Mission: Impossible
February 25, 2023
Quick Look
The first in a long line of action packed spy movies, Mission: Impossible is a must see for the cultural references alone
Recommendation
Mission: Impossible is the first in a genre defining series of action movies and in many ways is responsible for a number modern spy movie tropes. If you are looking for a stand alone spy film, this one checks all the boxes.
The spy tech, while it may’ve seemed advanced when the movie was made, is massively outdated on a modern rewatch, but that shouldn’t stop you from enjoying the film. Most of the action is based less around high tech gadgetry and more around intense chase scenes and dramatic acrobatic stunts which remain timeless.
Along with the relatively engaging plot, you also get context for what has become a massive franchise of films. I would recommend watching this if you intend to binge the series or if you’re curious in the cultural references.
I only give this movie a 3/5 because although I think the plot is fine, it’s by no means the best M:I film. Really the only reason I would suggest watching it is for context. If you’re looking for an action film, and feel like giving Mission: Impossible a go, I might recommend Mission Impossible Fallout as an alternative which is how I ended up on my lukewarm score.
Thoughts
The Gadgets
The tech in this movie definitely feels dated, from the wired headphones and the VHS player on the plane, to the Windows 95 style desktop computer. However, I also think some of the “hacking” stands up to a fair bit of skepticism. For example, the bad guys attempt to transfer the NOC list over the internet at one point, but are unable to because of a signal jammer, which struck me as a realistic thing that spies might do that would also actually work. It doesn’t suffer from much technobable that plagues a lot of modern spy movies and TV shows.
The Original TV Series (1966)
When I went to write something up about this film, it occurred to me that the mission impossible theme song is iconic, and worth mentioning, but also that given the caliber of the first film, it seemed unlikely that this movie was responsible for it. In fact, there were two TV series that predated the first Mission: Impossible film. The first in 1966 and another in 1988.
One fact I found interesting while reading the Wikipedia article for the theme song was that the composer actually started with “M.I.” in morse code which is “_ _ ..” and I have to say it really comes through!
It seems like the idea of an impossible missions force and some of the stylistic points like “your mission should you choose to accept it” and the tapes self-destructing are take from the show.
It’s interesting to me that I suspect most people think of the film series nowadays when they think of Mission: Impossible, but some of the core defining features of that series are lifted from the shows.