Why Mission: Impossible is More Relevant Than Ever

Or the importance of being earnest.

Have you seen Mission Impossible 6? If you haven’t, you should check your nearest theater, or Netflix, or Amazon, and watch it. Like, right now.

This movie was a fantastic experience. I was glued to the seat since the opening credits. It completely blew me away. It’s strange how the sixth film of a franchise that came out of a 60’s TV show can feel so fresh and innovative.

After the movie, I wandered back home, and a thought kept clawing at my head.

Why is this film so engaging?

This movie is fantastically well made, from the cinematography to the screenplay, going over the fantastic sound design and soundtrack. But these are not the only things at work here.

I think that two essential and distinctive points make this movie different from the rest: 1) The use of practical effects. 2) Being earnest.

The first point is pretty self-explanatory. Tom Cruise is fundamentally insane, and he wants you to know. From jumping off a building to falling off a plane. We see his face in every action sequence. Especially when riding the motorcycle through the streets of Paris. We know he’s the one doing it. Thank you, Tom.

This commitment to dangerous stunts, plus the great mix of practical effects make the film feel a lot more grounded in reality. Ethan Hunt is clearly a demi-god fighting off evil, but he’s fighting off evil in our world.

This becomes clear when you compare the film with other action movies of the last few years, like the “Fast and Furious” franchise. They might be fun, but they feel plastic. The action lacks weight.

Same can be said about the last bunch of superhero films. The CGI-fest is excellent eye candy, but it feels more and more like animation than live-action. Emphasis on the “action.”

MI:6 reminds me more of films like “Terminator 2” than anything else of the past ten years.

And now we dive into the second point of my ramblings: Being earnest.

This might be a pet peeve of mine, but have you noticed that actions films are making fun of themselves all the time now? There has to be a joke every couple of minutes pointing out how absurd the whole situation is. The creators are telling the audience they also know how ridiculous what’s happening is. See how cool we are, fellow kids?

This takes off the narrative weight of whatever is going on in the story. Marvel films are doing this all the time now. Why are they so self-conscious? I don’t know. Maybe the critics don’t go as hard on them if they don’t take themselves seriously.

But not Tom, he takes this very seriously. There are a few jokes here and there. But this ain’t no comedy; this is serious Tom Cruise running time.

MI:6 is a bonkers adventure of a team of heroes that save the planet. And they own it. The audience doesn’t need a wink every 5 minutes. Hell, if they are people that don’t like action movies, then they should stay home. There’s no need to apologize. MI:6 doesn’t.

There is no irony. No self-reference. Nothing to take you out of the experience and into the real world. The creators are honest with us. They show themselves as they are, and with no apologies.

Thank you.

Irony and self-reference take away from meaning and engagement, at least for me. They are tools of postmodernity.

“What passes for hip cynical transcendence of sentiment is really some kind of fear of being really human” — David Foster Wallace.

At the end of the day, Mission Impossible 6 manages to tell an incredible story with the underlying message of the importance of the individual. About how one life can make a difference. Ethan Hunt certainly can.