Planning to watch Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning? Here's a quick recap of the franchise's movies so far
My week began with a message that self destructed in five seconds: Your mission, should you choose to accept, is to watch all Mission: Impossible movie series this weekend. That amounts to 15 hours of preparation before I get to the latest instalment. Here's your recap.
Mission: Impossible (1996), based on a 1966 TV show created by Bruce Gellar, kick-started this franchise about 30 years ago. American film director and screenwriter Brian De Palma made the first movie edition as a brooding, dark, cerebral thriller that was high on stunts but not the spectacle it has become. Luther (Ving Rhames) became the first regular member of Impossible Mission Force (IMF) along with Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise).
FOMO Fix: Episode 8: Mission Impossible, Fire, The Studio
The template was set. Hunt accepts a mission to recover a McGuffin to save the world. To do this, he needs his team to break into a highly secure facility that can only be accessed by impossible means. The fallout ultimately leads him to a choice — to save someone he loves or let millions die. He always does both as the best of men in the worst of times.
John Woo, who directed Mission: Impossible 2 (2000), gave it the action-movie flourish it is associated with today. Slow-motion shots, high on emotion, so much so that every Hindi heist film made ever since has paid homage to it. Hunt saved the world from a deadly virus 20 years before we knew the damage it could do. The Limp Bizkit version of the theme still find its way to your ears before you finish this sentence.
It was with Mission: Impossible III (2006) that the franchise got much needed reinvention. JJ Abrams, the creator of television series Lost, gave the franchise that grounded, gritty, high stakes action movie by creating a villain (Philip Seymour Hoffman) smarter and stronger than Hunt. Benji (Simon Pegg) joined the IMF as a regular from this point.
Abrams brought in Brad Bird for Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011) to lend humour to the franchise. But the pivot to humour got in the way of storytelling as Oscar-winner Christopher McQuarrie was brought in to doctor the script. McQuarrie took all the best elements of the first four movies and helped define the DNA of the franchise — intrigue, action, strong villains, drama and comedy. With this formula, McQuarrie made two near-perfect movies — Rogue Nation (2015) and Fallout (2018). As the scale became bigger, the franchise reeled in Jeremy Renner to join the IMF. Fun fact: Upon learning that they planned to kill him, Jeremy declined to return.
The last two editions of the Mission: Impossible series, also helmed by McQuarrie, were originally titled Dead Reckoning Part 1 and 2, since the movies share a common AI villain called Entity that wants to take over the world.
Though not quite as smart as the fourth and fifth instalment, Dead Reckoning (2023) made up with scale and spectacle — with the daredevil stunt where Tom rides a dirt bike off a cliff and sky dives, parachuting himself onto a speeding train.
This brings us to The Final Reckoning (2025), a film that tries hard to tie up loose ends and threads from the franchise to mixed results. Some are fun, some are contrived and some completely unnecessary. To ensure you needn't have watched the other seven films, this one uses recaps, inserts and spoon feeds information to the point that would make Brian De Palma squirm. The franchise has come a full circle from assuming the audience is smart to assuming they are dumb but the joys of movie magic remain.
Good, better, best Here's how I would rank all the Mission: Impossible films:
Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible – Fallout
Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation
Mission: Impossible III
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning
Mission: Impossible 4 – Ghost Protocol
Mission: Impossible 2
From the hottest shows to hidden gems, overlooked classics to guilty pleasures, FOMO Fix is a fortnightly compass through the chaos of content. Expect timely recommendations, spoiler-free insights, and an honest heads-up on what to not miss.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Indian Express
2 hours ago
- New Indian Express
Reimagining Carnatic presentation
Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival (CTF) has become the most sought after event even for the established Carnatic musicians outside of India. The festival has been tirelessly engaging the Indian community across the American continent for an annual coming together that celebrates Carnatic as a tradition. This year, visiting the Cleveland festival for the eighth consecutive year is a Chennai-based music institution, Sishyakulam that has reimagined Carnatic tradition's presentation format. Its managing director, the young and vibrant Shankar Santhanagopalan, tells me more about the new format. But first, here are a few broad strokes that will paint the cultural scene of the Indian diaspora in North America. As much as the community is tuned to pop culture and contemporary forms, they prioritise classical artforms over others for their richness and depth. The feasibility and availability for this goes to the pioneering efforts of a few good Samaritans, who sowed the cultural seeds as early as the 1970s. Today many centres of performing arts have mushroomed in various parts. The Indian diaspora's socio-cultural engagements here not only exemplifies how they are dedicated in strengthening their cultural roots, but also demonstrates how traditions are inclusive. Through that lens, they add to India's unity and diversity in a far more pronounced manner. What was missing in this scenario was a place where parents and students could meet, interact with peers from other regions more often without always having to wait for their India trip. This need was met when Sishyakulam proposed the EPIC Choir. 'When we studied the Indian classical music landscape in the United States, we observed that the Carnatic music community was widespread but fragmented. EPIC Choir was conceived to be a platform to bring students from across the country together to be part of something larger than their regional exposure to the artform,' Shankar shared. 'The choral ensemble format enabled us to introduce young learners to contemporary compositions rooted in Carnatic idioms. Since its debut at the CTF in 2015, it has delivered nearly 50 original compositions — each crafted to balance artistic depth with accessibility,' he further explained.
Time of India
7 hours ago
- Time of India
'I was seen as a lesser-than girlfriend': Rob Gronkowski's longtime lover Camille Kostek was judged by NFL WAGs for not having a ring on her finger
(Image via Getty: Rob Gronkowski and Camille Kostek) Why do women judge other women so much? A multi-million dollar question with no definite answer. 'It's just how women are,' 'That's her upbringing,' 'Women are inherently jealous,' 'Never content,' 'They find ways to bring other women down,' and 'Women judge each other on appearance. ' The last reason? That's what happened with Rob Gronkowski's longtime girlfriend, Camille Kostek. She has been with Gronkowski for the past ten years, but her NFL WAGs clan? They are so stuck with Beyonce's Single Ladies track! - 'If you like it, then you should have put a ring on it.' Long story short? Kostek put forth her unfiltered thoughts about NFL WAGs. She said, 'I felt like I was seen as a lesser-than girlfriend because I didn't have a ring on my finger.' 'The woman who judged me the most, she's divorced,' reveals 33-year-old American Model Camille Kostek about an unnamed NFL WAG — eentertainment (@eentertainment) The Sports Illustrated model made a guest appearance on one episode of Kristin Cavallari's Honestly Cavallari: The Headline Tour. Kristin asked Kostek, 'When everybody found out that you were dating Rob, the other WAGs, how did they treat you?' Camille said the 'energy was off' between her other NFL WAGs. She elaborated, 'I felt like I was seen as a lesser-than girlfriend because I didn't have a ring on my finger. But you want to know what's so interesting about that? The woman that's coming to mind(who) judged me the most, she's divorced.' An NFL WAG who divorced her partner was judging Camille Kostek for not being engaged or married to Rob Gronkowski! Talk about double standards. Talk about hypocrisy. 'The best things came from this f**king breakup': Camille Kostek talks about her breakup with Rob Gronkowski In that episode, Camille Kostek also talked about a roadblock in her long-lasting love story with Rob Gronkowski. It was a breakup that changed her life's direction. She chased her dream after that heartbreaking breakup with the former TE of the New England Patriots. She shared, 'Rob and I met when I was 21 years old. And we've been in each other's lives for 10 years. My first breakup was in 2017, but I think that some of the best things that changed the trajectory of my life came from this f**king breakup that broke me but also allowed me to get in the zone. I didn't care about dating. I felt like I was asexual.' Also Read: 'Evading arrest lil bro?' Antonio Brown, who was under house arrest for attempted murder with a firearm, has left the United States of America | NFL News - Times of India Follow all the live updates, scores, and highlights from the India vs England Test match here . Game On Season 1 kicks off with Sakshi Malik's inspiring story. Watch Episode 1 here
Time of India
10 hours ago
- Time of India
Dwyane Wade's daughter Kaavia James steals spotlight dancing in white lehanga to bollywood song by Arijit Sing
Dwyane Wade's daughter Kaavia James steals spotlight dancing in white lehanga to bollywood song by Arijit Sing (Image Source: Instagram Story) A surprise video shared on Instagram is winning hearts across the internet. It features Kaavia James Union-Wade, daughter of NBA legend Dwyane Wade and actress Gabrielle Union , in a moment fans didn't see coming. The clip blends dance, tradition, and global culture and has sparked joy from Hollywood to Bollywood. With just one short post, the family turned an ordinary day into a global celebration. Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union post video of Kaavia James in white lehanga On June 22, Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union posted a video of their daughter, Kaavia James Union-Wade, dancing on Instagram. She was dancing to the Bollywood song 'What Jhumka?' by Arijit Singh . Kaavia wore a simple but lovely white lehanga and looked happy and confident. Her parents added a short note to the post: 'Ladies and gentlemen, Kaavia James Union-Wade ...' Later dwyane wade reposted the story by @ms_nix with the short note: Our girl (with the white heart) Dwyane Wade's daughter Kaavia James steals spotlight dancing in white lehanga to bollywood song by Arijit Sing (Image Source: Instagram Story) Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade sometimes post little family clips, but this one felt extra special. Gabrielle, known for her work in movies and shows, always encourages Kaavia's playful side. Dwyane, once an NBA great, showed his pride too as their daughter enjoyed her moment. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like One of the Most Successful Investors of All Time, Warren Buffett, Recommends: 5 Books for Turning... Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Click Here Undo It was simple, sweet, and full of joy. Kaavia, now six years old, is already loved by fans for her personality. This dance video added another reason to celebrate her. The video was posted on both Gabrielle and Dwyane's Instagram stories and quickly made fans smile. Kaavia James' dance clip gets sweet reactions from around the world Kaavia's little dance won hearts for more than just her cuteness. Viewers loved how she enjoyed a different culture at such a young age. Many praised Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade for letting her explore and express herself. The short video felt warm and joyful, showing how one sweet moment can connect people across the world. Seeing an American child dance in Indian clothes to a Bollywood song made it even more fans wrote about how happy the video made them. Some called it the 'cutest moment of the week.' The video was shared across Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), and Facebook. Comments came in from both Bollywood and basketball fans. This family moment reminded fans that joy, culture, and love can meet in the simplest ways even in a dance shared on a phone screen. Also Read: Dwyane Wade's wife Gabrielle Union extends her unwavering support for Victoria Monét in a heartfelt post Follow all the live updates, scores, and highlights from the India vs England Test match here . Game On Season 1 kicks off with Sakshi Malik's inspiring story. Watch Episode 1 here
