Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol

     Ah, my first movie review. First, I want to say that the only other Mission Impossible movie I've seen was the first one, and all I remember from it was exploding gum and dangling from wires in a silent room. Going into Ghost Protocol, I was afraid I would be lost having not seen the two movies prior. Come to find out, the Mission Impossible movies play like James Bond or Indiana Jones movies where they're their own stories and don't have too much effect on the other movies.

    

      I must say, I really enjoyed this movie. Directed by Brad Bird, it was his first step into live action directing. His earlier directorial efforts are The Iron Giant, The Incredibles, and Ratatouille. All three of those are excellent films, so that gave me hope here. My hope was exceeded. Bird was able to pull off a fun film with great action sequences, humor, and a simple yet compelling story line. 

     The acting was memorable and you can tell the cast was having fun. A slightly aging Tom Cruise can still convincingly pull off his action scenes and stunts. Simon Pegg's comedic relief was great and well timed, and he even gets his own moment to shine. Paula Patton did very well as Jane Carter. And Jeremy Renner pulled off a great performance. If you've seen The Hurt Locker, you know the kind of quiet intensity Renner excels at.

   All in all, this was a movie I can highly recommend. It's fun, the locales are exotic and sometimes vertigo-inducing. Brad Bird did a fantastic job for his first live-action outing, and I'm excited to see more of what he can produce.