1. Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)
The seventh installment into the franchise proves that Mission: Impossible just keeps getting better. Dead Reckoning Part One introduces the Entity, a powerful rogue AI capable of controlling all of the Earth’s electronic information. Ethan and his IMF pals (and newcomer Grace) find themselves racing the world’s governments to take control of the key leading to the Entity’s mainframe in order to prevent it from quite literally taking over the planet.
What makes Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One such a great film is its place in the franchise. It continues the stories of its predecessors, but it also improves upon them; reusing the ideas that work and subtly pruning those that don’t. It’s a relentlessly paced action thriller that features some heart-thumping chases and solid emotional beats.
It’s also worth noting that Dead Reckoning Part One‘s story is the franchise’s most plausible. The inclusion of an AI villain proved especially prescient, and the film thematically speaks to society’s fears of an automated future. Though every Mission: Impossible movie is worth watching, Dead Reckoning Part One stands out as the best of the bunch.
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