Writer: Sharon Chu

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Watch this if you liked: "Mission: Impossible", "Mission: Impossible 2", "Alias"

Well, Tom Cruise has certainly accomplished one of his biggest missions yet - to complete "Mission: Impossible III" and try to keep up with his fatherhood duties and get over his outrageousness on the Oprah Winfrey show. Yes, it looks like Mr. Cruise has finally gotten his senses together and made something which is worth recommending to everyone. If you haven't watched any good action movies lately, here's your next mission, watch "Mission: Impossible III".

In "M:i:3" (as the film is alternatively known), Tom Cruise reprises his role as Agent Ethan Hunt. Hunt is engaged, and feels that he needs a more stable life, but is needed immediately back at the IMF as he's about to face his toughest opponent yet. Enters a diabolical, chubby blonde villain in the form of Owen Davian (Academy Award winning Philip Seymour Hoffman) as Davian indirectly spoils Hunt's wedding party. It seems that Davian wants to hunt for a certain 'Rabbit's Foot', and Hunt's bosses want the opposite - they want Hunt to make sure that Davian never gets it. So then, Hunt cajoules his fiance, Julia, (Michelle Monaghan) to continue to trust him while he runs away to Italy and China to oust his opponent, the party-pooper Davian.

"M:i:3's" story takes a rewind approach as it begins with the climax and ends with the completion of the cliffhanger left in the beginning. Just as one gets ready for a tense and serious mood in "M:i:3" in the initial minutes of the film, things swerved to sentimental gear as Hunt is seen with a bright and happy smile on his face, at his own engagement party at the next moment.

As this is ultimately a secret agent story, it's not surprising then that the story is filled with secret identities, which will only be revealed if audiences stick from the beginning to the end. The fact of the matter is that everyone in the movie, aside from Agent Hunt of course, is worth suspecting as the good may in fact be the bad.

Action-wise, this is definitely a mind-bending story as "M:i:3" has pieces of neat action stitched together to allow viewers to sit back and enjoy the action scenes without using their brain too much.

In order of star appeal, Tom Cruise is definitely the main reason you're watching "M:i:3", but other stars in the movie, such as Philip Seymour Hoffman, Laurence Fishburne, Keri Russell, Maggie Q and Michelle Monaghan, are each bright stars of their own. Academy Award winner for Best Actor ("Capote") this year, Philip Seymour Hoffman is indeed an unconventional celebrity, whose winning quality is definitely his inborn talents to shine amongst his better looking co-stars, with the mere power of his sincere and honest acting. It's pretty hard to understand why he's cast as the villain in a Tom Cruise action movie, as he's relatively more suitable to play the father figure in family comedies, or else, groundbreaking and complex dramas like "Capote", but in "M:i:3", his stint as the bad guy is passable.

Laurence Fishburne's appearance in the movie may be little, but the actor certainly has an impact on the audience, as most remember him as the calm and steady Morpheus in "The Matrix" trilogy. Here, he's still somewhat Morpheus-like, but he has definitely less impact now as his role in "M:i:3" is relatively minor. As for the girls, Keri Russell, Maggie Q and Michelle Monaghan are a different kind of woman in the story. Russell's is the loyal disciple to Tom Cruise's Agent Hunt, who shares a unique bond with her mentor. Maggie Q's character is a woman with few words, but one with sophistication and great capabilities. Meanwhile, Monaghan serves her purpose in "M:i:3" with fair success, as she plays the clueless and dumb-founded fiance of Ethan Hunt.

Overall, "M:i:3" is a fast-paced action movie, focusing almost entirely on Tom Cruise but also giving reasonable spotlights to his supporting actors and actresses. One who expects to enjoy the film would return from a two-hour plus adventure with the award that says 'Mission: Accomplished'.

Cinema Online, 23 September 2008