Why does the handsome man with the twinkle in his eye run so hard? (Was that all of London’s rooftops?) Is he chasing, or being chased?
In Tom Cruise’s case, it’s both, as this evergreen movie star with the daredevil heart of a stuntman puts every ounce of effort he can into the long, hard work of maintaining a blockbuster franchise. For the creative minds behind these endeavors, it’s forever a case of keeping ahead of audience expectations, but also running down fans quick to throw their love behind the ever-increasing army of the masked and super-powered.
In the shootout phase of international action franchise competition, then, “Mission: Impossible — Fallout” has decidedly zinged one past all caped defenders with a rousing, silly-serious, old-fashioned humdinger that could make a whole audience of veteran action stars nod slowly, wide-eyed, and say, “I remember those days, but I never worked that hard.”
At nearly two and a half hours, it’s designed to test your patience for the things that matter in these movies — violent confrontation, deception, jokey camaraderie, and over-the-top action — but it does so with a remarkably re-engaged fluidity of purpose.
The only filmmaker to return to the franchise for a second go-round, writer-director Christopher McQuarrie (“M:I — Rogue Nation”) may not have the cloak-and-dagger artfulness of Brian DePalma (“Mission: Impossible”) or the giggle-while-you-gasp rollercoaster sensibility of Brad Bird (the series-reviving “Ghost Protocol” entry). But he’s proven to be a sharp and dedicated keeper of the flame, from first drawn gun to last cliffside stunt.
Case in point: even the climactic rehash-the-plot/re-examine-the-loyalties dialogue confrontation between the good guys and bad guys has that pinging sense of stakes-raising excitement. Then again, those crazy pull-off disguise masks are involved, and after six movies, the fact that this latex flavoring can still be surprising, funny, and well-timed for plot-shifting effect is all the proof one needs that this may be the sturdiest, most enjoyable popcorn franchise out there.
McQuarrie and gang must have high-fived themselves over that “Fallout” title, with its tripled resonance to the story. It starts with a flubbed mission for Ethan Hunt (Cruise), in which his loyalty to his team — returning players Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames, always welcome — is tested in an undercover deal gone sour. The fallout for the IMF gang’s mistake is, well, fallout, since a mysterious anarchist in cahoots with a terrorist sect known as The Apostles plans to detonate nuclear bombs around the world.
Thirdly, though, there’s the definition of the title that action fans care most about: literally tumbling out of a plane at 25,000 feet (which Cruise does for a mission with new franchise member Henry Cavill as a churlish CIA agent) and later from a helicopter in a gonzo climactic setpiece against the Kashmir mountains.
Much of the movie, which sees Hunt re-engaging with Rebecca Ferguson’s principled assassin Ilsa and Sean Harris’ bearded psycho Solomon from the last film, takes place in those espionage stalwarts Paris and London. The former offers its narrow streets, roundabouts, and colonnades for thrillingly conceived high-speed vehicle pursuits, and the latter its rooftops for the on-foot kind.
These sequences – thrillingly conceived and only mildly digital in execution — give this particular installment the semi-nostalgic feel of a Frankenheimer-esque, Friedkin-tinged European spy thriller from the genre’s heyday.
There’s also an effort to enrich the personal story of Ethan Hunt, most notably in the return of Michelle Monaghan as the love that got away, and whose appearance adds the right amount of extra concern – and not in some outmoded damsel way — to the conclusion’s escalating peril. A suitably officious Alec Baldwin is also back as newly committed IMF head Hunley, but the addition of Angela Bassett as a scheming CIA head isn’t as fizzily fun as it should be.
Cavill, meanwhile, as Bassett’s charge, does his best to make his performance distract from his physical stature and mustache, but that isn’t always possible. As for the absence of Jeremy Renner, there’s simply too much going on to notice, which is another indication of the series’ durability.
And Cruise? Whose faith in extending “M:I” beyond its laughable second and ho-hum third entries has paid massive dividends? As one of the world’s last remaining old-school action stars, he’s obviously loath to show his middle-agedness, as the sheer amount of derring-do suggests. (The building-hopping stunt in which Cruise broke his ankle is there in all its ouch-y glory, which would be when the ghost of Burt Lancaster winks in appreciation.)
And yet, as a solidly dependable actor, he also knows the comic value of an exasperated reaction in a fantastically bruising bathroom brawl, and the importance of grounding a globetrotting adventure brand in the occasional nod to heroic integrity. When Hunt stops to apologize to a bystander caught in crossfire, it’s both ludicrous and appealing, the right touch of humanity in the middle of the chaos we love.
Then Cruise is back to the chase, a star on a mission, and summer suddenly feels fun again.
All 43 Tom Cruise Movies Ranked, From So-So to Phenomenal (Photos)
Tom Cruise's "Mission: Impossible - Fallout," the sixth film in the franchise, opens this weekend. But where does it land within the context of his extensive filmography? TheWrap has ranked all of Cruise's films, from the so-so to the phenomenal.
43. "Cocktail"
Cruise's Type-A, adrenaline-fueled drive serves him very well in movies where the stakes are high. But “Cocktail” is just "Top Gun" behind a bar. The work-hard play-hard clichés at work here threatened to make Cruise the role model for handsome, affable, lame guys you swipe past on dating apps. Cruise smartly swiped away from roles like this.
Touchstone Pictures
42. "Endless Love"
Tom Cruise has a tiny part in this Brooke Shields melodrama, his first ever on-screen role. He stumbles off a soccer field, goes shirtless and shares a story with the protagonist about how he almost burned his house down. You were probably sold at "goes shirtless."
Universal
41. "Legend"
What’s sillier: Tom Cruise’s unicorn or his hair? “Legend” was a lavish, fantastical adventure that turned out to be a massive box-office misfire from director Ridley Scott and Cruise.
Universal
40. "Austin Powers in Goldmember"
Cruise makes an amusing cameo as Austin Powers in a fake trailer for a movie-within-the-movie called “Austinpussy.” But this opening to the third “Austin Powers” is its only highlight.
New Line Cinema
39. "Far and Away"
Ron Howard directs Cruise and his then-partner Nicole Kidman in this romance between a wealthy landlord’s daughter and a poor Irish street fighter. Cruise's accent isn't great.
Universal Pictures
38. "Knight and Day"
Wacky, screwball action-comedies almost never work, and in James Mangold’s “Knight and Day,” Cruise and Cameron Diaz weren’t exactly Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn in “Charade." But the movie has its passionate fans.
Twentieth Century Fox
37. "Interview With a Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles"
This is probably the movie where you're most aware Cruise is acting. After all, he’s playing a vampire. This showy, flashy role would’ve been better suited for someone like Johnny Depp. Cruise’s Lestat doesn't feel as hungry as most Tom Cruise characters, just thirsty. For blood.
Warner Bros.
36. "Losin' It"
Thankfully Cruise graduated from ‘80s teen sex-romps like this, but Curtis Hanson’s “Losin’ It” has some charm with Cruise running through Tijuana with a young Jackie Earle Haley, John Stockwell and a housewife played by Shelley Long.
Embassy Pictures
35. "Jack Reacher 2: Never Go Back"
The sequel to “Jack Reacher” was a rare, mediocre step back for Cruise.
Paramount
34. "Rock of Ages"
Cruise doing his best Axl Rose impression as the rock-god Stacee Jaxx is the best part of this cute, harmless stage adaptation. He commits.
New Line Cinema
33. "The Mummy"
There’s no reason one of the Chrises or a Hemsworth brother couldn’t have starred in “The Mummy.” Why would you get Tom Cruise for your movie just to sap him of his charisma and make him second fiddle to a maelstrom of clunky CGI action? This dopey, poorly written and definitely not scary mess of a monster movie is a waste of one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.
Universal
32. "The Outsiders"
Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Outsiders” wasn’t well reviewed at its time, but it’s a great time capsule of Cruise in a small part of a gang of other teen heartthrobs of the day, including Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio, Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowe and Emilio Estevez. Many who grew up with it consider it a classic.
Warner Bros.
31. "All the Right Moves"
In one of the early teen roles that would define his hard-driving persona, Cruise contends with a football coach played by Craig T. Nelson in a classic and well-meaning but clichéd sports movie.
Twentieth Century Fox
30. "Days of Thunder"
It’s “Top Gun” on wheels, with Tony Scott reuniting with Cruise as an up-and-coming racecar driver and pairing him for the first time with Nicole Kidman, as well as Robert Duvall. But by this point Cruise had already played the young hot shot too many times.
Paramount Pictures
29. "Mission: Impossible II"
John Woo’s hyper-stylized sequel has aged horribly. At times it looks like an ad for sunglasses or cologne. The excessive explosions, bullet-time slow motion and even doves circling Cruise are a laughably bad remnant of late '90s action.
Paramount
28. "Lions for Lambs"
Robert Redford aimed for intellectual pedigree with his political drama starring Cruise and Meryl Streep, but it's mostly high-minded, overly-polished lecturing.
MGM
27. "Valkyrie"
Cruise plays a German officer who conspired to assassinate Hitler and assume power. We all know how that went. Thankfully, Cruise doesn’t belabor a phony German accent, but Bryan Singer’s drama is mostly historical set dressing.
United Artists
26. "Taps"
In just his second on-screen role, Cruise plays an unhinged military cadet who goes to extreme lengths to protect the academy when it’s threatened by encroaching condo developers. He almost steals the show from George C. Scott, Timothy Hutton and a young Sean Penn.
Twentieth Century Fox
25. "Vanilla Sky"
“Vanilla Sky” contains a risky, very underrated Cruise role. Cruise goes from playing the cocky, unstoppable Cruise archetype to a deformed, defeated man trying to figure out what matters. Cameron Crowe’s remake of a Spanish-language film shifts genres stunningly, and it’s proved a polarizing movie in both Cruise and Crowe’s catalog.
Paramount
24. "The Last Samurai"
John Oliver has made “The Last Samurai” infamous as a prime example of Hollywood’s Asian whitewashing. But Cruise is good enough to make it almost work. It’s a solid samurai epic with Cruise fighting out of his element, playing an American Civil War official overseas as a dynasty comes to an end.
Warner Bros.
23. "Mission: Impossible III"
J.J. Abrams was brought in to reboot the "Mission: Impossible" franchise, so to speak, and he brought his signature lens flares and gritty realism to the property, sapping some of the fun out of it. The film’s high point isn’t Cruise, but Phillip Seymour Hoffman as the villain.
Paramount
22. "The Firm"
Tom Cruise + John Grisham + Gene Hackman + Sydney Pollack? “The Firm” should’ve been a slam dunk, but it’s not even Cruise’s best courtroom drama.
Paramount
21. "Oblivion"
Joseph Kosinski’s “Oblivion” is visually stunning and finds Cruise tidying up Earth after the battle for humanity has ended and the planet has been evacuated. The sci-fi premise has promise but loses steam as some of the Morgan Freeman-delivered twists and parables start to come out.
Universal Pictures
20. "Jack Reacher"
Lee Child described Jack Reacher in his book as being 6 foot 5 inches tall, up to 250 pounds and having a 50-inch chest. That ain’t Tom Cruise. But Christopher McQuarrie extracts from Cruise a grizzled, angry action hero. Plus having Werner Herzog as your movie’s villain doesn’t hurt.
Paramount
19. “American Made”
“American Made” is almost like a spiritual sequel to “Top Gun.” Tom Cruise behind the wheel of a plane -- flashing the same smirk he did over 30 years ago -- makes for another invigorating popcorn movie that never stops moving. But where that film was unabashedly jingoistic, Doug Liman’s film is a more cynical satire of the War on Drugs and the Reagan Era.
Universal Pictures
18. "The Color of Money"
This was the movie that won Paul Newman his Oscar, a swan-song sequel to “The Hustler” by Martin Scorsese in which Cruise may as well be type-cast as the new arrogant upstart. But Cruise captivates with that infectious, cocky glint in his eye as he whips his cue around, knocking ‘em dead to the tune of “Werewolves of London” by Warren Zevon.
Touchstone Pictures
17. "Tropic Thunder"
Cruise is hilariously unrecognizable beneath a balding wig, caked on makeup and some added pounds as Les Grossman, a raging, foul-mouthed studio exec. His fuming anger and profanity in this cameo makes him a pimple ready to burst, and his best dialogue isn’t even fit to print.
Paramount
16. "Mission: Impossible"
The original “Mission: Impossible” is unusual, not quite an action movie and more of a campy, espionage thriller. But Brian De Palma brings an auteurist mentality that combines the best of noir, Hitchcock and the original "Mission: Impossible" series. And it’s rightfully famous for Cruise’s balletic, expertly executed heist as he dangles from the ceiling and tries not to break a sweat.
Paramount
15. "Rain Man"
“Rain Man” may actually be one of the more overrated Best Picture winners. Barry Levinson’s film is just a road trip movie with a showy Dustin Hoffman performance at its center. And yet Cruise revealed an untapped tender side.
United Artists
14. "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol"
Brad Bird brought some of the cartoonish charm from Pixar over to the fourth “M:I” film, but he also staged one of the best action set pieces of this century. Yes, that really was Cruise dangling off the side of the Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai, and it paid off.
Paramount
13. "War of the Worlds"
Critics were torn as to whether Cruise made a convincing father figure in Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of the famous H.G. Wells story, but the human element elevated this already tense sci-fi thriller.
Paramount
12. "Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation"
Five movies into the franchise, and Christopher McQuarrie’s film was the first that suggested a future for this franchise beyond Cruise, taking the best elements of each subsequent “M:I” film and making them gel. It culminates in a slick assassination inside an opera and a standout new foil for Cruise in Rebecca Ferguson. And Cruise is just awesome in it.
Paramount
11. "Collateral"
Cruise never gets to play the bad guy, but he’s excellent at it. Michael Mann transformed Cruise into a mysterious silver fox and silent killer, toying with his hostage Jamie Foxx’s mind and morality until the two form an unexpected bond.
Paramount
10. "Top Gun"
Even 30 years later, we still feel the need for speed. There’s still no better popcorn movie that flaunts ‘80s nostalgia, jingoistic Americana and hyper-masculinity than “Top Gun.” Plus that gloriously homoerotic volleyball scene.
Paramount
9. "Risky Business"
When Tom Cruise slid across that wood floor in his underwear and a white dress shirt to the opening riff of “Old Time Rock and Roll,” that was it; a star was born. The movie as a whole channels everything that made Cruise a star, including his hot-shot attitude and smirking charm. But he also subverts and challenges other teen films.
Warner Bros.
8. "Edge of Tomorrow"
“Edge of Tomorrow” is the kind of action movie that reminds you why Cruise is so reliable in his heroic roles. Cruise plays a captain in this sci-fi who sells a war to the public, but is privately a coward. When he’s killed in battle and brought back to life in an endless vicious cycle played for pathos and some laughs, he regains composure. Emily Blunt gives a fantastic, hard-edged performance as well.
Warner Bros.
7. "Mission: Impossible - Fallout"
Tom Cruise's sixth entry in the "Mission: Impossible" franchise is a sensational action film. Between a punishing bathroom fight scene where Cruise and Henry Cavill get pummeled and an endless car-and-motorcycle chase through Paris, "Fallout" constantly accelerates and pushes every moment to the edge. What's more, this film cements director Christopher McQuarrie as a serious action filmmaker to watch.
Paramount
6. "A Few Good Men"
Cruise displays youthful goodness, decency and spirit in the face of juggernaut Jack Nicholson. "A Few Good Men" has exactly the sort of rousing emotion Hollywood needs to tap into again to find more hit dramas for adults.
Columbia Pictures
5. "Eyes Wide Shut"
All anyone wanted to talk about with Stanley Kubrick’s final film was the chemistry between Cruise and his wife Nicole Kidman, or the lack thereof. But that icy demeanor in what presents itself as an erotic romance amplified the surreal mystery of the film and made Cruise vulnerable and human.
Warner Bros. Pictures
4. "Jerry Maguire"
The quintessential rom-com, “Jerry Maguire” is timeless yet also perfectly '90s. Cameron Crowe’s endlessly quotable screenplay wouldn’t be quite the same without Cruise’s comic timing as he bellows “Show Me the Money” and lampoons his own hot-shot persona.
TriStar Pictures
3. "Born on the Fourth of July"
As a crippled war vet in Oliver Stone’s Vietnam drama, Cruise turns from a starry-eyed, clean-cut soldier to a vocal, harried Vietnam protestor. It’s a rebuke to the blind patriotism flaunted in Cruise’s own “Top Gun” and is one of Stone’s best films.
Universal
2. "Minority Report"
Steven Spielberg’s sci-fi has aged beautifully, in part because Silicon Valley has borrowed so much from it. Cruise looks so cool manipulating video in the Pre-Cog crime lab, he practically invented touch screens. Spielberg bakes endless fun and invigorating, futuristic chase sequences into a screenplay that contemplates big questions of fate and free will.
Twentieth Century Fox
1. "Magnolia"
Not only is this Paul Thomas Anderson’s magnum-opus, an epic, surreal character drama of love, family and the meaning of life, it’s Cruise at his most unhinged and commanding. He plays a vile, lascivious men’s right advocate named Frank T.J. Mackey, whose mantra is “respect the cock.” Cruise made it possible to dislike, even loathe one of his characters, and yet he’s chillingly charismatic.
New Line Cinema
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Where does ”Mission: Impossible – Fallout“ land on our list?
Tom Cruise's "Mission: Impossible - Fallout," the sixth film in the franchise, opens this weekend. But where does it land within the context of his extensive filmography? TheWrap has ranked all of Cruise's films, from the so-so to the phenomenal.
Touchstone Pictures
