Confusion, suspicion and paranoia! Deepfakes, AI images, audio and videos have left the world unsure of what is truth and what is fiction. In the digital age where humanity have left their fates in the hands of virtual machines, a cold calculating presence could wipe us out in an instant.
This is the world brought on by ‘The Entity‘. A hostile AI designed to be used on the enemies of whoever wields it as a new form of psychological warfare. However, in the last several months, The Entity has infiltrated the intelligence networks of all the world’s nations, seeing humans themselves as the enemy in need of purging. Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his team of IMF (Impossible Mission Force) agents continue their search for the source code of The Entity, the only way of possibly neutralising it.
Time is of the essence however, as the nuclear arsenals of the world one by one are falling under control of this AI. As fear grips, some a cult of fanatics themselves welcome Armageddon. A ghost from Ethan‘s past, Gabriel (Esai Morales), himself a tool of The Entity, will do anything to obtain control of it. Knowing that no nation or man on Earth has the right to wield such a terrible force, Ethan must stop him before it is too late.
It’s been a long road but after nearly 30 years, the one and only Tom Cruise is (possibly) wrapping up an adventure he began with Mission: Impossible (1996). Eight films, all of which have been hits, and in which the stunts have only gotten more and more extreme. Cruise is reunited once more with his director and producing partner Christopher McQuarrie, making his 4th time directing the film series.
The Mission: Impossible film franchise has always been held in special regard by me. I went to see the first film in cinemas with my father at 11-years-old, and while never watching the 60s TV series on which it was based on, I’ve been a fan of Mission Impossible for the last near 30 years. Favourite movie? The first. Guilty pleasure? M:I 2. Least Favourite? M:I 3 (I’ll die on that hill). Most impressive stunt? Well, it just might be the one which Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning goes out on!
The only issue is that it just takes so damn long for us to get there! This film is not just the culmination of nearly three decades of history, but also the resolution of the story of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (2023). The movie ditches the “Part Two” albatross, yet it’s still tasked with catching the audience up on a wealth of backstory. This results in an hour of heavy exposition before the real fun can even begin.
There are many callbacks and nods to previous films in the franchise with not all of them feeling earned. Characters and threats which were already established, are retconned to give them a sense of legacy. It’s cute but often comes off as “It was me James, the author of all your pain” shoehorned awkwardness. Especially when the film would have greatly benefited from expansion on Ethan and Gabriel‘s history. This was only teased in the previous film and yet we get no more understanding of it here.
We have some surprise return characters with one being exciting for me. I know the actor in question primarily from his work, voicing the protagonist in one of my favourite videogame franchises. Others will be happy to see the more well-known supporting cast, series regulars Simon Pegg as Agent Benji Dunn and Ving Rhames as Agent Luther Stickell, are great and well suited to their iconic roles. There’s always a real sense of family which grows between Ethan and his crew and Tom Cruise sells this here, as well as he ever has.
The Final Reckoning is definitely aiming to be the biggest Mission: Impossible film yet, at least in scale. The movie has the biggest toys and the biggest military presence of any of the franchise. Early on unfortunately, the story does seem to boil down to Ethan moving to a location, asking a person to trust him, gaining their help and repeating the process. This is why, for at least the first half of the film, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning may leave fans wondering what exactly they’ve signed up for.
But it is about the halfway point where the film kicks into the action-packed spectacle that we’ve come to look forward to from Tom Cruise. At a near 3-hour runtime, I do think that the first half should have been truncated or streamlined a little bit. But it’s hard for me to say that the movie is too long, as when things get going you are glued to your seat!
With some of the most jaw dropping and intense action sequences of Tom Cruise‘s entire career, it’s clear he wanted to pull out all the stops. Audiences will be left rattled by the audacity of Cruise in his 60s taking the sort of physical risks you see here. The film may not feature wall to wall action, but what it does have ensures that this will be one of the biggest cinematic experiences of 2025.
I’ve only just finished watching the movie and yet in a few days I am happily going to watch it again with other friends. Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning takes a while to pick up speed and it may have a bloated first half. That doesn’t stop it from being the thrilling exhibition that fans are looking for. From someone who has been there for the whole 30 year journey, I believe Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is a mighty fine way to wrap things up and go out with a bang!
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is in cinemas now.