Corona virus: how "Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning" turned out

For three hours Tom Cruise flies, dives, shoots, runs and dies several times before our eyes. The eighth "Mission: Impossible" is exactly what everyone expects from the finale of the popular series, a competitor to "Bond" and "The Bourne." Funny, sentimental, and noisy is a very expensive attraction with ambitions to become the highest—grossing film of the year. Izvestia watched the film in Cannes and explains why it needs to wait.

When will "Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning" be released

Immediately after the premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, "Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning" will be released worldwide. By the end of May, it will begin to be shown in Russia with pre-show service. And this is the case when you need to watch a movie on the biggest screen with the best sound.

The Lumiere Hall in Cannes, the largest and premiere, had just installed an ultra—modern sound system on the eve of the festival, as if they were preparing for a "Mission" that would allow them to evaluate multi-channel, bass and other bells and whistles. By the way, we didn't really feel them: the sound in the "Mission" is quite familiar, and if compared with the best Moscow cinemas, the "Lumiere" does not show itself particularly in this sense. However, it may depend on where you sit in the hall itself — the sound pattern may be different in the central seats.

Tom Cruise attends the photocall of the film "Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning" at the 78th Annual Cannes Film Festival at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France

Photo: Getty Images/Pascal Le Segretain

The premiere part of the whole event was disappointing. A crowd of people blocked the Croisette because everyone was waiting for Tom Cruise to parachute or spectacularly descend from the roof of the festival palace. Or at least he will come in an armored personnel carrier, as Stallone once did when he brought The Expendables to the Croisette. Well, at least let him drive by in a convertible and say hello to the crowd! None of this happened. Tom Cruise appeared in the most boring way in a small spot in front of the photographers, gave several autographs and, in company with other actors of the film, stood under the live performance of the famous musical theme "Mission" by the orchestra. And then I went to the gym. After that, I didn't really want to watch the movie anymore: the audience felt cheated, especially a few days before that, Cruz posted a video from the set where he jumps out of an airplane. It looked like an announcement of something very big. Let's forgive Tom for that. He's not young anymore, though, and the years are taking their toll. Maybe he was planning something, but his back was seized or his heart was numb. Let everyone at that age do everything he manages to do on set first, and then be judged. We won't.

What is the movie "Mission Impossible: The Last Reckoning" about

The "Final Reckoning" turned out to be a solid three-hour pleasure, with a lot of funny symbolic moments. For example, it all starts with the fact that a dangerous computer virus has taken over the planet and first of all mixed up all the materials in the media in such a way that people all over the world no longer understand where the truth is and where the lie is. Unrest and quarrels have begun, fanatics are triumphant in the streets, and there is a global cataclysm. It's kind of like what's happening in the world right now, isn't it?

The virus doesn't stop at the kingdom of crooked mirrors. In a few days, he will gain control over the nuclear arsenals of all states, destroy humanity, and then it is unclear what will happen. Unless Hunt stops this virus.

It is noteworthy that the "heart of Koshchei" is stored on the border between Russia and the United States, somewhere in the area of the Aleutian Islands, on the sunken submarine Sevastopol. And this artifact is called Podkova. It's very nice to watch the movie in English to appreciate how the characters pronounce this and other Russian words. There is a lot of Russia here, and it is shown very respectfully. For example, the Russian Federation's nuclear arsenal has been resisting the virus for the longest time, not counting the United States. And when it comes to the danger that awaits humanity, Russia is among the key states that need to be saved.

Russian Russian characters are also there, and they speak Russian without an accent, and they are played by actors with Russian surnames. It's like Tom Cruise was thinking of releasing a movie with us. And maybe he will, by the way. And he will come himself, as he has already done.

The film has a lot of sweet nostalgia, flashbacks from previous parts of the franchise, but they are so organically woven into the narrative that they simultaneously become landmarks for new viewers. That is, you can start exploring the series with this picture — and everything will be clear, and after that you will really want to see the rest of the parts. And they repeat to us a hundred times, one way and another, that — look at which way we have passed, and here is the finale. So let's relax, friends, and spend time with Ethan Hunt, his team, and the office of the President of the United States, which, by the way, is the former director of the CIA. A black woman whose son also serves in the armed forces.

I want to talk about this movie and tell it excitedly, risking spoilers to spoil the mood of those who have not seen it. Therefore, let's not get carried away, and let's just pay attention to the fact that this is a truly cinephile product. For example, the parallel between Ethan Hunt and Lawrence of Arabia is lovingly traced. We are all waiting for Hunt to say Lawrence's main phrase, and Hunt, to our indescribable delight, really does it. Nothing is written, that is, "Nothing is destined", sounds exactly at the moment when it is needed. Everything is exactly where it needs to be. The perfect balance, as well as a huge number of jokes, the most successful of which are again given to Simon Pegg, as the main professional comedian in the cast.

There is exactly as much action as there should be, but at the same time there are a lot of very human emotions, feelings, thoughts, and the main theme, characteristically, is trust. In a world where the virus has mixed truth with lies, it is a matter of faith in each other, in our decisions, in our loved ones and those far away ("for those whom we will never meet") it comes to the fore. "Leap of Faith" is the main dramatic move throughout the three hours, and although it may seem monotonous, in reality it almost always works flawlessly.

What do you believe in, my friend, the movie asks the viewer. And the viewer... the viewer wants this fairy tale not to end any longer, because then he will have to leave the hall, and there he will have to answer this and other questions seriously. And think about what to do with our "virus", which in the film is compared to a genie who escaped from a bottle.

$400 million, not counting advertising costs: "Mission Impossible" is an expensive toy that has yet to prove to the world and Hollywood that such a therapeutic movie is in demand today. But the Cannes audience doesn't seem to have any complaints. Except for one thing: Tom, why is it so uninteresting to come?