PIC of the Week – Mission: Impossible – Fallout
Article series by Ray Schillaci
Mr. Cruise, your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to make each M:I movie better than the previous. Damn, if he and his team haven’t done just that since Mission: Impossible III when J.J. Abrams was handed over the reins after M:I 2 stumbled. Fallout raises the stakes to where you have to ask, could Cruise and his team ever top this? The adventure, the excitement, and the laughs – yes, there is far more humor on this mission than ever before- and you will feel the pain in a roof-jumping stunt that Cruise pulls off, but where he developed a serious injury. This Paramount 4K/Blu is possibly one of the best action movies ever.
Christopher McQuarrie is back as writer and director, the man who successfully penned at least three highly successful and critically acclaimed Cruise movies: Jack Reacher, Edge of Tomorrow and M:I Rogue Nation. He’s made it his mission to make this film even more expansive, the action more jaw-dropping, and wrap it all up with an exciting storyline that even becomes personalized.
For those that missed the last mission, I will avoid spoilers. Ethan Hunt and his team join a CIA assassin to stop the destruction of civilization. Ah, but it doesn’t stop there. This sixth installment of the franchise ties all the other movies together. We see how Ethan’s own government has disavowed and cast him aside many times while making his personal life a shambles, causing him to question his own morality. Add to all this Superman, Henry Cavill, as August Walker, the no-nonsense, cold-hearted assassin that gets under Ethan’s skin. It’s hard to believe writer McQuarrie was able to finesse the whole thing successfully, and he does to our pure enjoyment. It makes you want to re-watch the whole series again.
Now, the drawback. Paramount gives us a mixed visual bag with this presentation. 4K picture looks great in the IMAX sequences, but something is lacking with the 35MM scenes. The quality is just not quite fluid throughout. And, if that is a bit bothersome, the Blu faults are even more accentuated. Now, this does not mean it’s not worth the purchase. Just, to the critic’s eye, and for those wanting to show off something of reference quality, this may not be the disc for you unless you just display the IMAX sequences.
Now, the Dolby Atmos does its job throughout, immersing the viewer into the action with every gunshot and explosion. Dialogue is rarely a problem here, and that’s nice considering how many of us have had to switch to subtitles with some action movies. Also, be prepared for jumping off your couch when the rear speakers pump out that dynamic sound. For those not lucky enough to have entered into the 4K arena, the Blu still does a nice job capturing nearly all the bells and whistles.
Paramount supplies a bevy of special features for this mission. Not all of them great due to some A.D.D. editing or the Michael Bay style (that’s my term when it tends to feel like it’s all over the place). Whoever was in charge of some of the features was either way too excited to cram everything in or they were so insecure they felt that with enough fast cuts you may not have time to fault it. All that being said, Paramount is quite generous with these bonuses:
¥ Three audio commentary tracks by Christopher McQuarrie, Tom Cruise, and composer Lorne Balfe
¥ Watching the film with only the musical score
¥ Documentary on filming the most elaborate sequences
¥ Deleted scenes (well worth catching)
¥ Composer Balfe discussing forensic details on London sequence
¥ Storyboard galleries
¥ Promo
¥ Theatrical trailer
Best Price – $20.96 – Fry’s Electronics
