movie. As much as I enjoyed Brian De Palma’s stylized big-screen adaptation of the popular TV series back in 1996, even I wouldn’t have imagined seeing six more of these films, let alone seven . No matter; I’m always down for another romp with Tom Cruise’s not-so-secret spy, Ethan Hunt, and his rotating band of supporting players.
Not for lack of trying, mind you. Cruise goes all in with the stuntwork, particularly during an extended third-act chase scene that sees our hero destroy at least 10,000 cars while riding a Triumph Speed Triple motorcycle, a muscular sequence scored to Hans Zimmer’s rock-and-roll flavored score. Personally, I always found Ghost Protocol oddly flat and disjointed. Maybe it’s Brad Bird’s simplistic direction, the paint-by-numbers plot, or Michael Giacchino’s muted score, but the fourth entry didn’t land as firmly for me as the original.