Tom Cruise reprises his role as IMF Agent Ethan Hunt later this month in the sixth Mission Impossible film in twenty-two years. In anticipation for that, Paramount has re-released the first five Mission Impossible films, this time making their 4K UHD HDR debut. All five films were released earlier this week in multi-disc + digital format, and I was pleased to revisit these action espionage thrillers, in some cases, for the first time.
Each Mission Impossible (M:I) film puts the Impossible Mission Force, lead by expert field agent Ethan Hunt, in the midst of a global problem that ordinary citizens — even top government intelligence agencies — would be completely unaware of. Typically battling terrorists behind the scenes, the old TV series and these films inspired by it have a distinct James Bond kind of feel, but are more team-focused and have a bit more, well, fun, shall we say, than a typically Bond adventure.
The first M:I logically begins this team-effort adventuring, and contains iconic scenes such as the infiltration of the Langley headquarters, with Hunt suspended above a firewalled terminal that he must copy files from. This scene has been parodied over the years not unlike how scenes from The Matrix have been. I had not seen this movie before despite its age and popularity (!), but found it engrossing and enjoyable. A murder mystery wrapped into an espionage thriller, the reveal at the end managed to surprise me.
M:I2 sees the return of Hunt and agent-friend hacker Luther Stickell, played by Ving Rhames (who has been in every M:I, including the latest one). A bioweapon — and its cure — are up for sale by a rogue former IMF agent. Director John Woo brings his stylized action directing to the forefront, complete with fantastic gunplay and acrobatics. While enjoyable, this M:I outing is probably my least favorite of the five so far, but its worth watching.
Ten years after the original film, JJ Abrams took the helm for M:I3 after departing from the then-popular TV series Lost. I would consider this my favorite of the franchise so far. The film begins with a hard-to-watch scene in which Hunt and a woman are held captive, with the antagonist repeatedly asking for the location of something known as the Rabbit’s Foot. After a ten count and despite Ethan’s pleas, he kills the girl, who appears to be Hunt’s wife, played by Michelle Monaghan. As the movie unfolds, we return to this opening scene to see how it really played out, but the suspense built-up in the meantime is commendable. The emotional undertones, the layers of deceit and corruption, Laurence Fishburne’s role as Secretary of IMF, and the introduction of Simon Pegg as Benji Dunn all play out really well. The idea of a team effort on these impossible missions really takes off in stride, too. Like the other four movies, it’s a thrill ride from start to finish, but I felt that M:I3 did it best.
Five years later, Cruise is back for the fourth M:I outing, Ghost Protocol. This time the entire IMF is disavowed and shunned after it’s framed for the bombing of the Kremlin. The first M:I film with a subtitle, and introducing Jeremy Renner, Ghost Protocol is probably best known for the scenes with the dazzling heights of the tallest building in the world, that hotel in Dubai. Sure, just like the other M:I films, you need to check your disbelief at the door, but this is another fun movie to escape to for a couple of hours. More cool gadgets, beautiful actresses, intense espionage action are all on the menu.
Just three years ago, Rogue Nation was released. Cruise, Rhames, Renner, and Pegg are all back and this time we also have Alec Baldwin playing the director of the CIA who manages to get the IMF shuttered as he claims its an outdated agency that doesn’t fit in today’s world. Once again operating outside the lines, the disavowed IMF team must prove the existence of and proceed to dismantle a shadowy and very powerful organization known as The Syndicate, which was first hinted at during the final scene of Ghost Protocol. Actress Rebecca Ferguson plays a double agent that keeps everyone intrigued until the end when the true villains are revealed.
All five of these movies share a lot in common, beyond the obvious. I consider the first two to have less replay value than the latter three, but any of them are a treat to watch. Similarly, all five releases in 4K UHD HDR share a lot in common. The packaging of each is pleasingly similar and consistent across the board, making the set look quite nice on your movie shelf, not to mention on your screen. I’m glad to say that each 4K disc also cuts out all extra preview trailers and instead goes right to the main menu. Each release also comes with the original Blu-ray release and a digital voucher code. M:I3 thru 5 also include a third disc, a Blu-ray with extra features, all of which are the same from the previous Blu-ray release. So, not surprisingly and as we’ve seen with may other 4K UHD releases, the extra features from the Blu-rays are transferred and intact, not upgraded in anyway or added to, but better this than to not be included at all.
As far as the presentation quality, it’s impressive throughout. Understandably, as we’re seeing films from twenty years on up to just three years ago, the quality has some variance to it. 2015’s Rogue Nation looks splendid, while 1996’s M:I looks great, just not knock-your-socks-off great. With five different directors at the helm, there are some differences in style between these movies to that comes into play somewhat, but suffice it to say that the technical visual fidelity makes an impression. While latter movies look better than the former, the difference between, say, Ghost Protocol on 4K UHD and Ghost Protocol on BD is not massive, but it’s appreciable.
In conclusion, if you’re liked me and chose to skip this franchise on Blu-ray, Paramount’s latest offering of 4K UHD is kind of hard to ignore. The improved audio/visual experience is not earth-shattering, but it’s noticeable and impressive. Including the movies on Blu-ray, Digital, and with all of the extra features from before is also a plus (heck, give the Blu-rays to a friend who hasn’t upgraded to 4K yet). It’s easy to recommend any or all of these films for your 4K collection due to their high replay value and the quality that Paramount put into these releases.
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