M.I. - DEAD RECKONING PT 1 PROVES THAT TOO MUCH ACTION JUST MAY BE TOO MUCH...

🎥🎞️Movie Review🎞️🎥 - MISSION IMPOSSIBLE - DEAD RECKONING PT 1 [2023] - [PG13] - Paramount+ - Directed by Christopher McQuarrie. Written by Christopher McQuarrie and Erik Jendresen. Starring Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Esai Morales, Ving Rhames, Simon Peg, and Rebecca Ferguson. Budget $291 Million.

The film tells the story/plot of an AI program that is able to make decisions, create phantoms through computers, and also seems to be sentient in a strange way when activated; in the first sequences of the feature, a Russian sub has the AI program and falls prey to it's evil nature. The program was developed by an organization in Russia and there's a special two part key that is required to initiate the program. A female spy named Grace [Atwell] has one part of the key, while Llsa Faust [Ferguson] somehow has the other. Ethan Hunt [Cruise] is offered a mission to acquire both keys and take control of the Russian AI program, and if possible, dismantle it. Hunt puts his team together again and with little hope to succeed in their mission, head out to find the two parts of the key and find out what this AI program is all about.

THE GOOD - This is a star studded action film. This is a stunning addition to the Mission Impossible series and there's a perfect reason why the film was cut into two parts. There are some pretty impressive action sequences, choreographed fight scenes, and spectacular digital effects in this film. Cruise continues to perform all of his own stunts and he truly does some crazy stuff that is just too hard to believe. Location spotting for this film must have been a tremendous effort as the production covered over four countries.

THE BAD - Some of the action sequences are way too long and could have been cut short. The director [and the script writers] just love to see Cruise run and run and run; every other scene in this film has Hunt running this way and that, and I understand that Cruise is in great shape for his age. One part I can't shake off is the directors choice to over-present the addition of Atwell as the mysterious Grace character-spy in the film; the director trying to show the viewer that she IS beautiful, sexy and a tremendous actor…when she's NOT!

POST MORTEM - There were several times that I got bored watching the long, extended action sequences that seemed too far fetched and just took the fun out of watching an action film. Many of the performances between actors were over extended and too dramatic at every turn. There sure is a lot of compassion between the team members and I am sure we all know what is at risk if Hunt can't perform above and beyond to complete the mission. I just think that more writing should have been considered to better develop the good guys and the bad ones as well. This is a good movie, just don't stop too long to check your text messages when some useless dialog is mentioned during the middle of an action chase scene and you loose track to where you were on your phone.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 [3.5 of 5 Stars]

REMINISCENCE MAKES FORGETTABLE SENSE WITH BAD DIRECTING

🎥🎞Movie Review🎞🎥- REMINISCENCE -(PG13)- STARZ/HBOMAX - Warning: this is another global warming semi-action film! Hugh Jackman stars in this “what could have been” a saucy and sexy thriller…oh boy, this film had all of the right chemistry and actors to actually bring out a fantastic film, but the director seems to have decided to play it safe and not cross the boundaries of sexual tension which could have taken this film to the next level. 

The story line had a brief moment to spell bind the viewer into a new technology, which seemed pretty cool at first, but then became part of a mind twisting element to the film that didn’t need to be there; proving that “sometimes the easiest explanation in a murder mystery is the best way to go.” There are several twists and turns that are presented, where the viewer is shown the obvious answer for the ending in the movie, but the director tries to toss a new angle in the story that miserably tries to make you forget that the entire plot was already presented.

Kudos to Rebecca Ferguson (who plays “Mae) as she marvelously filled the film with some sultry, sexy performances which raised the expectancies of the film at first, but with the soft PG-13 rating, all her energy to present a memorable character are lost by the time the next scene crossed over the screen. She does deliver an emotional message at the end of the film which proved the inner brilliance of her character, which should have been the end of it, but the director took the film into deeper, lost territory by having to reaffirm a “lost lovers dilemma" that horribly extended this shallow love story into another hapless direction of boredom.

Jackman tries to perform at a top notch dramatic level and the films failure is not all his fault, but his supporting cast just seems to be going through the motions with very little emotion at all. Add to that, a lazy and boring shootout in a bar and a fight scene or two that truly wasn’t needed, well…it just goes to show you that it truly doesn’t matter who is in your film if your director is only relying on digital and blue screen effects to make the film look cool and darkly futuristic.

Don’t bother watching this pile of shit, but if you do feel the need to watch it, be sure you have a real action movie lined up to follow the end credits to this crap.

⭐️ ⭐️ 💫 [2.5 Stars]