Oblivion (2013) Film Review

Jack (Tom Cruise) and Victoria (Andrea Risebrough) are living in a future where aliens attacked the Earth and in the war, the moon was destroyed and the Earth fell to pieces. Humans quickly built a space station and moved everyone onto it and now Jack and Victoria are on a mission on Earth to find and repair drones. Humans have their memories wiped, yet Jack has dreams of the times before the war. However, it turns out that not all is as it seems, as Jack discovers when he meets his wife, Julia (Olga Kurylenko), who he knows from his dreams, and the mysterious Beech (Morgan Freeman).

I enjoyed the look of the film and, generally, I like Tom Cruise in a sci-fi action film. But I had very little idea of what was going on. I just could’t really engage and so kept drifting off and then I was lost. And I wasn’t quite sure what had been achieved at the end. I presume things were saved?

Mission Impossible: Fallout (2018) Film Review

Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) has another impossible mission. And he has some of his old friends with him, and some new folks. Who can you trust? Anyone? No-one? I predict no-one most of the time. Certainly, there is bound to be a lot of double and triple crossing.

The difficult thing with a series like this is that every film needs to be bigger and better than the last, and eventually there is only so much bigger you can get. The scenes in Paris are fun, but the end sequence up in the mountains with the helicopters? Ridiculous. Stupid. Perfect for this film. At least Ethan Hunt was looking tired at times, I mean he is incredibly fit and can still run like no-one else, but Tom Cruise is no spring chicken and I think he’s allowed to get out of breath once in a while.

Also, I will watch more of these. I don’t care how ridiculous they get, I will continue to watch them.

Rain Man (1988) Film Review

Charlie Babbitt (Tom Cruise) is a yuppie who is running some kind of a scam involving importing luxury cars or something (no idea – it was complex and had to be completed within a certain amount of time which caused Charlie much stress throughout) when his estranged father passes away. Expecting to inherit his father’s fortune, Charlie is left with a beautiful old car and little else. In tracing where the remaining money is going, Charlie discovers that he has an older brother who has been living in assisted care for decades. Raymond (Dustin Hoffman) is autistic and requires set routine. Charlie takes Raymond from the facility, thinking he can blackmail the lawyers into giving him money. But the road trip across the country ends up being more than just a physical journey.

This is really a great film. It’s a little obvious at times, but that’s fine. Hoffman is great as Raymond, and while at times, I felt that Charlie was making choices that weren’t really fitting with his personality, it all allowed both of the characters to grow. It is dated, but in a good way. I just really liked it.

Rain Man won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Actor in a Lead Role (Dustin Hoffman), Best Director (Barry Levinson) and Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen. It was nominated for Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Film Editing, Best Music, Original Score.

 

 

Mission : Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) Film Review

Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is back. And looking a lot older – for someone who’s coming close to 55, he looks almost forty. He needs to relax and let himself age – so long as the cartlidge is all holding together, he can still do his awesome Tom Cruise running. Oh, sorry, so sidetracked, back to the film.

So, there are a bunch of bad guys in a kind of alliance, only no-one really believes they exist, but they do. Hunt and his mates William(Jeremy Renner), Benji (Simon Pegg) and Luther (Ving Rhames) need to prove it is real and then beat it. And there are a whole bunch of cool explosions and some gadgets, and the wonderful Simon Pegg gets to do a whole heap more. One big problem (well, two, but why the hell should this film have any decent female characters? They almost got close with one, almost) – it really is a cinema movie. I was a bit too busy having a life (or perhaps not having a life, as the case may be) and missed it, and watching it on a little screen in the loungeroom just don’t cut it.

 

Minority Report (2002) Film Review

Philip K. Dick wrote a short story set in a future where the police don’t solve crime, they stop it before it happens. See, there are some things called ‘pre-cogs’, who are people who are in a tank and plugged in to some machine. They can see into the future and every so often, they will inform about a crime. The Precrime squad then go and catch the criminal before they can commit the crime. The world is a great place. Only then Chief John Anderton (Tom Cruise) discovers that he has been seen committing a murder and goes on the run.

It’s a great science fiction premise. It’s a fabulous cast. Tom Cruise gets to run a lot which is always ace. And just when you think it is going one palce, it ends up somewhere else. I really, really like this film. Really.

Minority Report was nominated for an Oscar for Best Sound Editing.

 

Edge of Tomorrow (2014) Film Review

The world has been attacked by smart aliens that can anticipate the every move of people who try to attack it. US Army media spokesman Cage (Tom Cruise) who is fearful of combat, is pushed into battle by the General Brigham (Brendan Gleeson) and quickly dies. Only doesn’t actually die – he wakes again the day before and re-lives the same day – again and again, each time ending in death. He ends up finding legendary soldier Rita (Emily Blunt) and discovers that he has a special skill that can help them destroy the aliens. But he will need to die over and over, and watch those around him die, until the problem is solved.

Ace. Funny at times, and so amusing to watch Tom Cruise getting killed over and over again. The character of Cage at the start was just so unlikable and entitled, so it was wonderful to see him go through a whole variety of stages including bewilderment and depression. Watch this. It’s seriously fabulous.

 

Mission Impossible 4 – Ghost Protocol (2011) Film Review

Everyone knows I love a good Hollywood blockbuster, blow ‘em up, smash ‘em up type movie, and that’s exactly what this is. Lots of fantastic explosions with bits flying toward the camera, lots of Tom Cruise running, lots of masks being ripped off and hidden technology and all that kind of stuff. What more could I want?

A bigger screen, really. Boo to Palace Cinemas (who I usually love, but this is a definite mark against them) for putting such a big movie in a tiny cinema with a tiny screen. Having said this, I am actually not sure that I would have made it through the climbing-on-the-tower scene in a larger cinema, but that is unimportant. If you are going to take my money for a blockbuster, put it on your big screen. Complaint over.

It doesn’t matter if you’ve seen the previous installments – you don’t really need to know who they work for or why. This film is Tom Cruise at his best. He doesn’t need to smile much, but rather can just stand around looking intense. Jeremy Renner does a great counter-intense character and Paula Patton plays the token strong woman well – although it does feel like her character is only there to wear the short skirts and have a catfight. Note to action movies – we want more strong women. Like those in Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Long Kiss Goodnight.

Mission Impossible Five is apparently to be released next year. I will definitely see that one in a cinema with a decent sized screen.

Mission: Impossible III (2006) Film Review

Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) has settled down and is in love. But then there is a mission involving rescuing his protégé Lindsey Ferris (Kerri Russell) and he is drawn back in. Working with Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames), Declan Gormley (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) and Zhen Lei (Maggie Q), he needs to get the better of arms dealer Owen Davien (Philip Seymour Hoffman) before bad things happen to his fiancée, Julia (Michelle Monaghan).

It’s a fair step up from Mission: Impossible II, although you wouldn’t know it from the first scene, where Ethan and Julia are throwing a god-awful party and it is well and truly cheesey as. But then they start running and there are explosions and mini-brain-computer-killing-machines. And Simon Pegg.

 

 

Mission: Impossible II (2000) Film Review

There’s a virus called Chimera that has been created so that pharmaceutical companies can sell the anti-dote. Sean Ambrose (Dougray Scott) is evil and has it, and it is up to Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his team, Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) and Billy Baird (John Polson) to sort it out. They bring in cat burglar Nyah Nordoff-Hall (Thandie Newton) as she was Ambrose’s ex, but she is not trusted by his off-sider, Hugh Stamp (Richard Roxburgh).

It’s terrible. The story is average and even the explosions and stuff are not so great. And the stupid motorbike chase scene was just dumb. After the aceness that was the first film, this is disappointing and stupid.

 

 

Mission : Impossible (1996) Film Review

Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is an agent working for a secret spy organisation, but when one of their missions goes haywire leaving several of his colleagues dead, he is suspected to be a traitor. It is up to him to clear his name – and the only way to do this is a ridiculous and exciting break in to the pentagon to steal a computer file from an office with the most insane series of security protocol. And lots of exciting stuff happens – including a helicopter flying in the channel tunnel attached to the train. Crazy and awesome.

This is a great action film with everything you could ever want in an action film. Intrigue, excitement, explosions, the odd bit of humour and, of course, Tom Cruise. He’s a great action hero (just don’t bother with Jack Reacher), especially when he runs. I love Tom Cruise running.