One of the most eagerly awaited films of its time, Mission Impossible 2 featured the Biggest names in Hollywood, like : Acclaimed Director John Woo, the Sexy Tom Cruise, cinematographer Jeffrey Kimball of Top Gun fame, and above all, GREAT PROMOS!!! We were made to believe they were out to make something even more thrilling and exciting than the original. Brian De Palma must have waited with bated breath for this, for it is he who was at the helm during the first adventure.
Take it from me, Mission Impossible 2 is a WASHOUT!!!!
While the comparison with the original is inevitable, it was only fair to hope to see something that made Sense rather than just Cars blowing up and the Hero jumping around mountains!!! For Gods sake, this is a Sequel, no Monkey Business!! Unbelievably, this one stoops FAR Below the average Hollywood Action Thriller as far as Story and Presentation are concerned.
Even the Original was criticised for having an excessively Convoluted Storyline, but this One Takes the Cake, leaving the audience to Wonder and Ponder at the happenings!!! There is this ABSOLUTELY SENILE scientist who invents a virus which will kill the person injected with it within 34 hours and obviously, an Antidote too!! This Formula is stolen by the So-Called Villian, who does nothing more than order his sub-ordinates and romance with the Girl-Friend!!! Now, the Hero has to save the world from this Nutty Son of a Gun, who will stop at nothing to use it against his enemies!! To help the Hero, as always, there is a Heroine, who is also affiliated with the Villian!! So very Bollywoodish!!
The Hero, aka Agent Ethan Hunt seems to have lost his Charm this time around, what with the Girlish hairstyle and a face that screams out aloud ’’ I am Tired of all this S**T!!’’. He hops around the Grand Canyon, yet escapes unhurt, drives Porsche cars, but at the end its all Boom Bang, where he escapes the thousands of bullets showered at him ( Hey I Wonder if the Villian employed Blind people??!!) and at the same time get what he wants and escape!!!
The Climax is a BIG Let-Down compared to the original, which had a SUPERB Background Score and Action Sequences to complement the Script. Above all, it was Brian De Palma who did a great job!
Director John Woo is Hampered by the Script, or the lack of it!! He tries his best but it just isn’t enough to show Mindless Action Scenes, however well-exectued they may be. The Slickness of ’’Face/Off’’ is Clearly missing.
I don’t know who wrote the script and screenplay, but rest assured, its the worst of its kind in decades!!!
Coming to the Performances,
Tom Cruise, who has co-produced the movie works Hard, and it shows on his face. He looks kinda tired and worn out with that Ponytail Hairstyle of his.
Thandie Newton looks gorgeous but is reduced to being a lust object.
The Villian is absolutely pathetic, inducing only the occassional Guffaws with his Weird Acting!!!
An actor of Anthony Hopkins calibre should REJECT such Foolish Scripts outright rather than playing a Cameo, which again has NO significance to the main story.
All in all, MI2 LACKS the Freshness and Thrill-Inducing Capability that the original had in Ample Quantities!! Avoid it!