TOP GUN: MAVERICK

Tom Cruise     Jennifer Connelly     Miles Teller     Monica Barbaro

Val Kilmer     Jon Hamm     Ed Harris     Glen Powell     Lewis Pullman

         As with many Tom Cruise movies, this one seems made for him, although he doesn’t reign supreme all the time.  In the beginning, “Maverick” gets a lot of ribbing as an “old man” from a group of young Top Gun ace recruits, and his superiors are trying to tell him that new technology is going to make him and the planes he flies obsolete.  They’re obviously wanting to get rid of him (especially after he hijacks a plane to prove a point) and finally resort to thinking they will bump him into being a teacher.  Good luck with that—he has always refused career advancements that would take him out of flying.  Hence, he has stayed a Captain.

         The plot is creative in coming up with solutions by which Maverick manages to get his way repeatedly—usually through some derring-do that his superiors must acknowledge is impressive.  Well, OK, so they give an inch, but then, he will take a mile, so to speak.

         This is a very male movie in its illustration of how men relate to one another, especially in groups.  The beginning interactions among them are filled with bravado and macho competitiveness (insufferable at times from a female point of view).  Even the female recruit must do the same to be a part of the group.  Monica Barbaro as “Phoenix” very winningly illustrates this. Authority struggles underlie most of the conflicts.  One recruit, “Rooster” (Teller), has a long-standing resentment toward Maverick for something that still bothers both of them.  We also witness the “star pupil” in “Hangman” (Powell) who seems always to have the right answers and be on the right side, and the nerdy “Bob” (Pullman) who never seems to be able to lay claim to the group.

         I do admire the writers’ (Ehren Kruger et al.) making Maverick’s ingenious flight plan for the primary mission of bombing a uranium plant a metaphor for the entire story.  To wit, expert navigation that takes risks (flying low through a narrow canyon while dodging artillery, then a steep climb to safety (hopefully) using one’s experience, skills, and basic instincts).  These skills are called upon by many pairs of characters in working through their conflicts.    

         The writers beneficially inserted bits of humor and romance periodically to offset the high tension and at times heaviness of the plot.

         Along with the script, direction by Joseph Kosinski and a fine cast help move this Top Gun a step above many action movies that seem to be primarily about special effects and thrills.   These characters really move us and are so well drawn, we want to know more about them.

         Jennifer Connelly is always a joy to see, and cameos by Ed Harris, Jon Hamm, and Val Kilmer serve the movie well.

 

Underneath the blaring sound and visual effects of Top Gun, there are heartwarming stories that portray real human struggles.

 

Grade:  B                    By Donna R. Copeland

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE - FALLOUT

Tom Cruise     Henry Cavill     Ving Rhames     Simon Pegg     Rebecca Ferguson

Sean Harris     Angela Bassett     Vanessa Kirby     Michelle Monaghan     Alec Baldwin

     Apparent impossibilities is a running theme in Mission Impossible movies, and this one just about maxes out on them: Careening car chases on busy city streets, a glass and wall smashing brawl in a brilliantly lit men’s room leaving blood everywhere, reverberating near-miss gun shots (although many make their mark, of course), shifting identities (friends turn out to be foes and vice versa—who’s to trust?), multiple players with agendas of their own, complex nuclear bomb dismantlement, and literal cliff hangers make this an exciting, nail-biter of a story.

     Ethan Hunt (Cruise) is given the assignment of sabotaging a plutonium deal that is likely to end up as a nuclear weapon in the wrong hands.  He smarts at CIA head Erica Sloan’s (Bassett) last-minute instruction that one of her agents, Walker (Cavill), accompany him on the mission. Hunt gets a sample of Walker’s rashness and ineptness early on in the mission, and it takes all his patience to stomach him, especially when he seems not to have any inkling that Hunt has rescued him early on in a dive out of an airplane at high altitude.

     Never mind.  They get right to the business of identifying the parties involved in the plutonium trade, which is more complicated than they imagined.  They will encounter men with ideals to change the world order [Dr. Nils Debruuk (Kristopher Joner) and Solomon Lane (Harrison)]; British Ilsa Faust (Ferguson), perhaps of MI6 and well known to Hunt, who is mystified when she appears on the scene; and periodic reappearances of Sloan and Hunley (Baldwin).  In the process, accusations and proofs of loyalty abound.  

     Cruise is up to the role as always in his rendition of the Hunt persona and in his continuing bravery in doing as many of his own stunts as possible.  (He suffered an ankle injury during the filming.)  But the number of times he is hanging onto a ledge gets to be almost humorous.  It’s hard to see Henry Cavill (of Superman fame) play the role of thoughtless agent and possibly something worse, a bit of miscasting, since he is not always able to achieve the sinister threat of such a character.  Rhames and Pegg not only contribute fine supporting performances as Hunt’s loyal team; they finely and convincingly execute welcome comedic lines when the going gets tense.  Other supporting actors (Ferguson, Harris, Bassett, Kirby, Baldwin, and Monaghan) perform admirably in their roles, although scenes between Hunt and Monaghan’s character are unnecessary and way too saccharine.

     There are so many chases and characters to follow in this breakneck-paced action movie, the viewer can easily lose track, but the main thrusts come through, and you can count on getting the main points by the end.  Sprinkled in here and there are clever little motifs that bring chuckles (for example:  In tense moments a character will ask, “How…?”  The reply:  “I’ll figure it out.”)  At any rate, director Christopher McQuarrie (Mission Impossible:  Rogue Nation) seems to have maintained the series’ good reputation, and perhaps may even have improved on it.  

Be prepared for hair-raising ride—literal and metaphorical--in this action thriller.

Grade:  A-                                    By Donna R. Copeland

THE MUMMY

Tom Cruise   Russell Crowe   Annabelle Wallis   Sofia Boutella   Jake Johnson   Courtney B. Vance

     The Mummy is another showcase for Tom Cruise to dominate the action by performing impossible feats, bare his physique, and rescue a beautiful woman, usually blonde.  Here, the story in the beginning casts him as Nick Morton, a soldier supposedly on a reconnaissance mission getting distracted from his duties in the interest of stealing antiquities and selling them on the black market.  Far from being an admirable fellow, he is a thief, having stolen, in addition to artifacts, an archeological map to reach a Mesopotamian (now Iraqi) site that holds antiquities he can sell.  When he ends up having to be rescued by his commanding officer, Col. Greenway (Vance), he lies without blinking an eye. 

     Accompanying Greenway is archeologist Jenny Halsey (Wallis), who is keenly interested in the site (guess where Nick got the map), and insists on exploring it after a bomb made a huge pit exposing valuable artifacts from Egypt (most unusual) in a tomb far from Egypt’s borders.  Greenway sends Nick and his sidekick Vail (Johnson) down into the pit with her—presumably for protection—and gives them only a limited amount of time.  Nick and Chris are like two boys in a candy story trying to nick (pun intended) every bauble they can grab.  Appropriately, Jenny scolds them, but a far more threatening force has been unleashed by the violation of the tomb.  They have unearthed (thanks to Nick’s careless use of his gun) a sculpture of a god that was not meant to be disturbed.

     As background, we are told about an ancient Egyptian ruler named Ahmanet, who made a deal with the god of death, Set, when her father bore a son who would eventually usurp Ahmanet’s reign.  She is punished and mummified for killing her father and his son, but by disturbing the site in the way he did, Nick is now cursed.  The mummy of Ahmanet has risen and has decided that he is her “chosen one”, Set, so she tries to persuade him to join her in death to be a god.  He is not very tempted, but she is able to “get into his head” in a way that propels him to go in directions he does not intend.  It is only through sheer will that he is able to thwart her.

     It turns out that Jenny the archeologist works with a Dr. Jekyll (Crowe) in London, who has grandiose plans of his own.  Nick ends up there when Jenny realizes that he has been cursed, and she wants him to see a doctor.  Here, Nick learns that Dr. Jekyll has actually captured Ahmanet as part of his plan and she is in chains.

     Interspersed in all this are mummies turning into zombies, endless struggles by Nick and Jenny to break free (he’s now become, magically, a more honorable figure) of the curse, with Ahmanet pursuing them relentlessly, seeming to have superhuman powers.  The film ends with a clear-cut set-up for sequels.

     The best part of this film is watching Ahmanet, who is fascinating to look at, eerie and forceful in her actions, and relishing her evilness.  She is abhorrent and beautiful in a surrealistic way, and about the only creative force in the film.  Cruise plays his usual role; Annabelle Wallis is competent in rendering what she is given by the script, and Jake Johnson plays as well as he can his completely irritating character Vail, who is transformed into a zombie.  Russell Crowe can certainly play conniving baddies, but the script he is given here makes his character neither convincing nor understandable because his “plan” is not well articulated. 

     Although there was a low-key applause at the screening I attended, it is doubtful this film will catch the fire that the studio and filmmakers hope for.  It’s no longer interesting to see unending fights, despite the hope for CG effects to elevate them. 

This is an uninspired attempt to revive The Mummy franchise.

Grade:  D+                                    By Donna R. Copeland

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: ROGUE NATION

Tom Cruise     Rebecca Ferguson     Jeremy Renner     Simon Pegg    

Alec Baldwin     Ving Rhames     Sean Harris     Simon McBurney

      With a complex plot and twists and turns, Mission Impossible:  Rogue Nation does indeed appear to be impossible time after time.  As usual in this series, there are suffocating moments when you wonder how on earth (or in the air) they’ll get out of a scrape, and clearly loyal friendships become paramount.  Intrigue is heightened by a central character who keeps you guessing as to where the loyalty lies. 

      In this feature, Ethan Hunt (Cruise) is part of the IMF, a U.S. secret service run by William Brandt (Renner) that is currently being threatened by CIA head Hunley (Baldwin), who believes the Syndicate IMF has been after is a figment of their imagination, particularly Hunt’s.  But because IMF is committed, they go rogue, and Hunt is aided by his old pals William Brandt (Renner), Benji Dunn (Pegg) and Luther Stickell (Rhames). 

      By the way, the movie is filled with humorous puns and references to other Missions, and in this feature, the IMF is not the only entity going rogue.  The frequent jokes and asides make the viewing fun, and offset the repeated high-wire acts (e.g., in an opera house during a performance of Puccini’s Turandot) and near escapes from fights, chases, and under-water challenges. 

      I think writer (with Drew Pearce) and director Christopher McQuarrie have successfully extended the franchise one more time, with intellectual complexity, political maneuverings, and derring-do.  The camera work of a master, Robert Elswit, increases the quality.

      Tom Cruise does his usual fine job in portraying an almost superhuman character whose hunches are infallible.  Adding an appealing, more naïve but still smart sidekick like Pegg adds another entertaining dimension.  A stunning addition is Ferguson’s Ilsa, a beautiful, intelligent, and forceful counterpart to Hunt, where there is chemistry mixed with refreshing ambiguity. 

      It’s impressive that this fifth version of the Mission Impossible series remains fresh and captivating after so many years.  McQuarrie has achieved just the right balance in all its entertaining components.

Fans of the Mission Impossible series are not likely to be disappointed.

Grade:  A-                        By Donna R. Copeland