4/5 stars

Tom Cruise is back as super-spy Ethan Hunt for this seventh outing in the Mission: Impossible franchise.

An absorbing, if at times unwieldy, adventure, Dead Reckoning – Part One has the feel of a film that is not only setting up the conclusion to the entire series but also giving nods to earlier Mission: Impossible films.

In particular, there is an extended set piece on the Orient Express trans-European train that recalls Hunt’s climactic fight in the Channel Tunnel between the UK and France in the first Mission: Impossible film, directed in 1996 by Brian De Palma.

His latest mission sees him go rogue – as always, looking for a cruciform key that will unlock … well, that would be telling. Much has to do with the “entity”, a sentient computer program that is capable of penetrating everything from banking systems to the intelligence community.

Hunt hooks up with his usual team, including Benji (Simon Pegg) and Luther (Ving Rhames), as well as newcomer Grace (Hayley Atwell), a deft thief who has been hired to steal the key.

(From left) Rebecca Ferguson, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg and Tom Cruise in a still from “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One”. Photo: Christian Black/Paramount Pictures and Skydance
Running against him is Gabriel (Esai Morales), a shadowy and ruthless figure from Hunt’s past with deep connections to the “entity”. Also featuring is Guardians of the Galaxy’s Pom Klementieff, who gives a gleeful performance as Gabriel’s hard-as-nails accomplice Paris, more than capable of matching Hunt blow for blow.

Vanessa Kirby and Rebecca Ferguson also return as the White Widow and Ilsa Faust, respectively, two characters from Hunt’s recent history who are heavily invested in the chase for the key.

As the film bounces from Abu Dhabi to Italy and the Austrian Alps, it is all about the ludicrous stunts – and Dead Reckoning more than delivers.

Vanessa Kirby in a still from “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One”. Photo: Paramount Pictures and Skydance
A chase through Rome, with Hunt and Grace handcuffed together and driving a yellow Fiat 500, is a highlight, while the much trailed motorbike/parachute stunt Cruise does is remarkable, though not quite as insane as hanging onto the side of an Airbus A400M, as he did in 2015’s Rogue Nation, or climbing the Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai, which he managed in 2011’s Ghost Protocol.

At two hours 43 minutes, Dead Reckoning is a long ride, particularly for a film that leaves you with a cliffhanger. But director Christopher McQuarrie – the custodian of the franchise since Rogue Nation – is adept at keeping this juggernaut rolling.

There is barely time to breathe, although the script by McQuarrie and playwright Erik Jendresen does lace the story with much required comic relief.

Tom Cruise and Hayley Atwell in a still from “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One”. Photo: Paramount Pictures and Skydance

Ultimately, this is a hugely entertaining blockbuster, led by a fighting fit Tom Cruise, who has not lost one iota of his action-hero verve.

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