Mission Impossible III

Starring Tom Cruise, Michelle Monaghan, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ving Rhames, Billy Crudup, and Lawrence Fishburne
Directed by J.J. Abrams

SUMMARY
This is the third MI film, and in it Ethan Hunt has left field ops in favor of training, and he is engaged to be married. However, as if we couldn't see it coming, he is pulled back into action when an agent he trained is captured by a terrorist. This event has a domino effect, leading to threats to national security, and to Ethan's personal life.

REVIEW
So, here is the deal. I didn't see this movie right away because I heard it was bad. I went to see Poseidon instead (which was maybe the worst movie of the year). When I finally got around to seeing this movie, my expectations were low, so that may have helped a little bit. In retrospect, however, I am more and more convinced that this was simply, surprisingly enough, a GREAT movie. It had the best bad guy of any of the three films. Hoffman was great and scary. It had the best female lead of the any of the three films. Michelle Monahgan was real, vulnerable, and very likeable. The MI team was great, the action was great, and the teaser to open the film comes together well when they finally return to it. This was a very satisfying movie (just never forget that it is a Mission Impossible movie; allow it to be a bit over the top).

QUESTION FOR THOUGHT
There was some powerful scenes in the movie related to trust, especially between a husband and wife. One character demonstrates amazing trust in another. It made me realize that it is easy for us to look at those who trust someone else as fools. To trust someone (to really trust them) is to put ourselves at their mercy. This is not something we value in our culture. How much more does real trust in God place us at his mercy, without the out of demanding explanations from him. Is this real trust? Do we have it? Should we have it?

OVERALL
You know by now that I really like this movie. It was excellent. Being an action movie it had its share of violence and suspense, but overall it was refreshingly clean. It was moving and fun to watch. Some people may have disliked this movie simply because of everything that is going on with Tom Cruise personally. If you are able to watch the film, however, without being distracted by that, it is hard for me to imagine it not being a pleasant experience.
Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 possible.