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-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 2nd August 2018

In July, the world bid a fond farewell to number of stars of the silver screen and the small screen. In brief, shown below, is my passing tribute to those stars who leave an indelible mark on the entertainment industry, and in particular the world of film and television. May you all Rest In Peace, and thanks for the memories . . . . Steve Ditko, Tab Hunter and Stan Dragoti.

* Stephen J. Ditko - born 2nd November 1927, died 29th June 2018, although not announced publicly until 6th July 2018, aged 90. Ditko was an American comics artist and writer best known as the co-creator and artist, together with Stan Lee, of the Marvel Comics superheroes 'Spider-Man' (and his antagonists 'The Green Goblin', 'Sandman', 'The Lizard' and 'Dr. Octopus') and 'Doctor Strange'. He began his career in 1953 working in the same studio as Jack Kirby and Joe Simon and then for Charlton Comics across various genres. During the '50's he also started working for Atlas Comics which would later on evolve into Marvel Comics during which time Spider-Man and Doctor Strange were born. In 1966 however, after an unclear falling out with Stan Lee, Ditko worked for DC Comics, Charlton and smaller independent comics publishers during which time he co-created 'Captain Atom' amongst others. Ditko returned to Marvel in 1979 where he remained until the mid-'90's working on a freelance basis. He retained a writing studio in New York up until his death and was a recluse, turning down interviews, meeting his legions of fans, or attending movie premiers of his highly popular and successful Superhero characters.
* Stanley John Dragoti - born 4th October 1932, died 13th July 2018, aged 85. Stan Dragoti was an American film Director and Writer who started out shooting television commercials and whose feature debut 'Dirty Little Billy' in 1972 starred Nick Nolte in his film debut and Gary Busey too telling the origin story of Billy the Kid. From here he Directed the horror comedy 'Love at First Bite' with George Hamilton and Susan Saint James based on the Count Dracula character in a modern day New York setting. This was followed up by the 1983 comedy 'Mr. Mom' with Michael Keaton, Christoper Lloyd, Jeffrey Tambor and Teri Garr, and then the 1985 comedy 'The Man with One Red Shoe' with Ton Hanks, Dabney Coleman, Jim Belushi, Charles Durning, Carrie Fisher and Lori Singer. 1989 saw 'She's Out of Control' with Tony Danza and Matthew Perry, and his last feature film offering came in 1991 with sport comedy offering 'Necessary Roughness' with Scott Bakula, Robert Loggia, Hector Elizondo, Jason Bateman and Rob Schneider. Dragoti has seven film Directing credits to his name and two as Writer.
* Tab Hunter (born Arthur Andrew Kelm) - born 11th July 1931, died 8th July 2018, aged 86. Hunter was an American Actor, Singer, Writer and Producer who was at the height of his fame during the '50's and '60s', and one of the hottest teen heart throbs of the '50's era. He gained his screen debut in the 1950 feature film 'The Lawless', and thereafter scored secondary roles in Western, Wartime and crime drama films until signing a contract with Warner Bros. in the mid-'50's. His first film with the major studio was 1955's 'The Sea Chase' with John Wayne and Lana Turner and then 'Track of the Cat' with Robert Mitchum that same year. Both were strong hit films which only served to brighten his star all the more. Perhaps his breakout role came in 1955's WWII drama 'Battle Cry' which helped to coalesce Hunter's place as one of Hollywood's romantic leads. In 1956 he starred with Natalie Wood in two films 'The Burning Hills' and 'The Girl He Left Behind' having been elevated to 'star' status by Warner's together with James Dean and the aforementioned Wood. Hunter was Warner's most popular male star from 1955 through to 1959, so much so that for Valentine's Day 1956, he received some 62,000 cards and wishes from adoring fans. Hunter also had a singing career reaching #1 in 1957 with 'Young Love' selling over a million copies, and 'Ninety-Nine Ways' which peaked at #5 in the UK chart. He also starred in his own television sitcom 'The Tab Hunter Show' which was a bigger hit in the UK than the US, and from there he had regular work across the '60's, '70's, '80's and beyond. His last film was 'Dark Horse' in 1992. All up Hunter had 76 Acting credits to his name, four as Producer, one as Writer, and nine Soundtrack acknowledgements. An award-winning 2015 documentary about his life titled 'Tab Hunter Confidential', was Produced by Hunter's life partner for the past three decades Allan Glaser. A feature film is currently in development at Paramount Pictures to be produced by Glaser, J. J. Abrams and Zachary Quinto charting the life and times of this '50's and '60's screen idol.

This week then, coming to an Odeon near you, we have four new cinematic releases to tease you out to your local multiplex or independent theatre. We kick off with the sixth instalment in this hugely successful all action international espionage franchise that sees our titular hero showcasing plenty of derring do and epic stunts, but will he accomplish his impossible mission this time around? We then head to remote France back in the early '50's that sees a former confidence trickster passing himself off as a trained Doctor and offering to cure all comers of their ills - be they real, imagined or completely fictional. Next up is a drama of great man, behind whom stands an even greater woman who has supported him through the ups and downs and trials and tribulations of their forty or so years together as told on the eve of the great man being publicly honoured. And we wrap up this weeks latest releases with a Spanish foreign language film about a young girl, recently orphaned and taken in by her loving Aunt and Uncle in the mountain countryside, but against which she struggles to adapt.

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the four latest release new movies as Previewed below, or those doing the rounds currently on general release and as Reviewed and Previewed in previous Blog Posts here at Odeon Online, you are most welcome to share your movie going thoughts, opinions and observations by leaving your relevant, succinct and appropriate views in the Comments section below this or any other Post. We'd love to hear from you, and in the meantime, enjoy your big screen Odeon outing during the coming week.

'MISSION : IMPOSSIBLE - FALLOUT' (Rated M) - here we have 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. Launching with Brian De Palma's first film adaptation in 1996, John Woo Directed 'Mission : Impossible 2' in 2000; 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 '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$163M since its release Stateside last week.

Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his elite team of IMF agents that include former Head of CIA Operations Alan Hunley (Alec Baldwin), tech colleague Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg) and computer hacker Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) find themselves in a race against time as they must fight to save the planet from 'The Syndicate' and its nefarious leader Solomon Lane (Sean Harris). Having made some questionable decisions in the past, the fallout from both those fateful choices is coming back to haunt Hunt. The Syndicate has amassed a nuclear arsenal and is planning to bring the world to its knees and destroy Hunt in the process. Following Hunt's earlier failure to locate and secure the deadly weapons, the CIA has taken over the mission with new CIA head honcho Erica Sloane (Angela Bassett) beginning to question his motives and loyalties whilst also sending in CIA Assassin August Walker (Henry Cavill) to take out Hunt and his Team once and for all. Also starring Rebecca Fergusson, Michelle Monaghan and Vanessa Kirby.

'DR. KNOCK' (Rated PG) - this French comedy film is Directed and Written by Lorraine Levy and is based on the 1923 satirical play by Jules Romains that has been made into feature films in 1925, 1933, 1951 and now this version which is a remake of that 1951 offering. The film had its initial release in October last year and only now does it arrive in Australian cinemas having grossed just US$4.5M off the back of a US$15M budget outlay. It is the early '50's and here Dr. Knock (Omar Sy) is a former thug and con man who travels to the small village of Saint-Maurice in the French Alps, to masquerade as a trained and qualified medical practitioner and convince the locals that they are sick and only he can cure them using his own unique methodology. Persuading the community that they are perhaps not as healthy as they would like to believe, he will find in each 'patient' an imaginary symptom, or not, and therefore begin to weave his lucrative spell. Just as his plans begin to take off and the village is taken in his past catches up with him, and the emergence of an old acquaintance disrupts his scheme, as does the love of a beautiful farm girl.

'THE WIFE' (Rated M) - Directed by the Swede Bjorn Runge and based on the 2003 novel of the same name by Meg Wolitzer, this film Premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival back in September last year and is released Stateside in mid-August, and in early screenings has received generally positive press by Critics. Here Joan Castleman (Glenn Close) and husband Professor Joe Castleman (Jonathan Pryce) have been married for approaching forty years. Joan and Joe have a complimentary relationship where Joe enjoys his very public role as the great American novelist, and Joan provides her considerable intellect, grace, charm and diplomacy into the private role of a great man's wife. As Joe is about to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature for his acclaimed and prolific body of work, Joan starts to think about the shared compromises, secrets, betrayals and mutual love and respect that have marked their lives together since they first met in the late '50's. Also starring Christian Slater, Max Irons and Elizabeth McGovern.

'SUMMER 1993' (Rated PG) - this Catalan language Spanish film is Directed and Written by Carla Simon in her filmmaking debut and had its Premier at the Berlin International Film Festival way back in February 2017, went on general release in Spain in June 2017 and only now does it get a limited release in Australia. In the meantime it has collected 32 award wins and another 49 nominations from around the awards and festivals circuit, and has taken just US$1.2M. The story here surrounds six year old recently orphaned girl Frida (Laia Artigas) who is transplanted from her former family home in Barcelona to move to the Catalan countryside to be raised by her Aunt Marga (Bruna Casi), Uncle Esteve (David Verdaguer) with their three year old daughter Anna (Paula Robles). Although her new family welcome her with open arms showering her with love and affection, Frida finds it hard to forget her mother and adapt to her new home in the mountainous countryside against which she rebels. The film has received favourable Reviews.

With four new release films this week to tempt you out to your local Odeon, remember to share your movie going thoughts with your other like minded cinephile friends afterwards here at Odeon Online. In the meantime, I'll see you sometime somewhere in the week ahead at your local Odeon.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-