Tom Cruise does apparently challenge himself constantly in films and the latest Mission Impossible has him hanging off the wing of a plane which in itself shows the 'heights' to which he is willing to go to reach the next level in both his carear and his own personal growth by pushing himself a little bit further every time.
Perhaps some of us need that to make life a more interesting ride but almost growing wings isn't for everybody.
In fact one of the reasons we do so love to go to the movies is to immerse ourselves in a world of make believe where the unbelievable can become real and where we imagine ourselves able to do the things we wouldn't really undertake in life, or at least where we see others completing 'missions' that push the boundaries of reality a little further and challenge our minds and hearts in a way that keeps life's magic alive.
What we wonder at as children in story books is what we still look for when we watch a film because we want to believe, and that belief keeps the child within alive and balances our cynicism, keeping us healthy and happy.
We find stunts galore of course in the latest Mission Impossible release, including a car chase and a motorbike wild ride which seems to be a must for Cruise. Cruising down the highways or finding a way through winding narrow streets, are always a part of his action repertoire it seems, and those scenes in this particular film are full of twists and turns as is the plot-although it is thankfully easy enough to follow and not too convoluted like some of these big blockbuster plots tend to become.
A few reverse camera shots make us interact closely with the hero (upside down) and the settings include an opera stage which offers a lot of entertaining props and action filled fast paced moments.
The impossible mission seems to focus mostly on one big water immersed moment (which I won't mention here but which is very edge of your seat) and this builds momentum for the film taking it to the next level.
Every challenge takes us with Tom to new 'aaahs' and 'ooohs' but there is an undertone of seriousness to the film as well.
The notions of chance and destiny aren't only hinted at but actually mentioned in connection to the hero's journey and to his personality.
There is also a hint at the notion of human predictability, ie: how human nature is in many ways predictable and how human behaviour generally is conditioned by who we are as people and what we want in life. This is especially reinforced in the scenes where the hero and his antagonist/main bad guy face each other and draw swords (both physically and verbally/mentally).
The concepts of death and trust are presented in a few sequences including a couple of powerful ones where the two protagonists chose to save each other and have to trust one another in order to make the right choices, despite confusing elements and external distractions.
Trusting one another in order to survive and save each other, becomes the ultimate choice.
A couple of these theme related scenes are worth mentioning here; one at the beginning where Tom is tied up literally (and not just with a new mission in mind) and one where his nemesis/love match gives him a hard choice to make by placing herself in his line of fire so to speak and gives him a choice to either trust her or not. The latter is within a chase scene and suddenly reverses the pace of the film but also projects a very strong image to the audience as well as a injecting us with a powerful thought about Trust.
There are a a few key moments in the film involving trust and they do change the pace as well as stay etched in the mind because of their powerful message.
The impossible is relative and subjective of course, but missions if imbued with enough personal passion, ambition and drive can become possible for each and every one of us depending on the level of emotional investment.
The underlying message is that we may not always achieve what we desire but if we truly want to make something possible we can start by believing in it a hundred per cent.
Destiny plays its part of course like its does in the latest mission impossible where Mr Cruise invests himself a hundred per cent emotionally and physically in his mission and because it is also his destiny to do so, he does succeed in turning the impossible into a possible ultimately.
He almost dies doing it but he does it nevertheless and the rewards as a result override the anguish during the mission.
The possibilities are boundless.
Perhaps some of us need that to make life a more interesting ride but almost growing wings isn't for everybody.
In fact one of the reasons we do so love to go to the movies is to immerse ourselves in a world of make believe where the unbelievable can become real and where we imagine ourselves able to do the things we wouldn't really undertake in life, or at least where we see others completing 'missions' that push the boundaries of reality a little further and challenge our minds and hearts in a way that keeps life's magic alive.
What we wonder at as children in story books is what we still look for when we watch a film because we want to believe, and that belief keeps the child within alive and balances our cynicism, keeping us healthy and happy.
We find stunts galore of course in the latest Mission Impossible release, including a car chase and a motorbike wild ride which seems to be a must for Cruise. Cruising down the highways or finding a way through winding narrow streets, are always a part of his action repertoire it seems, and those scenes in this particular film are full of twists and turns as is the plot-although it is thankfully easy enough to follow and not too convoluted like some of these big blockbuster plots tend to become.
A few reverse camera shots make us interact closely with the hero (upside down) and the settings include an opera stage which offers a lot of entertaining props and action filled fast paced moments.
The impossible mission seems to focus mostly on one big water immersed moment (which I won't mention here but which is very edge of your seat) and this builds momentum for the film taking it to the next level.
Every challenge takes us with Tom to new 'aaahs' and 'ooohs' but there is an undertone of seriousness to the film as well.
The notions of chance and destiny aren't only hinted at but actually mentioned in connection to the hero's journey and to his personality.
There is also a hint at the notion of human predictability, ie: how human nature is in many ways predictable and how human behaviour generally is conditioned by who we are as people and what we want in life. This is especially reinforced in the scenes where the hero and his antagonist/main bad guy face each other and draw swords (both physically and verbally/mentally).
The concepts of death and trust are presented in a few sequences including a couple of powerful ones where the two protagonists chose to save each other and have to trust one another in order to make the right choices, despite confusing elements and external distractions.
Trusting one another in order to survive and save each other, becomes the ultimate choice.
A couple of these theme related scenes are worth mentioning here; one at the beginning where Tom is tied up literally (and not just with a new mission in mind) and one where his nemesis/love match gives him a hard choice to make by placing herself in his line of fire so to speak and gives him a choice to either trust her or not. The latter is within a chase scene and suddenly reverses the pace of the film but also projects a very strong image to the audience as well as a injecting us with a powerful thought about Trust.
There are a a few key moments in the film involving trust and they do change the pace as well as stay etched in the mind because of their powerful message.
The impossible is relative and subjective of course, but missions if imbued with enough personal passion, ambition and drive can become possible for each and every one of us depending on the level of emotional investment.
The underlying message is that we may not always achieve what we desire but if we truly want to make something possible we can start by believing in it a hundred per cent.
Destiny plays its part of course like its does in the latest mission impossible where Mr Cruise invests himself a hundred per cent emotionally and physically in his mission and because it is also his destiny to do so, he does succeed in turning the impossible into a possible ultimately.
He almost dies doing it but he does it nevertheless and the rewards as a result override the anguish during the mission.
The possibilities are boundless.
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