Mission: Inconceivable 2 is the disappointing second movie that the film franchise bounced again from, whereas fully altering its tone and shifting its focus. Regardless of a number of saving graces, particularly the close-up fight sequences, which is perhaps the rationale this film options Tom Cruise’s finest melee struggle sequences within the franchise, Mission: Inconceivable 2 is the weakest Mission: Inconceivable film.
Rewatching 1996’s Mission: Inconceivable in 2025 reveals some surprises, most notably the hanging distinction in tone from the remainder of the franchise as it’s a grounded and intense espionage thriller with subsequent to no struggle scenes. John Woo’s Mission: Inconceivable 2 is thus much more jarring as a follow-up as a result of it is over-the-top, tacky, and options an abundance of combating.
Tom Cruise’s most underrated Mission: Inconceivable stunt, additionally featured in probably the most underrated film within the franchise, Mission: Inconceivable 3, fully reworked the character of its motion sequences, indicating that the franchise moved away from the course John Woo had taken it in. Mission: Inconceivable 2 has its deserves as an motion film, nevertheless it does not match into the franchise.
John Woo’s Fashion Does not Utterly Match With Mission: Inconceivable
John Woo‘s motion motion pictures that outlined the Nineteen Nineties have develop into cinematic artifacts which might be nonetheless studied right this moment to grasp the evolution of the style through the years. They’re incredible thrillers, characterised by an abundance of plot twists and hyper-stylized motion sequences, which make the most of gradual movement, over-the-top explosions, and gun stunts, together with orchestral background music, to create epic showdowns.
Sadly, Mission: Inconceivable is not the franchise for this aesthetic. Most Mission: Inconceivable motion pictures have elaborate motion setpieces, however they’re extra showcases of daring stunts fairly than struggle choreography, and Mission: Inconceivable movies are grounded spy flicks with a lot of motion, in contrast to John Woo motion pictures, the place over-the-top motion is the spotlight. So, Mission: Inconceivable 2 stands proud like a sore thumb.
The Overuse Of Masks Hurts The Plot Twists
John Woo’s motion pictures are identified for his or her plot twists. His most well-known film, Face/Off, is an motion thriller that stays excellent from begin to end, nevertheless it’s most identified for the complicated suspense it creates as a consequence of Nicolas Cage and John Travolta continuously switching locations, so that you cease making an attempt to trace the occasions and give up to the whimsy.
Whereas that works for Face/Off, an analogous method, when utilized in Mission: Inconceivable, makes the plot twists predictable or foolish. You anticipate that each unimaginable state of affairs shall be magically fastened by revealing that Ethan Hunt is definitely secure and was hiding behind a masks. It is an amazing homage to pay to the unique TV present, however the overuse is irritating.
Thandiwe Newton’s Character Is Poorly Written
Thandiwe Newton performs Nyah Nordoff-Corridor, a thief whom Ethan Hunt stops, and who then inadvertently will get embroiled within the IMF’s mission, thus turning into a sufferer earlier than being saved by Ethan within the closing minutes of the movie. Her existence is offered as a robust motivator for Ethan Hunt, however she, as a personality, is generally only a damsel in misery.
It would seem to be Nyah is a fierce character who speaks her thoughts and is not afraid to take issues into her personal palms, however the story does not afford her sufficient company for this side of her to matter. The solely vital alternative she makes is to inject herself with the virus as a sacrifice, which Ethan lastly saves her from.
The Dialogue In Mission: Inconceivable 2 Hasn’t Aged Effectively
The best line in Mission: Inconceivable historical past is arguably from its weakest film. What Ethan’s director says in response to him mentioning the problem of his mission is precisely the extent of tacky that fits the tone of the remainder of the franchise as properly. Nevertheless, a number of the dialogue in Mission: Inconceivable 2 would by no means be written right this moment.
“This is not Mission: Troublesome, Mr Hunt. It is Mission: Inconceivable.” – Mission Commander Swanbeck
The best way Nyah is talked to does not simply sound grating, but additionally serves as a reminder of what number of 2000s motion pictures have aged poorly, particularly in the way in which they current feminine characters. It’s disappointing to see how little pushback there may be in opposition to the repulsive traces that the film’s villain makes use of to explain Nyah and her position within the mission.
Mission: Inconceivable 2’s Love Scenes Will Make You Cringe
Virtually each Mission: Inconceivable film has a romantic interlude, with various levels of relevance to the primary plot, however Mission: Inconceivable 2 is much too self-indulgent and almost turns right into a slow-moving romcom through the romantic scenes which might be eyeroll-worthy and undermine the movie’s pacing. It’s also uncomfortable to see how a lot Thandiwe Newton is decreased to eye sweet.
The love scenes in Mission: Inconceivable 2 are extra comedic than they’re romantic, as a result of the movie goes overboard in making an attempt to ascertain extra chemistry between the actors, who would naturally have shared a extra compelling dynamic in any other case. Saving somebody from a automobile hanging on the fringe of a cliff is hardly the time to get romantic, however the film disagrees.
The Casanova Archetype Does not Swimsuit Ethan Hunt
The one factor in regards to the James Bond franchise that has not aged properly is the trope of the Bond woman, who’s often an excessively sexualized feminine character with out a lot relevance to the plot, whose major objective is to function eye-candy and a romantic curiosity for Bond. So, making an attempt to create an analogous trope for Mission: Inconceivable naturally backfired.
Not solely has the quantity of company that Bond women have in a James Bond film modified through the years, nevertheless it’s additionally not a trope price celebrating or popularizing additional. Furthermore, Ethan Hunt’s character does not swimsuit the trope, and even when 1996’s Mission: Inconceivable is kind of sleazy at occasions, it turns into an excessive amount of to get pleasure from in Mission: Inconceivable 2.
It Feels Like Massive Chunks Of Story Are Lacking
The opposite main distinction between Mission: Inconceivable 2 and the opposite entries within the franchise, together with the primary film, is its pacing. The movie strikes in spurts, feeling rushed at a number of factors within the narrative. There is not a coherent and pure circulation between many scenes, and it is apparent that some main bits of footage have been edited out in post-production.
It’s rumored that the movie was initially three and a half hours lengthy, however was then reduce for theatrical functions.
Probably the most noticeable occasion of this hole is towards the tip of the movie, as we nearly instantly soar from Nyah injecting herself with the virus to the ultimate battle, with out the signature buildup of anticipation related to Mission: Inconceivable and the hunt for her that clearly took Ethan and his teammates longer than is seen on the display.
Tom Cruise Barely Runs In Mission: Inconceivable 2
The most important purpose this movie seems like a disappointment is that it opens with the perfect scene. Tom Cruise’s climbing stunt in Mission: Inconceivable 2 is one in all his most spectacular motion sequences, arguably among the many three finest, within the franchise that is constructed on the premise of every movie’s main set piece outdoing its predecessor’s set piece.
Watching him having a knife held inside inches of his eyes, hitting his enemy with a flying kick, and kicking up a gun earlier than killing Ambrose, are all spectacular stunts, however what you actually miss when watching Mission: Inconceivable 2 is Cruise’s signature run. Whereas he does run within the movie, the overtly stylized enhancing breaks the viewer’s immersion.