceremony, presided over by an older Zuri now (Forest Whitaker), the Jabari Tribe's leader M'Baku (Winston Duke) challenges T'Challa for the crown, which is his right to do so. The leaders of the other tribes are all given the opportunity to challenge also but respectfully decline. The Jabari have however, a long standing axe to grind with 'T'Challa and his kind. T'Challa overpowers M'Baku forcing him to yield rather than be killed, and so the opponent is permitted to leave, and the victor is crowned King.

While this is going on, over in England, Klaue and Erik 'Killmonger' Stevens (Michael B. Jordan) are planning to rob an ancient vibranium artifact from a museum in London. They successfully do so, and make their escape. T'Challa learns of the vibranium artifact heist and that Klaue was involved, and that further, he now plans to sell it in Busan, South Korea. W'Kabi (Daniel Kaluuya), T'Challa's close friend and love interest of Okoye, and who lost both his parents at the hands of Klaue, urges his King to hunt down the arch villain and either return him to Wakanda, or kill him. T'Challa, Nakia and Okoye travel to Busan to a secret underground casino location that is the designated exchange point for the sale of the vibranium artifact. There T'Challa comes across CIA Agent Everett K. Ross (Martin Freeman) who is the undercover buyer of the artifact, there on his own mission. When Klaue arrives on the scene it's not long before a firefight breaks out, with the action quickly moving to  a car chase outside on the streets of downtown Busan. Klaue is apprehended by T'Challa, aided by Nakia, Okoye and Shuri remotely.

Ross interrogates Klaue with T'Challa and Okoye looking on behind a mirrored window. Klaue reveals to Ross that Wakanda is in reality no third world country as they would have everyone believe, but a super developed technologically advanced and very wealthy country - Ross struggles to believe him. Just then Erik blows a hole in the wall, and extracts Klaue. In the ensuing exchange of gun fire, Ross takes a bullet intended for Nakia and is badly wounded. In the fleeting moments as Klaue and Erik make their getaway, T'Challa notices a ring hanging from around Erik's neck that is identical to the one worn by him too. T'Challa commits to have Ross taken back to Wakanda, where their technological wizardry can save his life, rather than pursue Klaue at this time.

With Shuri attending to Ross, T'Challa confronts Zuri about the ring seen hanging from around Erik's neck. Zuri is naturally reluctant to tell him the story, but does so. He explains that N'Jobu had intended to share Wakanda's technological advancements and their weaponry with the descendants of African peoples around the world, in order that they could rise up and beat their white oppressors. When King T'Chaka killed N'Jobu they left behind his young son, Erik, so as not to add complication to their story. Erik would become a US Black Op's soldier, who by reputation for the number of enemy kills notched up during his career earned the name 'Killmonger'. Erik kills Klaue, and takes his body to Wakanda where he is marched in front of T'Challa and the other tribal elders, where he reveals his heritage and his true claim to the throne.

Erik challenges T'Challa to a ritual combat for the right to the throne, which T'Challa accepts. First Erik kills Zuri for the crime of covering up his fathers death all those years ago. He then battles it out with T'Challa overpowering him, and ultimately tossing him over a waterfall from a high cliff. With T'Challa now out of the way and presumed dead, Erik, now known as N'Jadaka ascends to the throne of Wakanda, with W'Kabi and his tribal army standing by his side. Ramonda, Shuri, Naki and a now fully recovered Ross decide that it's time to get the Hell outta Dodge and flee. Okoye decides to stay for she is loyal to the throne - no matter who sits on it. N'Jadaka orders that preparations be made at all haste to distribute Wakanda's advanced weapons to ready in waiting field operations located around the world, in order that they can now rise up in force against their age old oppressors.

Meanwhile, having trekked over mountain terrain, Ramonda, Shuri, Naki and Ross arrive at the Jabari Tribe seeking aid from their Chief M'Baku. He declines, but leads them to the unconscious body of T'Challa fished out of the waterfall before he drowned, and rescued in payment for him sparing M'Baku's life during the earlier challenge for the throne. He is however, in a comatose state. Naki feeds T'Challa the herb she extracted before she left, enabling his body to self heal. T'Challa asks M'Baku for help but again he declines, saying that his debt is now repaid - a life for a life!

T'Challa returns to do battle with N'Jadaka and to overthrow the new pretender, who has now ordered and mobilised W'Kabi and his army to attack T'Challa, and for a fleet of aircraft to head out each carrying a stash of vibranium weapons for distribution to awaiting brothers at various points around the globe. While the battle for the upper hand is ongoing, Shuri commands a reluctant Ross to remotely pilot an attack aircraft to down those others en route to the worldwide destinations before they are able to leave Wakanda's airspace. Ross, a former Air Force pilot (conveniently) abides and is successful in his mission (naturally!)

The Dora Milaje, led by Okoye flanked by Shuri and Naki arrive to battle it out with N'Jadaka who has his own Black Panther suit, making him almost invincible. M'Baku and his Tribe of Jabari eventually arrive to provide much needed support against W'Kabi and his army, who eventually yield when confronted by Okoye.

All of this commotion, leave N'Jadaka to fight it out hand to hand with T'Challa, which they do in the depths of Wakanda's vibranium mine. Using some sort of electro magnetic force, T'Challa is able to disable N'Jadaka's protective suit, for just long enough to administer a fatal wound with a vibranium dagger. T'Challa offers to heal N'Jadaka, but the wounded man declines being healed and imprisoned, for dying a free man. And so be it! In the closing scene T'Challa and Naki are back in Oakland where it all began. He has purchased the apartment block where N'Jobu died all those years ago, and the one next to it, and the one next to that too. He intends to establish an outreach centre where Wakanda's technology and scientific learning's will be introduced to the world in a controlled and coordinated way for future generations to benefit from. Watch out too for the obligatory mid-credits and end-credits sequences, and Stan Lee's cameo.

'Black Panther' shines on just about every level. It sits up there easily with the best that Marvel has so far dished up in its seventeen previous outings from its Cinematic Universe. It has action set pieces, its has moments of humour, it has heart and emotion, it has colour and depth, it has a storyline that is rooted in African culture and tradition infused with every ultra modern scientific technological gadget you can possibly dream up, and it has believable relatable characters delivered to us fully realised by an almost entirely coloured ensemble cast. All these ingredients when combined with top notch production values, excellent cinematography, a great soundtrack, and safe assured Direction by Marvel's youngest Director to date in Ryan Coogler, all add up to a rich, satisfying origin Superhero offering that has something to say in today's world that is relevant and important. Recommended viewing, you won't be disappointed.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-