Mission: Impossible—Ghost Protocol

Directed by Brad Bird

(PG-13)

***

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The fourth installment in the Mission: Impossible franchise is “pure popcorn of the highest, most flavorful order,” said Rene Rodriguez in The Miami Herald. Tom Cruise returns as superspy Ethan Hunt, this time trying to prevent a madman (Michael Nyqvist) from starting a nuclear war. Not that plot matters: “You may not remember what Ghost Protocol was about 10 minutes after you’ve seen it. But you won’t forget the movie’s astonishing action feats”—including Cruise dangling from the world’s tallest building. Director Brad Bird hasn’t created a masterpiece to stand with The Incredibles or Ratatouille, his animated Pixar films, said Joe Morgenstern in The Wall Street Journal. But he sustains “a remarkable level of visual energy” here. It’s also good to see Cruise “back in his comfort zone,” playing “the kind of charismatic, overamped control freak” we all believe he is offscreen, said Andrew O’Hehir in Salon.com. He deserves a comeback. His performance here is “so relaxed and charming that even when Ghost Protocol resorts to empty showmanship it feels like good fun.”