Mission: Impossible III Gave Ethan Hunt His Most Terrifying Villain
The setup
Ethan Hunt is pulled back into field work to rescue a captured agent and stop arms dealer Owen Davian, while trying to keep his secret life hidden from his fiancée Julia.
Mission: Impossible III has got to be my favourite film in the franchise. This film doesn’t allow you to breathe for a second throughout its duration.
The very first scene is one of the most stressful moments within the whole series, and then it just gets better from there. You’re always left wondering if someone is about to die, which I haven’t felt since the early days of this franchise. I know all these later ones have incredible stunts performed by the thrill seeking action man himself Tom Cruise, but this feels to me like this is where the crazy stunt trope of mission impossible began.
I could go on for ages about how great Philip Seymour Hoffman was as Owen Davian, however I think his greatest attribute was his ability to convey sheer terror without doing anything dramatic. His character can sit calmly and threaten people and somehow that seems even more horrifying.
But what I love about this particular characterisation is how much more vulnerable Ethan seems when he’s been placed under such pressure from his own personal relationships. When his life has been pulled into the mix by his new wife Julia, everything changes for Ethan. All of a sudden there are bigger stakes at play than just trying to thwart yet another villainous scheme.
For me personally, some of the best bits of the film were the actual action sequences. The classic Mission: Impossible set piece set in the Vatican is a highlight, the elevator escape scene, and the whole plan of swinging from one building to another to steal the rabbits foot. Also theres just something about watching Tom Cruise sprint. I know he does it in every movie, but its fun to watch every single time.
They’ve also introduced us to Simon Pegg’s character Benji who is a fantastic addition to the cast. He does a brilliant job of bringing some humour to the tense moments and keeping the movie light and fun.
Yes there have been some Mission Impossible’s where they had even better stunts than this movie. But nothing else has ever made my heart beat so fast, put me on the edge of my seat all the time, and for me personall this is still the best!
Positives
Philip Seymour Hoffman, a more human Ethan Hunt, strong team dynamic, excellent pacing, the bridge attack and Vatican mission.
Verdict
A major step up that gives the series one of its best villains and finally makes Ethan Hunt feel like a character rather than just the bloke doing the mission.
