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Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol Our rating: Your rating: 1 2 3 4 Your Comments: see all MPAA rating: PG-13 (for sequences of intense action and violence) Genre: Action, Thriller Theater release: December 21, 2011 by Paramount Pictures Directed by: Brad Bird Runtime: 2 hours 13 minutes Cast: Tom Cruise (Ethan Hunt), Paula Patton (Jane Carter), Simon Pegg (Benji Dunn), Jeremy Renner (William Brandt), Michael Nyqvist (Kurt Hendricks), Léa Seydoux (Sabine Moreau), Josh Holloway (Trevor Hanaway), Tom Wilkinson (IMF Secretary) Related: Talk About It/Family Corner

If you've seen one James Bond movie, you've more or less seen them all, right? Any variation in tone mostly depends on who's playing 007. So there's something refreshing in the way the Mission: Impossible movies keep the same lead actor, yet bear the unmistakable stamp of their directors.

The first film in 1996 featured Brian De Palma's unique flair for close-ups and long tracking shots—perfect for building the tension of an espionage thriller. John Woo's follow-up in 2000 transformed Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) into a kind of Hong Kong action star, complete with ballet-like fight sequences, slow-motion, and shots of doves flying into the sky. In 2006, J. J. Abrams brought the series back to its roots while infusing it with his penchant for character drama—even secret agents need a home life).

So what to expect from Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol with director Brad Bird, the man behind The Iron Giant, The Incredibles, and Ratatouille? Sure enough, this is M:I at its most animated—not a cartoon, but truly action-packed.

Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt

Ghost Protocol finds Hunt imprisoned in Moscow, where an Impossible Missions Force (IMF) team breaks him out. Hunt learns that the IMF needs his help in recovering the launch codes for a nuclear sub, which a crazed Russian strategist plans to use to help spark the next stage of human evolution ("survival of the fittest").

Complicating matters is a terrorist attack at The Kremlin while Hunt and his team try to gain intel. The IMF is blamed, and the U.S. government is forced to shut it down. The "ghost protocol" of the title refers to Hunt operating without government aid. His resources are limited, including just three team members to support him: tech expert Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg reprising his role from the third film), previous team leader Jane Carter (Paula Patton), and an analyst named William Brandt (Jeremy Renner) with a secret past.

Cruise is pushing 50, but that's hard to believe from watching this movie. The action is relentless, and Cruise, as usual, insisted on doing his own stunts—including an impressive sequence that involves scaling the world's tallest building, Dubai's Burj Kalifa. Sure, there's camera trickery and a safety crew, but the results are nonetheless enthralling.

Simon Pegg as Benji Dunn

Credit that and the film's success to Bird's confident direction—a remarkable achievement with his first major live-action movie. Everything plays out with the expertise and skill of a veteran, in both action and drama. Bird and Cruise have already expressed interest in doing a fifth film together—here's hoping.

Ghost Protocol has almost everything you'd hope for in a spy action movie. The action sequences themselves are over-the-top, but in a good way. These agents do things that are truly impossible, yet seem plausible because of the way the stunts are carried out. A fight in an automated car park building may rely on computer effects, but the scene itself is clever as hero and villain work their way around the moving parts. Even cleverer is the opening breakout from the Russian prison, making sly use of electronic locks and crowded walkways. As with the Bond and Jason Bourne franchises, this film demonstrates why it's important to keep real action at the core.

Jeremy Renner as Brandt

Much of the writing and explanation makes everything sound overly complicated, but Bird does a terrific job of clarifying with the camera. For example, in a key scene where the team needs to infiltrate a trade between two villains, they split into two groups, each pair pretending to be one half of the drop-off while listening in to the other pair for necessary information. See, even that makes it sound complicated, but a Bird's-eye view smartly shows us how it all plays out.

Of course, there are gadgets galore. Mythbusters will have a field day with this movie, but it's thought out well enough to where they're believable. Electronically enhanced adhesive gloves allow Hunt to climb glass like Spider-Man. A steel mesh suit helps Brandt to float magnetically. And a digital projection screen is used to render people invisible in a hallway.

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