Mission: Impossible

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Directed by Brian De Palma. Story by David Koepp and Steven Zaillian; Screenplay by David Koepp and Robert Towne. 1996, 110 mins. U.S. DCP. Starring Tom Cruise, Jon Voight, Emmanuelle Beart, Ving Rhames. Cruise’s first film as producer, Mission: Impossible kicked off the film franchise in high style with a coolly elegant Euro-thriller directed by master of suspense De Palma. After a mission goes wrong, Ethan Hunt (Cruise) is framed for the death of his team members and must uncover the true perpetrators. He is aided by computer hacker Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames), who would reappear throughout the franchise as one of Hunt’s key allies. Split diopter shots and epic set pieces abound as Hunt launches himself and his team into a globetrotting quest to uncover the mole in their midst, while hunting for information that will clear his good name. This dazzling first M:I features all the series hallmarks: Tom Cruise falling from heights, a wry Ving Rhames, unexpectedly switched faces, and sequences mounted in the inimitable De Palma style, including the iconic scene in which Cruise infiltrates a high-high-security, laser-guarded vault at CIA headquarters suspended by wires.

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