Movie Review: Mission Impossible - The Final Reckoning

Movie Number 22 of 2025

The Movie: Mission Impossible - The Final Reckoning

The Cinema: Hoyts Victoria Gardens - Extreme Screen

Runtime: Two hours 49 minutes

Stars: 3.75

Mission Impossible all have the same characteristics: 

• Unrelenting action
• Situations which seem impossible, with the clock ticking
• A pretty girl or two
• Ethan Hunt having to save the world
• Excellent technology
• Things that will blow up
• Tom Cruise running
• Various modes of transport
• A bit of preachy stuff about the state of the world
• The odd giggle
• And the knowledge Ethan Hunt and his crew will work it out in the end.

Mission Impossible - The Final Reckoning has all of this in spades. 

• Unrelenting action
• Situations which seem impossible, with the clock ticking
• A pretty girl or two - in this case, Hayley Atwell and Pom Klementieff
• Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) having to save the world
• Excellent technology - and this case, some AI which appears to be on acid
• Lots of things that blow up
• Tom Cruise running in that Tom Cruise way
• Various modes of transport - in this case Landcruisers, submarines, fixed wing planes and aircraft carriers. 
• A bit of preachy stuff about the state of the world
• The odd giggle
• And the knowledge that Ethan Hunt and his crew will save the world in the end.

Does this sound a bit jaded? Hmm, not really. This was an enjoyable nearly three hours of a movie experience. Lovers of action will lap it up. I was able to take two quick bathroom breaks and not feel like I missed anything. Serves me right for having a big drink. 

I've seen all of the Mission Impossible films and they're good fun. They're all the same, but you get bang for your buck. It's also good to see them on the big screen. 

Also, it's helpful if you're up on your Mission Impossible lore, so you know who's who. Ving Rhames (Luther), Simon Pegg (Benji), Esai Morales (Gabriel), Hayley Atwell (Grace), Henry Czerny (Kittridge) and Pom Klementieff (Paris) all make a comeback from the last film. There are a few new faces as well, including the wonderful Hannah Waddingham and Angela Bassett, helping to round out the team. 

And yes, the action is great, but stupidly unbelievable, but that is half of the film's charm. I also liked the not-so-veiled warnings about AI which flooded the film. 

Tom Cruise is now 63 years old. I have to say, his hair is awful, but he's fit for a man of his age. But he surely can't make any more of these. If he keeps running like that, he'll do a hip. 

Mission Impossible - The Final Reckoning is an entertaining nearly three hours of film. Definitely for lovers of action or those who like the franchise. The first one came out in 1996 - some 30 years ago. 

I think it's time for Tom to retire Ethan Hunt.  He did a lot of his own stunts. He's done his bit. Time to retire - or take on dramatic roles, which he is actually capable of, if he puts his mind to it. 

For those interested, the Mission Impossible franchise has the following films in it: 

• Mission Impossible (1996)
• Mission Impossible II (2000)
• Mission Impossible - III (2006)
• Mission Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)
• Mission Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015)
• Mission Impossible - Fallout (2018)
• Mission Impossible - Dead Reckoning (Part One) (2023)
• Mission Impossible - The Final Reckoning (2025)

Yeah, it's time to retire the franchise, Tom. 

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