Rating: 
Summary: Woo is the man, Woo is the Woo!
Review: After seeing Face Off, John Woo immediately became one of my favorite action directors, if not my favorite. So I set out and watched Hard Boiled and The Killer, which made me fall in love even more with his visceral style. When I heard that Cruise and Woo were making M:I 2, I nearly fell out of my chair! I began imagining what I thought was going to be the most awesome spy movie ever! But, as I sat in the theater watching this flick, I realized....something is missing. Depth and great characters were not present in this flick. The action scenes, of course they were some of the best I've ever witnessed, but when you don't care about the characters, what good are action sequences. I really think Robert Towne really let us down on this script, I thought the conflict was OK, but no depth or characterization. N-E-Way, the most awesome motorcycle scenes and a great score made me love this movie! The 5.1 Dolby Digital track on this disc has to have THE most active surrounds I've ever heard on ANY DVD! That alone is worth the price of this disc. And of course to see Cruise do all of his own stunts! Woo would be a perfect director to bring Pierce Brosnan's James Bond out of his slump!
Rating: 
Summary: Better then James Bond!
Review: This is a very entertaining movie. A John Woo film which has many slow motion shots that are very effective in the stunt sequences and dramatic shots that work well with this film. Tom Cruise did just about all his stunts bringing an amazing quality to the entire film. This movie is a thousand times better then James Bond:The World is Not Enough. The Ethan Hunt character is much like a modern James Bond for America.
Rating: 
Summary: Very Poor Sequel
Review: This has to be one of John Woo's poorest offerings to date, and his trademark scenes are becoming ever more repetetive in successive films. Perhaps the abundance of hype surrounding the cinematic release of this movie, really didn't do it any favours, as it never lived up to expectations. The sad fact is that a talented ensemble cast and great SFX, have been nullified by a storyline that could have been written on the back of a stamp. Even the super quality of DVD, the sexy Nyah, torrid chase and action scenes can't save this movie from a lame script. Not half as good as the first movie, which in itself was something of a disappointment.
Rating:
Summary: best motorcycle chase ever
Review: best chase ever for that matter. Almost all the ideas are original and the stunts are awesome. Of course there is some cheese and other lame stuff (like the car twirling). The plot is so-so but does hold up relatively well. I would have given the movie 4 stars instead of 5, but the average review deserves more than 3. Glad to ad this one to the collection.
Rating: 
Summary: Despite the title, this is not a Mission Impossible movie
Review: I love John Woo. From Hong Kong movies such as Hard Boiled and The Killer to his American movies, the man has proven time and again that he is an absolute master of the action movie genre. Unfortunately, that's why he was a poor choice to direct a Mission Impossible movie.I grew up watching the original television show and this movie had virtually none of the elements that made the series so successful. The only "Mission Impossible" element found in this movie was the use -- over use, actually -- of the molded masks. There was none of the fun that I found in the television series present in this movie. I'm talking about how the IM team would manipulate the bad guys into bringing about their own downfall. The IM team never carried guns. They didn't race around on motorcycles. They worked behind the scenes, quietly doing their job then quietly driving away as the bad guys took the fall. As action movies go, this is a good movie. Not great. Not Woo's best by a long shot, but it's still a good action movie. But it's supposed to a Mission Impossible movie. And that's where it falls on its face. And that's why I scored it low. Of course, if that doesn't bother you, then you'll probably enjoy the movie.
Rating: 
Summary: Visually stunning, but emotionally hollow
Review: Let's start out with the good points about "Mission: Impossible--2." First, the action scenes are superb: director John Woo has created a stunning visual symphony of color and energy. It's high-tech violence infused with the beauty of poetry. Second, the special effects are flawless. And third, Tom Cruise's hair and physique look great. Beyond those good points, I found "M:I-2" to be one of the biggest cinematic disappointments of 2000. This is a beautiful but hollow shell of a movie; the film's visual power does not make up for the moral and emotional void at the film's core. The biggest problems involve Ethan Hunt, the character played by Cruise. Hunt's romance with the film's female lead (competently played by the exquisite Thandie Newton) is utterly unbelievable; the script gives no indication why these two should become so passionately devoted to each other. Is it just hormones? And Hunt's motivation with regard to the film's mission is similarly missing. Why is he so dedicated to his task and his organization? Does the Impossible Missions Force have a great benefits package, or what? The film's failure to go beyond the characters' surface actions left me feeling cheated. The story (involving terrorists, a biological weapon, and a love triangle) is competently written, but I've seen the "James Bond" producers do it better before. And the rest of Hunt's team is pretty much wasted; "M:I-2" is an unrepentant star vehicle for Tom Cruise (as if the film's poster didn't give this away). By eviscerating the "Mission: Impossible" teamwork element, the film's producers do a disservice to the memory of the original television series.
Rating:
Summary: teletubbies with guns
Review: John Woo does not understand me. Let me start by saying that I love Jackie Chan and I enjoyed MI-1. I have struggled with John Woo movies because they tend to exaggerate slow motion which to me halts my suspension of disbelief. Especially since after watching the "making of" material it appears that Tom Cruise did his own stunts, the slow motion ruins it for me. This movie sucked. The story held the viewer's hand through the whole movie. If there was a twist coming up, it was spelled out painfully beforehand. I know that MI-1 was criticized for having an unpredictable plot, but what is wrong with that? There are movies that I hate that I enjoyed more than this movie.
Rating:
Summary: This movie is Notoriously good
Review: M:I-2 is a pure visually feast. If you expect just an action movie, you are going to get a whole lot more. There's emotion to this story. Considering the fact that the basic plot is a homage to the movie "Notorious" directed by Alfred Hitchcock. So just pop the movie in and sit back and enjoy...just don't think.
Rating:
Summary: Woo's Mission Favors Style Over Substance
Review: John Woo set out to make the second in what I suspect will be a long running francise of films with modest intentions. 1) Dumb down a plot which he saw as unnecessarily intricate, 2) up the action and 3) create warm, more compasionate charcters. And he's succeeded on all fronts, but to the detrimate of the film. You needn't be worried about getting lost in the story because it's so simple that even a child could navigate it's way through, which in light of Congressional discoveries could've been their (Paramount's) target audience all along. There's a good side to this though. After all, how often do you hear a gasp followed by "Plausible!" instead of "Cool!" The rational is that by relaxing on the plot we can justify settling in and enjoying it for what it is - a popcorn movie. This way the director doesn't have to concern himself with the little details, like 'why does Tom Cruise put on a pair of sunglasses amidst an intense action sequence?' The story (or what there is of it) revolves around Ethan Hunt and his beautiful accomplice (Newton) who's mostly just window-dressing, though I think she was intented to be more. Hunt's nemisis - an Aussie baddie hot after an Ebola-like virus and it's cure, in hopes of extorting millions from a chemist who plans on unleashing the virus and cashing in on the antidote. It's sounds deeper than it really is, as in one scene it's asked if it's that simple and a smirking Tom replys, "Why not?" Why not indeed. After all, the story's just an excuse for death-defying stunts and good old-fashioned white-knuckle action the likes of which we haven't seen since the Die Hard trilogy and that Mission: Impossible 2 has - in spades.
Rating:
Summary: James Hunt or Ethan Bond?
Review: Somebody should have told Tom Cruise and John Woo.....the James Bond franchise is already taken. That's what this installment looks and feels like, no question. Vastly inferior to the first MI film, this popcorn movie does little to compliment the Mission: Impossible mystique. Instead we get John Woo's tired slo-mo action sequences, a ludicrous storyline and Cruise walking through the movie knowing it's critic-proof. Sure, the action stuff is fun, but I expect more out of Mission: Impossible. I expect my brain to get a workout. Not so, here. Predictable at every turn. And not a subtle frame to be found. This is a John Woo film (Brian DePalma was accused of "facelessly" directing the first film....EXACTLY; as this one should have been!). Woo's fingerprints are all over this thing. It's excessive to the max. Waste your money on this turkey if you must.
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