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May 26, 2006

Mission: Impossible III

Visual Pleasure in Action Cinema?

By Ben

The first scene in J.J. Abram's Mission: Impossible III highlights the main problem with the film: Tom Cruise's performance is just not up to snuff, especially when acting alongside Philip Seymour Hoffman. Although Hoffman wasn't handed the meatiest of roles, he makes do with what he was given and delivers an entertaining but not very likable performance. Cruise on the other hand doesn't seem to have received the memo that action movies are supposed to be fun (the message must've self destructed before it got to him). While all the other actors appear to be enjoying themselves, Cruise runs throughout the film (literally) with a seriousness that borders on parody; except Cruise isn't laughing. He does however flash his pearly whites and his trademark grin over and over again while being embroiled in a much less convoluted plot than one would expect from a Mission: Impossible film.

To Abram's credit, the film is easier to follow than Brian DePalma's intelligent but overly complicated original MI film and it's infinitely more entertaining than John Woo's embarrasingly bad Mission: Impossible II. Abrams strikes a good balance between plot and action ("good balance" in an action film being mostly action with just enough plot to move the main character from set piece to set piece in a logical manner). But, his shortcomings as a director are evident in Cruise's aforementioned performance and his failure to reign in his cinematographer. Daniel Mindel, the DP, doesn't seem to think a chaotic shootout on a bridge that's being blown up bit by bit is exciting enough; he has to shake the camera uncontrollably as well. I'm not making this up, two hours after the film ended, as I'm sitting here writing this, I still feel nauseous.

As a star vehicle that Cruise produced for himself it's succesful even inspite of his poor acting. The film is exciting and has some awfully clever sequences. One scene on the rooftops of some very tall buildings in Shanghai actually had me feeling like I was going to puke and pee my pants at the same time. Now, I'm not afraid of heights in an irrational way like some people are, I just don't want to die and I'm very aware of the fact that drops from a certain height equal certain death. Watching the short but effective rooftop scene managed to push all the right buttons and had me squirming uncomfortably in my seat.

The direction that Cruise's character, Ethan Hunt, is taken in with the third installation in this series is actually interesting. Not for anything he does or says but for the film cliches they choose to bog him down with. Tom Cruise in this film is Ethan Hunt the superspy as superhero. Just like in every superhero movie he has a secret identity which he can't tell his lover about. He then predictably has to leave "on business" during which his lover is kidnapped by his enemy. Etc. etc. etc. In the end, his lover finds out his true identity and the film ends before we learn how the two go on with their lives and cope with the newfound dynamic in their relationship. It's a tried and true formula that does its job. I suppose Hunt's closest superhero parallel would be Batman. A seemingly endless supply of cash bankrolling his crimefighting endeavers and his only super power being that he's very well trained in all forms of combat, physically fit, and has an assortment of clever gadgets at his disposal. And while Batman has a cool suit, Hunt could probably beat him in a foot race.

Ultimately, the film left me thinking that the modern action film is in dire need of an aesthetic makeover. It's been needing it for a long time now. Even younger film lovers, like myself, who grew up with MTV can only handle so much choppy editing and handheld camerawork. Let the action and the story do the work! Although I found the film entertaining I couldn't help but leave the theater anxious to see an action movie that was actually good in the artistic sense. Currently, the only person I can think of doing anything interesting with the genre is Michael Mann, one of the most talented American filmmakers that I can think of. He's made some very good films and I'm incredibly excited for Miami Vice. Although it doesn't look like the film is going to be a masterpiece, Mann is one really good script away from blowing us all out of the water. Armed with that knowledge and my enjoyable experience with MI:3, even in spite of all my complaints, I think the action genre is alive and kicking; it just needs a new look.

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