Mission: Impossible- The Final Reckoning
May 14th, 2025
MOVIE: MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE- THE FINAL RECKONING
STARRING: TOM CRUISE, HAYLEY ATWELL, SIMON PEGG, ANGELA BASSETT, VING RHAMES, ESAI MORALES
DIRECTED BY: CHRISTOPHER MCQUARRIE
AMovieGuy.com’s RATING: 2 ½ STARS (Out of 4)
RATED: PG-13
RUN TIME: 169 MINUTES
In the Mission: Impossible universe, the world needs Ethan Hunt. In our universe, the world needs Tom Cruise. As the last true Hollywood superstar, Cruise played a pivotal role in reviving cinema post-pandemic, with Top Gun: Maverick almost single-handedly carrying the theatrical experience on its back. His relentless dedication to preserving big-screen spectacle deserves lasting recognition.
Now comes Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, the supposed final chapter (or is it?) of a groundbreaking franchise. As expected, it’s packed with espionage, pulse-pounding stunts, and a reminder of why Cruise remains one of the all-time greats. And yet, while this eighth installment still delivers moments of spectacle, it might be the weakest of the series—not bad by any means, but more of a stylish send-off than a triumphant finale.
Picking up where Dead Reckoning left off—and notably dropping the whole Part One/Part Two approach—we find Ethan in hiding, holding a cruciform key that could shut down “The Entity,” a rogue AI slowly gaining control over global nuclear systems. Called back into action by President Sloane (Angela Bassett), Ethan reunites with his loyal team: Luther (Ving Rhames), Benji (Simon Pegg), and Grace (Hayley Atwell), alongside newer faces like Paris (Pom Klementieff) and Degas (Greg Tarzan Davis). Together, they face off against the menacing Gabriel (Esai Morales), who stands between them and saving the world.
The film’s biggest flaw lies in its first hour, which feels bloated with exposition, flashbacks, and a lot of narrative wheel-spinning. Director Christopher McQuarrie and co-writer Erik Jendresen slow the pace considerably—almost to a retro, Cold War-era crawl. It evokes old-school tension like in Sidney Lumet’s Fail Safe and even nods to Brian De Palma’s original 1996 Mission: Impossible, resurrecting characters with surprising significance.
Thankfully, things pick up in the back half, with two massive set pieces that make the wait worthwhile: one aboard a derelict submarine, and the other an awe-inspiring biplane dogfight—arguably the most jaw-dropping stunt sequence of the entire franchise. Still, The Final Reckoning often feels like two different movies stitched together: one a slow-burn techno-thriller, the other a high-octane action extravaganza.
The word that kept coming to mind was “disappointment.” That’s not to say this isn’t a worthy entry—Cruise sets the bar so high that even a solid effort can feel underwhelming. Watching this film as part of a franchise marathon might elevate its impact, tying together themes and arcs across all eight films into one colossal achievement.
If this truly is the end, then Cruise deserves credit for sticking the landing the only way he knows how—by hanging onto the outside of a plane and flying off into the sunset. At the very least, he can say: Mission Accomplished.
2 ½ STARS
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE- THE FINAL RECKONING IS PLAYING IN THEATERS THURSDAY, MAY 22ND, 2025.
Written by: Leo Brady
