Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)

Artwork for theatrical release

Very enjoyable, but sadly, also very forgettable.

The usual fare was great; the gadgets, the concept car, the plot twists, the heart-stopping action, etc.  What seemed to be lacking, and it often is, in these films, is the script.  It was full of  bad lines, forced dialogue, unnecessary plot exposition, and a horrible (read: cliche) final plot point.

The music was great.  The theme never sounded better.  The sound design was perfect, and if I could find something else that was great I would use another superlative, maybe phenomenal, but oh well.

Artwork for IMAX theatrical release

Tom Cruise's age is starting to show (he's 50), and their choice to slowly replace him with a new character (Jeremy Renner) is a pretty cheer-able character, even if not traditional.

If you want a better spy film, watch Daniel Craig in any of his Bond adventures.  If you want to watch Tom Cruise, go watch some of his classics.  If you want more sexy women (no snap at Paula Patton, she's beautiful, but she's also the only one) watch something else.

Ultimately the movie fails because neither I, nor my friend, who I watched this movie with, could remember if this was part 4 or 3 or whatever, and neither could we remember what the other movies were about, nor did we care.

Watch it, just don't buy it.