There are, as a rule, only so many places you can go as an action movie after leaving Tom Cruise and flinging him
But in the kinetic, headlong world of 鈥淢ission: Impossible,鈥� the pressure to keep upping the ante 鈥� like the films鈥� always-running star 鈥� never stops.
鈥淓very time we finish a movie, the first thing Tom says to me is: We can do better,鈥� says Christopher McQuarrie.
McQuarrie, the writer-director of 2015鈥檚 鈥淢ission: Impossible 鈥� Rogue Nation鈥� and the 2018 franchise high point, 鈥淢ission: Impossible 鈥� Fallout,鈥� was working with Cruise on 鈥� (which McQuarrie co-wrote and co-produced) when they started talking about their ambitions for the next iteration of 鈥淢ission: Impossible.鈥�
Their plan was to make not one but two sequels: Back-to-back blockbusters that would feature even bigger stunts 鈥� Cruise envisioned a motorcycle jump-slash-skydive 鈥� and a massive train sequence that McQuarrie pined to realize. The heady experience on 鈥淢averick,鈥� a pop-culture juggernaut that grossed nearly $1.5 billion worldwide, only further ratcheted up their aspirations.
鈥溾�楾op Gun: Maverick鈥� really taught us a lot in terms of character dynamics and the emotional payoff of the movie overall,鈥� McQuarrie said in a recent interview. 鈥淭o be making movies on this scale, you really need to think about, more than anything, the feeling that the audience is left with going away.鈥�
A year after the box-office dominance of 鈥淢averick鈥�, McQuarrie and Cruise are back with another high-flying spectacle of daring-do. Similar to 鈥淢averick,鈥� 鈥淢ission: Impossible 鈥� Dead Reckoning Part One鈥� is a state-of-the-art action extravaganza of old-school technique, made with star power, practical effects and stunt work designed to prompt exclamations of 鈥淗e did what?鈥�
It was also their most nearly impossible mission yet 鈥� and not just because of, according to Paramount Pictures, that Cruise did in preparation for his climactic stunt. 鈥淒ead Reckoning鈥� was just days away from beginning production in Venice when COVID-19 cases began skyrocketing in Italy, an early epicenter.
鈥淢ission: Impossible鈥� was one of the first major productions to be shut down by the pandemic. Months later, Cruise and 鈥淒ead Reckoning鈥� 鈥� a globe-trotting $290 million movie so logistically complicated that it for initial plans to blow up a century-old bridge in Poland 鈥� led an industry-wide effort to get movie business back on line during the pandemic. An already high-stress production became even more tense. In December 2020, yelling at two crew members for not obeying COVID-19 protocols.
鈥淲e are the gold standard,鈥� Cruise said in the recording. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e back there in Hollywood making movies right now because of us. Because they believe in us and what we鈥檙e doing.鈥�
There were numerous delays and pivots along the way. But McQuarrie says he never thought 鈥淒ead Reckoning鈥� wouldn鈥檛 get finished.
鈥淲e just kept moving forward because if you stopped, if you were trying to find the end of the tunnel, you would just reach a place of such despair,鈥� says McQuarrie.
McQuarrie and Cruise first collaborated on the 2008 Hitler assassination drama 鈥淰alkyrie.鈥� McQuarrie, the famed screenwriter of 鈥淭he Usual Suspects,鈥� was then in proverbial movie jail for his poorly received directorial debut, 鈥淭he Way of the Gun.鈥�
鈥淲hen I met Tom in 2006, I had not directed a film in seven years,鈥� McQuarrie says. 鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 direct a film again for another five years. I had really put any ambitions I had to direct out of my mind. I certainly never imagined being considered an action director, let alone directing four action films.鈥�
鈥淚n 鈥楧ead Reckoning,鈥� you鈥檙e seeing the ghosts of all the movies that I was never allowed to make,鈥� he adds.
Unlikely as it may be, McQuarrie (who鈥檚 also directing the already-shooting part two of 鈥淒ead Reckoning鈥�) has emerged as the architect of one of the most visceral action franchises.
In 鈥淒ead Reckoning,鈥� Ethan Hunt faces off with a rogue artificial intelligence, a prescient and well-suited antagonist for a movie universe built less on CGI than practical effects. McQuarrie told Cruise he wanted to wanted to take 鈥淢ission: Impossible鈥� beyond the threat of a terrorist getting hold of a deadly weapon.
鈥淎nother lesson we took from 鈥楾op Gun鈥� was: What is the audience bringing to the movie? 鈥楾op Gun鈥� came out of Cold War anxieties. I said to Tom in 2019: What anxiety is it now?鈥� says McQuarrie. 鈥淲hat we didn鈥檛 anticipate was the level to which it would accelerate.鈥�
In 鈥淢ission: Impossible,鈥� what you see is rarely what you get. Hunt and his team of spies are masters of deception. At the same time, McQuarrie and his crew, including cinematographer Fraser Taggart, go to considerable lengths to ensure what the audience is watching feels authentic and immersive.
鈥淭he challenge normally is hiding the fact that it鈥檚 not the actor doing it,鈥� says McQuarrie. 鈥淎nd here the reverse is the case. You鈥檙e actually going to great lengths to show that Tom鈥檚 actually doing it.鈥�
Taggart, who had shot the helicopter sequence in 鈥淔allout,鈥� says he鈥檚 never worked with an actor so resistant to stunt doubles as Cruise 鈥� even in the most innocuous of shots.
鈥淭om won鈥檛 do it. He just refuses, even to the extent of you鈥檒l do an insert of hand,鈥� says Taggart. 鈥淚t can鈥檛 be anyone else doing it, as you would on other projects. Tom will insist that鈥檚 him.鈥�
Just as 鈥淭op Gun: Maverick鈥� strove to get as many cameras in the cockpits of fighter jets, the set-pieces of 鈥淢ission: Impossible鈥� are choreographed to get cameras as close to Cruise and the cast 鈥� here that includes Hayley Atwell, Rebecca Ferguson and Vanessa Kirby 鈥� as possible.
For Taggart, that meant getting his head around often dizzying challenges like shooting a scene involving a train moving 60 miles an hour through a mountainous Scandinavian landscape with uncontrollable weather conditions. He didn鈥檛 want just fixed cameras.
鈥淪o now we鈥檝e got to get a whole camera crew involved and some lighting and we鈥檒l probably end up with 10 people strapped to the top of a train carriage, including an old-fashioned physical camera up there,鈥� says Taggart. 鈥淵ou think: Can we actually get 10 people on top of the train doing 60 miles an hour? That鈥檚 the challenge because you鈥檇 really like all of your crew and actors to survive the shoot.鈥�
In another sequence with characters inside a falling train cabin, they suspended a camera operator, Chunky Richmond, on stunt wires so he was hanging alongside the actors. For a nighttime chase through the byzantine passageways of Venice 鈥� for Taggart one of the most complex tasks of 鈥淒ead Reckoning鈥� because of the inherent darkness of the city 鈥� they knocked on doors everywhere along the route to get cameras on terraces and pointed out windows.
For an elaborate car chase in Rome, Taggart used robotic arms on vehicles that were mounted but could also move.
鈥淲e always try technology but we usually break it all,鈥� he says.
McQuarrie has said he likes to write 鈥淢ission: Impossible鈥� movies as they鈥檙e shooting; 鈥淔allout鈥� began without just an outline. Production on 鈥淧art Two鈥� has been paused during the promotion on 鈥淧art One,鈥� and it鈥檚 unclear if the ongoing writers strike would threaten production on the sequel. But for McQuarrie and company, the only way to make a 鈥淢ission: Impossible鈥� movie is full tilt.
鈥淓verything we鈥檙e doing is by the seat of our pants,鈥� says McQuarrie. 鈥淲e want you to come to the movie and experience it the same way the characters are, which is: I don鈥檛 know what鈥檚 going to happen next.鈥�
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