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Mission Impossible: Fallout

9/10

Stars: Tom Cruise, Henry Cavill, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames, Alec Baldwin, Angela Bassett, Sean Harris, Vanessa Kirby, Michelle Monaghan, Wes Bentley

Director: Christopher McQuarrie

You've got to hand it to diminutive dynamo Tom Cruise. If it's action you want, then the pocket-sized superstar is your man, here taking his passion for doing his own stunts to almost foolhardy extremes. He broke his ankle in a rooftop leap making this one, and the only surprise is that somewhere along the line he didn't break his neck.

And breakneck action is what keeps on coming here, from a breathless and prolonged car and motorcycle pursuit round Paris to a stunning helicopter duel over the Himalayas at the end.

Cruise makes sure that the big screen's claim to 'see a movie or be part of one' assumes full validity here, as he hurtles along on foot (boy, can he run), clings to helicopters or dodges death on the highway and by-way. Each sequence ramps the tension one step higher than it's been seen before.

The plot runs like a James Bond reject but who cares; 'three plutonium cores have been stolen from a missile base' (so careless) and are to be used for a far more nefarious purpose than simply blasting out a chunk of the world.

The girls, Ferguson (as Hunt's ex), Monaghan (as his wife of unknown whereabouts) and Kirby (Princess Margaret from The Crown), as the 'white widow', are all good, with Kirby a real find as the femme fatale who smiles seductively as she plots against you.

And there's even a Bondian finale, as the action switches between that helicopter battle and the race to defuse two plutonium bombs with seconds left. 'The countdown cannot be stopped,' gasps Harris - and if you'll believe that, you'll believe anything: the best Mission: Impossible film to date.

David Quinlan

USA 2018. UK Distributor: Universal. Colour by deluxe.
141 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 12A.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 0, Violence/Horror 1, Drugs 0, Swearing 1.

Review date: 17 Dec 2018

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