You know those movies where you're pretty sure you can sneak in a quick bathroom break and still be back in time to catch up with the story?
Secret agent action flicks are not those movies, and "Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol" certainly isn't. So much so, in fact, that in as little as a blink you might find IMF agent Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) in an entirely different country.
Alright, that might be pushing it a bit. But watching this fast-paced, action-packed new "Mission" is not the time to let your mind wander. It follows the aforementioned Hunt and his team of agents on a race against time to take down Russian extremist Kurt Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist, of the European "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo") before he initiates his plan for U.S.-Russian nuclear war.
The mission is complicated after the IMF is falsely blamed for an explosion at the Russian Kremlin, causing the secret U.S. organization to issue ghost protocol. Having disavowed itself, the IMF's actions force Hunt and his team to essentially go rogue, in the dark, to defeat Hendricks.
Even without their extensive tactical network, the team still manages to scrounge up a few convenient accessories. The fact that it's just enough to scrape together an initial mission is barely worth the willing suspension of disbelief, however, since the plot takes every opportunity to throw masterfully lobbed wrenches into the team's every plan.
As plans change and details unfold, "Mission" steadily ramps up the tension and action. The pacing is incredibly well done, alternating rapid-fire new information and dramatic action sequences with more subdued recon scenes and offhand comedy one-liners to keep audiences from falling behind or losing interest.
Surpassing prowess of the storyline, though, is the spectacular cinematography. It handles both sweeping aesthetic shots and intense action scenes with equal skill, and if you have a chance to catch it on the IMAX, do it for this alone. The execution is unbelievable, particularly during Hunt's tense climb of the 2,723-foot Burj Khalifa Hotel.
All in all, "Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol" delivers quite possibly the best action film of the year. It's all guilty pleasure with none of the guilt, and it will keep you on the edge of your seat until the absolute end. And if more of the same is what the future of the "Mission: Impossible" series holds, I'll be on the edge of my seat waiting for it.
Contrary to her natural state of being, Renee Lorenz is a total optimist when it comes to Milwaukee. Since beginning her career with OnMilwaukee.com, her occasional forays into the awesomeness that is the Brew City have turned into an overwhelming desire to discover anything and everything that's new, fun or just ... "different."
Expect her random musings to cover both the new and "new-to-her" aspects of Miltown goings-on, in addition to periodically straying completely off-topic, which usually manifests itself in the form of an obscure movie reference.
