This is fourth installment of the Mission Impossible series directed by Brad Bird and starring Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt. Hunt’s IMF (Impossible Missions Force) team is recruited to retrieve files from the Kremlin in Moscow that contain information about someone named “Cobalt”. In the midst of their mission their position is given away by someone that has broadcasted the teams’ radio frequency to personnel within the Kremlin. As Hunt and his team quickly escape, a bomb is detonated that completely destroys the building and implicates the US in the attack. Russia sees it as an “act of war” and in doing that causes the President of the United States to implement “Ghost Protocol” which is a black ops contingency plan that disavows all knowledge of the IMF and makes them take the blame. It’s now up to them to find a way to clear their names and figure out what Cobalt has to do with all of this.
I was a big fan of the very first film. The second and third ones didn’t really do it for me so I always held the first one to be my favorite. MIGP I feel really brought it back to what the series started with, lots of action and lots of twists and turns. This one was super enjoyable from start to finish and had everything you wanted in a spy movie. The action scenes are intense with my favorite being the building climb in Dubai. You can’t have a Mission Impossible movie without cool gadgets (just like a 007 flick) and it definitely had its share of them including a really kick ass projector (you must see it to realize what I mean). Tom Cruise makes being a secret agent seem like a walk in the park. So much so that it starts to make you wonder about the man (I’m kidding………….or am I?). He has to be some sort of genetically engineered being or something because this guy does all or most of his own stunts. I mean it gives great credibility to the movie but damn that’s crazy. Jeremy Renner really shined in this movie and was neck and neck with Cruise the whole way as far as “action star appeal”. There were rumors circulating at one point that Renner would be Cruise’s successor in this franchise but those reports were quickly shot down and after seeing MIGP I could see why one would think that. Simon Pegg can really do no wrong in my book. He was great as the Intel guy of the group and of course provided some of the comic relief as well. This man can go from low-budget comedies to big-budget action flicks without even missing a step whatsoever. The stunning Paula Patton was the female ass kicker of the group and did exactly that. She did that left and right throughout the movie and looked great doing it. I’m hoping that when/if the decide to do an MI5 that they keep this team together and keep somewhat of the same formula that they have. Like they say: If it aint broke, don’t try and fix it. You gotta see it!
This short written and directed by Benjamin Howdeshell this is apparently a small prequel story inspired by the Jill Valentine character from the Resident Evil movies according to Milla Jovavich via her twitter page. This is a great little film and I guarantee you that if you are a fan of the RE films of just a fan of zombies period you WILL love this! Great job Ben and congrats on all the hard work you put into this!
You can follow Benjamin Howdeshell on twitter here
Directed by Joe Carnahan and starring Liam Neeson, The Grey is about a group of oil drillers that get stranded in the Alaskan snow after their plane crashes, killing most of the people aboard. The number of survivors is small as it is but continues to get smaller as they battle two enemies. The frigid Alaskan weather and a pack of deadly wolves that pick the group off one by one.
Let me just start off by saying, if I’m ever in a predicament where I need to be rescued from any sort of disaster then I hope its by Liam Neeson. That guy is like Superman or something. This movie grabs you almost immediately and throws you right into the action. Joe Carnahan does a spectacular job at shaping the wolves as a perfect group of villians. He made them ruthless, violent and almost sadistic. I was literally saying “Man, that wolf is such an asshole. I hope they kill it” (Sorry PETA). Neeson has shown that a older guy can still be a successful action star and kick major ass. He almost reminds me of what Charles Bronson was in Death Wish (Carnahan is actually set to remake that flick. Lets hope he picks Neeson for it). Right after the plane crashed in the movie he was the “go to” guy. He was the leader of the pack so to speak. I think the best part was the ending. You know that there was going to be a face to face showdown at some point and the build up to that was intense. Showing both man and animal preparing to do battle was the perfect finale. It leaves you with a small bit for your imagination. This flick is a definite watch! Go do it already!
SIDE NOTE: Wait for a small scene after the credits.