J-Bang Reviews Present: Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation follows Ethan Hunt and his disavowed "Impossible Mission Force" on a journey to expose and stop a secret group of terrorist known as the Syndicate. The Syndicate is basically the evil opposite of Ethan Hunt's I.M.F. so it's safe to say this proved to be a fun and exhilarating dynamic for this latest entry of the Mission Impossible franchise.

Rogue Nation is your typical summer action movie (which is funny because this film was originally supposed to be released the same time Star Wars was) filled with big moments and slick espionage, but the best characteristic of this movie is its unpredictability. Since the Syndicate is a shadow organization, it hard to tell who is either an innocent bystander or an agent of the enemy. There are twists and turns all over this film, and it is because of that, I never lost interest while watching it. That being said, the action is top-notch too. I was surprised to see that the biggest stunt of this movie just so happened to be in the first scene. I thought opening up with that action stunt was a bad move at first, but as the film progressed, evidently there were more action set pieces that were bigger and more fun to watch than the opening scene, my favorites specifically being the Opera House fight, water tank task and the motorcycle chase.

Rogue Nation's biggest strength also lies within it's characters, specifically Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg, Sean Harris, and notably Rebecca Ferguson, Ferguson's character, Ilsa, proved to be the most interesting character of the movie, simply because she was, in fact, unpredictable. Her allegiance to which side was questioned and unknown to both parties, she was cool and calm with her approach in situations and best of all, she wasn't a damsel in distress. She was simultaneously kick-ass and mysterious. Just as mysterious was the film's villain, Soloman Lane, played by Sean Harris. His methods seemed sinister and just his LACK of presence questioned the characters own motives. Like "Did we steal this, or did Lane want us to steal it as part of his bigger plan" type dynamic. It was cause for an interesting play of cat-and-mouse, trying to figure out who was who. The only flaws I had with Rogue Nation was that I had trouble comprehending Lane's true motivations. Did Lane want to destroy Ethan Hunt, keep his organization and himself secret or did he want to get rich and get revenge? It was kind of weird and murky towards the end. Plus, with all the swerves and 180's in the movie, I feel it's only worth seeing once rather than multiple times. Certain films like that tend to loose their novelty after one or two viewing because then, after the third time, you will know what's gonna happen. But that just an opinion of my own, it could be a different scenario for someone else, but that's just me. 

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation is a fun and engaging spy thriller that's sure to capture the attention span of those that view. it. Rogue Nation gets a rather compelling 4 out of 5.