Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol Directed by: Brad Bird Starring: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, Paula Patton Rating: Not Yet Rated Release Date: December 21, 2011 (Select IMAX theaters on December 16)
TRAILER SCORE: 8/10
Thoughts by TSR: Now this is more like it! I didn’t hate the previous trailer for Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, but I felt like there was definitely something a bit off about it. After seeing this second trailer I am much more enthusiastic about another Mission: Impossible film coming out in the near future.
The new character – Brandt, played by Jeremy Renner – is the one I’m most interested in. Renner gets some good moments which make me want to know more about that character and his place in IMF. Unfortunately, even though I responded to this trailer more positively than the previous one, I’m still not all that invested in the existing characters. The good news is the trailer hints at a handful of moments that should help with that. I really enjoyed seeing Cruise, Renner, Pegg, and Patton all just sitting in a room figuring out what to do. They seem to have good chemistry together, so it’ll be a huge positive if there are a handful of scenes like that in between the action.
Speaking of action, yeah, it looks great. This film’s biggest selling point for me has been that it’s director Brad Bird’s live-action debut. He looks like he was more than up to the challenge, at least in the action department. Some of it is recycled from the previous trailer, but this time we’re given a clearer look as it isn’t chopped up as much. We also get a different look at the big Burj Khalifa Tower sequence, used once again to cap off the trailer. The first time I wasn’t overly impressed, but here it sends the trailer out on a high note. That sequence alone might be enough to warrant seeing this film in IMAX.
Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol isn’t going to be at the top of my list of films to see this winter, but I can feel myself slowly starting to get excited for it. Other than the unfortunate lack of Josh Holloway, this trailer has left me feeling pretty good about this fourth installment of the franchise.