JAWSH 🌃’s review published on Letterboxd:
2023 Ranked ✨🌟💫
This weekend I began binging Lindelof's latest masterpiece MRS. DAVIS on Peacock so watching DEAD RECKONING PT. 1 in the middle of it was kind of funny but took a lot of wind out of my experience because I wanted to go back and finish Mrs. Davis.
ALAS. Dead Reckoning Pt. 1 has its own set of fun, insane, crazy premises and set pieces with a villain that for the first time ever got my attention in ways films like this just don't. Led by a fantastic, likable cast, breathtaking action sequences, and some really clever ideas, Mission: Impossible was an entertaining, adrenaline fueled rush of a good time.
One thing this franchise and similar ones like these (007, Fast & Furious, ... ) that don't really work on earning are characters I can latch onto, root for, and remember. I have vague, tropey memories of almost all the characters and they all end up in my brain soup as just the actors doing their thing. Dead Reckoning is the first I watch in the while where I feel I was liking the CHARACTER on screen.
The standout for me being Hayley Atwell who is just incredible and I wanted to get to know more about, the script keeps most details close to its chest but I loved what we got to see. She's incredible!
There are some story pretty big story bits that disappointed me, that felt closer to what these franchises are used to doing, and I felt diserviced the film and what it was trying to do but luckily it's a moment sandwiched in between gold.
Gonna go back to mention Mrs. Davis and how insane and character-focused that series is. A lot of what makes Mrs. Davis such a joy is how confident it is and unafraid to go into wild scenarios with gusto and energy without losing focus on its themes and characters.
Mission Impossible already has the confidence, it's a franchise that's put in the work to be taken a little more seriously without losing the charm of what came before it. I feel, however, that it can push things further.
And with these box office numbers, it might as well take those risks. Dead Reckoning is its most fun when it lets its characters shine in between the insanity.
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