MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: GHOST PROTOCOL

Rollicking, roller-coaster, ceaselessly entertaining 2 hours and thirteen minutes of Tom Cruise as “Ethan Hunt” is the best and the fourth “Mission Impossible”. Cruise pours his money, heart and body into this non-stop, galvanizing, at times implausible, but always fun flick.

I admire Tom Cruise (regardless of his religious convictions); he is fearless and embraces the challenges of his roles with inimitable relish; his stamina, that of a 20 year old, performing his own stunts, running with rabbit-like furor and agility; perennially imbues his characters with believable dignity, he is the epitome of the action hero: unflappable, handsome and finely-tuned , able to “leap tall buildings with a single bound”, a solitary savior. Rue the day when this super champion physically fizzles and can no longer accomplish these herculean feats.

“Mission Impossible” is a glorious travelogue, touching on the luminous beauty of Moscow; stunning sequences in Dubai revolving around the tallest building in the world (Burj Khalifa); muddy, mysterious Mumbai: laughable and ludicrous car chase; anyone who has ever been to the cities of India, know speeding is anathema. 

The nonsensical and often convoluted plot revolves around the last vestiges of IMF (US Secret Organization): Hunt is paired with agents “Brandt”, masterfully depicted by Jeremy Renner (“The Hurt Locker”, “The Town); “Jane” the lanky, lovely Paula Patton; “Benji” the computer guru, geekishly acted by Simon Pegg. The villainous adversary “Hendricks”, mean and marvelous portrayal by Michael Nyquist (“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”, Swedish version). Anil Kapoor, an icon of Bollywood lore (“Slumdog Millionaire”) has a small but pivotal role as “Birj Nath”, the code keeper.

Pervasive is Hunt running through prison, up and down buildings, phenomenal sand storm, garages, forever saving the worthy, felling the worthless, unscathed in the end.

We need mindless, exhilarating moments to forget the meaningless minutia that clutters and obfuscates our sense of joviality. “Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol”  provides the anecdote, replaces the fug with unmitigated glee.

THREE STARS!!!

For Now…………….Peneflix