Podcast: Mission Impossible Fallout

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Why this film? 6th in the series that started in 1996. I’ve seen them all.

• Tom Cruise + Stunts. Just one of those two wouldn’t do it for me. For example, I’m out on the Fast and Furious movies. In on Bourne.
• Can you believe that’s how they did it factor?

The big news on internet research:

• July 27, 2018. 5 years ago.
• Budget 178 million and box office of 791 million
• filmed in Paris, London, New Zealand and Norway. Kashmir was New Zealand.
• Directed by Christopher McQuarrie
• Cruise injured ankle. Paid an extra 80 million while it healed.
• 148 minutes. Whew, got long!

A couple reviews, Rotten Tomatoes, etc.

• Rotten Tomatoes: “Fast, sleek, and fun, Mission: Impossible – Fallout lives up to the “impossible” part of its name by setting yet another high mark for insane set pieces in a franchise full of them.”
• Amazon: 22,755 reviews
• Brian Tallerico wrote on RogerEbert.com, “It truly does what so many people have looked for in entertainment for over a century—a chance for real-world worries to take a back seat for a couple hours. You’ll be too busy worrying how Ethan Hunt is going to get out of this one to care about anything outside the theater. It’s a rare action movie that can do that so well that you not only escape but walk out kind of invigorated and ready to take on the world. “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” is one of those movies.”

Prioritize why people come to watch, what makes the films popular:

1. Stunts + Tom Cruise
2. Clever turns, such as Tom jumping through the fountain to the river.
3. The locations
4. Techy gadgets.
5. Suspense
6. Good looking people

Most fun to rewatch scenes.

1. Pushing the truck in river to extract the guy to trade for plutonium. The extraction sequence.
2. Helicopter crash. We watched. the whole end again.
3. I say I don’t like the masks, but I like the Wolf Blitzer trick, and I liked when they tricked John Lark into revealing himself. Guess I don’t like it when they just take someone’s place.
4. White bathroom fight. Ilsa, or whatever her name, comes in and saves them.

Golden Lines from the film.

1. I am exactly where I should be and so are you.
2. Please don’t make me go through you.
3. It’s the job; no hard feelings.
4. The Fallout of all your good intentions.
5. The storm is coming. I am the storm.
6. Ugg moment: I think this one is loaded.

Memorable cinematography shots?

1. Fight on the ledge in Kashmir / New Zealand.
2. Lightning below the plane before they jump.
3. Standing on a building in London.
4. On top of the party building where they will intercept what turns out to be a decoy John Lark.

You picking Bourne or Mission Impossible?

Most terrifying stunt to do yourself. Would you rather x or x?

1. HALO jump. High altitude low opening.
2. Climbing the rope on the helicopter.
3. Jump from one building to the next.
4. Motorcycle into traffic.

Music:

1. Mission music before extraction.

Weaknesses of the film or “no way” moments. Mistakes?

1. The masks make things too easy. Izzy agrees.
2. I don’t really like dreams. There’s the wedding dream. The dream where he sees himself killing cops and won’t do it.
3. Overload me with info delivered exposition style. The manifesto. Reading of the missions. Who is who. I feel like Bourne delivers more right in the middle action.
4. The Disciples apostles say that the system allows suffering. Aren’t they right about that? They of course lose us with smallpox and nuclear bombs.

Starting five of the movie.

• Tom Cruise / Ethan Hunt
• Luther played by Ving Rhames
• Ilsa Faust played by Rebecca Ferguson. (English agent or whatever)
• Simon Pegg plays Benji Dunn
• Alec Baldwin plays Alan Hunley

Off the bench show stealing performance:

• Vanessa Kirby who played White Widow

Go out for a beer with the performer or their character. What are we talking about?

• Not totally sure I’d enjoy this beer. Tom Cruise, maybe start convo by asking about his kids. I don’t even know how many he has. (Wikipedia says 3 kids and doesn’t name them)

Tom Cruise Filmography:

• 2017 The Mummy. Should I see that? American Made.
• 2018 Fallout
• 2022 Maverick
• 2023 Here comes Dead Reckoning Part One! Are we worried about 2 parts?

Ving Rhames / Luther:

• 1994 Pulp Fiction. Dang!!!
• 1997 Con Air
• Lots of Mission: Impossibles!

McQuarrie, directed but also wrote/produced on…

• Edge of Tomorrow
• Jack Reacher
• Maverick (nominated for Academy Award)
• Valkyrie

Internet Research: Here’s are some interesting tidbits you might not have known

1. I watched some YouTube videos. Like all of the HALO jumps. And some more that showed behind the scenes of stunts.
2. They chose The Odyssey as the book at the beginning of the film because they wanted Fallout to be an epic. (from Collider.com)
3. The first 15 minutes of the movie was originally supposed to take only five minutes, but it kept getting longer as more and more information needed to be given to the audience. (Collider) and not great
4. There was originally an entire multi-page scene between Ethan and Ilsa explaining their relationship, but it was edited down to one line, “You should’ve come with me.” Read the whole Collider article here.

Best outfit I’d wear…

• I failed to notice this. The black masks when they do stuff, kind of reminded me of Celtics Jalen Brown

I want that object in the film…

1. Phone remote controlled car

Pitch the sequel…

• Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning. Track down a terrifying new weapon.