The MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE Power Rankings
Let's talk about the IMF
*mild to moderate spoilers for the MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE franchise below*
After almost 30 years and 8 films of insane stunts, hyper-realistic masks, and self-destructing messages, it appears that (for now, at least) the Mission:Impossible franchise has concluded its run.
I have engaged with this series for most of my adult life and to think they’re done for the foreseeable future has me looking back on all the time I’ve spent with Ethan Hunt and his various crews. I know these movies are not the peak of cinema, but they’re a lot of fun and have consistently delivered a good time, usually followed by a lively debate over a drink or two afterwards.
Leading up to THE FINAL RECKONING, I did what any red-blooded American would do… I rewatched the entire series. Now, with that movie in the rearview, I have decided to accept the impossible mission(heh) of ranking them all.
One thing that I appreciate about these movies is that I am constantly re-evaluating and (somewhat) re-ordering them. I did a re-watch a couple years ago when DEAD RECKONING was coming out and my rankings then are different from my rankings now. There’s always something pleasantly surprising during these re-watches, which is something considering how long of a timeframe they span. It’s part of what makes them so enjoyable.
Enough throat clearing, let’s rank some movies. Remember that these are incredibly correct and also don’t matter at all. After all, this newsletter will self-destruct in 5 seconds.
8. MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE II
This is pretty easily my least favorite Mission:Impossible and always has been. Number 8 with a bullet so to speak. I used to think it was flat out bad, but on the last couple of re-watches it’s not as egregious as I seem to remember and there are actually some things to like. The motorcycle fight is unequivocally cool and when John Woo is doing his John Woo thing (the ending fight scene, the white doves) it is genuinely fun. Tom Cruise hanging off that rock at the beginning is sick as hell.
It’s also the one movie where he seems truly horny, which is both good and also bad.
That said, there are a lot of decisions made in this movie and most of them are bad. This feels (to me) like the only time this series tries to be a 007 Bond movie or something similar. Dougray Scott’s villain performance is boring, he just walks around and whines. The bar in this series is incredibly high and this movie doesn’t really come close to clearing it, especially knowing what comes after. THE FINAL RECKONING’s first act is essentially a series of flashbacks to Ethan Hunt’s previous adventures and close calls. Outside of a quick flash of the rock climbing moment, MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE II is not mentioned. It’s easy to see why.
7. MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE: THE FINAL RECKONING
Feels weird to put the ostensible ending to a franchise I love this low on the list, but I think it belongs here. It’s way too long and the“previously on MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE” aspect feels particularly redundant considering I spent the last 2 weeks rewatching all of them. The dialogue isn’t super engaging and the pacing is a bit odd (see again the highlight reel aspect). I also think Esai Morales’ Gabriel gives Dougray Scott’s Sean Ambrose a run for his money as the worst villain in the series.
But damn when this movie kicks in it kicks IN. There is a submarine set piece that is the most tense I have ever felt watching a M:I movie, I barely took a breath. The climatic bi-plane sequence is exactly what I want from this franchise, it was awesome.
I also really loved the casting in this one, with a special shoutout to Tramell Tillman, who whipped ass every time he was on screen.
I also felt strangely emotional during stretches of this, which feels insane to say about a campy blockbuster action movie franchise but it’s true. There is a scene where Benji (Simon Pegg) is directing Paris (Pom Klementieff) on how to essentially re-inflate his lung while telling Grace (Hayley Atwell) how to hook up a receiver to a main server that gave me a lump in my throat out of nowhere the entire time.
I’m not surprised to feel that emotion. I have been watching these movies for the majority of my life, and I was acutely aware of that during this viewing experience. Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames all look OLD and it just made me feel old too. I’ve spent so much time with these characters and to see them struggle and overcome and suffer again hit me harder than I would have thought. When Holt McCallany’s character says (through tears) “the son of a bitch actually did it” it’s as cliche as anything you’ll hear in a movie but goddam if I didn’t feel a tear or two drop down my cheek along with his.
As good as those set pieces are and as emotional as I may have felt, I can’t put it any higher on the list. Maybe I’ll feel differently during my next watch.
6. MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE: DEAD RECKONING
This movie isn’t that much better than FINAl RECKONING but it does have a few things going for it, mostly a sense of fun that is sorely missed in the latest installment. The introduction of Hayley Atwell’s Grace character is a really fun sequence through the Abu Dhabi airport and their handcuffed car chase sequence shows off real physical humor and genuine chemistry. We also get appearances from The White Widow (Vanessa Kirby) and Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) but more on them later. Just know they are both sorely missed in THE FINAL RECKONING. This is the introduction of the aforementioned Gabriel and The Entity which, again, just don’t do much for me villain-wise. There’s the famous motorcycle jump sequence and the train crash sequence at the end is also really good, but ultimately (and I’m only like half kidding) this movie is about the power of friendship.
5. MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE III
I've always had a soft spot for this one and it kind of pains me to put it here. I think it could be higher on the list, but no matter how many times I try to re-order it, this feels right. I think Phillip Seymour Hoffman's Owen Davian performance is the best villain in the whole series and it is not particularly close. The "I’m gonna find her and I'm gonna hurt her" speech is terrifying and he nails a sense of menace that is lacking in most of the other films. The stakes feel higher when he's holding the cards.
It also might be the meanest of the Mission: Impossible movies. The whole sequence with Kerri Russell and the explosive device in her head is pretty brutal and the scene where it explodes (and the subsequent autopsy) might be the most violent thing in any of these movies. It is GNARLY and I winced while rewatching it even though I knew it was coming.
I really enjoy the ensemble in this one. Finally getting Simon Pegg in as Benji. Billy Crudup as the apparent ally turned enemy rocks, I love his heel turn. Lawrence Fishburne is always welcome in a movie. Even a quick flash of Aaron Paul. It’s a lot of fun. It’s also the most human we ever see Ethan Hunt. That counts for something to me.
There are some people who say this looks like TV and I’m sorry but that’s just not true. There’s also some people who will say “you can really feel the JJ Abrams of this. What is the Rabbit’s Foot?” brother, WHO CARES have some fun with your life.
4. MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE: GHOST PROTOCOL
This was a tough placement for me. For a long time, it was right up there as one of my favorite M:I movies and I really still love it. For some reason on this re-watch it just did not hit as hard to me. The Burj Khalifa scene is cool but maybe not as enthralling as I remembered. The pacing is a little off in the middle and it’s a bit talky in a way that doesn’t always work.
What stands out to me is the Kremlin hallway sequence. It’s funny, thrilling, and feels like something that could be done right now, today. The subsequent Kremlin bombing sequence is also really fun, even if the CGI is a little dated.
Ultimately, I think this movie is a great showcase for Brad Bird’s first foray into live-action filmmaking, as he is absolutely cooking. Lea Seydoux as an assassin is also some really inspired casting and I actually enjoy the addition of Jeremy Renner. There are some directorial flairs that take this to the next level and I still love it, just not as much as I used to.
3. MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE: ROGUE NATION
I originally had GHOST PROTOCOL here but this most recent rewatch saw ROGUE NATION move into the #3 slot. I somehow forget how good this is every time, probably because I love GHOST PROTOCOL and it gives me a blind spot for this one but damn is it a heater.
I love Benji in this one, Simon Pegg really does such solid work throughout this whole series and I feel lucky we have him. Plus, the introduction of Rebecca Ferguson’s Ilsa Faust hits like a bolt of lightning every time. Her doing this and DUNE and Silo is what we call a triple threat in the business. I love Alec Baldwin’s arc in this one a lot too. My buddies also call me "the living manifestation of destiny.”
Sean Harris' Solomon Lane is an actually good villain second only to the previously mentioned PSH performance in III. The opening plane stunt sequence and underwater server room are both two of my faves in the series. This one continues to grow in my estimation.
2. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE
The movie that started it all. Love the smaller interdepartmental stakes on this one, there’s no world ending bomb, no unnamed evil. It’s a mole hunt and a NOC list and spy craft. It features what still might be the most recognizable stunt in the whole series (the Langley vault heist) and it holds up after all this time. It’s clear that this movie is much smaller than all that came after it, but it’s better for it.
Brian De Palma and Cruise really cook here. Special shoutouts to Vanessa Redgrave as Max, who might have the most chemistry with Cruise in any single one of these movies and to Henry Czerny who is going nuts in every single scene he’s in in every single one of these movies.
1. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT
I know this is the chalk pick and there are some people out there who seem to think that putting it at number one or your favorite somehow lessens the discourse around this movie but I simply gotta be me. Not only is this the best movie in the series, it’s one of my favorite action movies of the last 20 years and one of my favorite movies full stop. That 3rd act of this movie is incredible. 100mph fastball on the outside corner.
Everybody in this movie is on X-Games mode. Alec Baldwin. Angela Bassett. Vanessa Kirby, finally introduced as the White Widow (and Max’s daughter!). Simon Pegg. Ving Rhames. Rebecca Ferguson back as Ilsa. Henry Cavill is good in this movie! I see a take floating around that he’s boring or flat and that doesn’t ring true to me. There’s an underlying menace there and when he cocks his arms like he’s reloading a gun in the bathroom fight scene, it’s one of the cooler things you’ll see in a movie.
The HALO jump sequence, Solomon Lane heist, and previously mentioned third act are all top tier and honestly, if they had chosen to end the franchise after this one, I think it would have been perfect. I understand why they didn’t, but man, it was there for them if they wanted to do it. This is what action franchise filmmaking can and should aspire too when it’s firing on all cylinders. I can’t believe we have it. I can’t believe Tom Cruise isn’t dead from jumping in an active volcano or something. I can’t wait to fire this up again. Maybe even this weekend.
There you have it, the 100% correct rankings of the MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE franchise. Until of course, they make another one.
See you next week for our May Movie roundup.