Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One has been long anticipated, and we’ve been teased for what feels like years about the latest installment in the spy franchise that may also be Tom Cruise’s one-man mission to perform the most eye-popping stunts ever seen in cinemas as he returns to the role of the IMF agent Ethan Hunt in his own spy series. The latest film sees Cruise’s Hunt confronted by the demons of his past while tracking down a terrifying weapon that threatens humanity should it fall into the wrong hands.

Cruise, once described as an evergreen movie star with the daredevil heart of a stuntman, has – in the last decade or so – made it his personal quest to thrill audiences in as many ways as possible, and has taken a much bigger, hands-on approach to the production of his films since partnering with Christopher McQuarrie, initially on Valkyrie, before beginning to focus on squeezing the most out of his action franchises, particular the Mission series.
COLLIDER VIDEO OF THE DAYSCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT

Critical reception for the movies since the McQuarrie reset – the director of this Mission, and the previous two, Rogue Nation and Fallout, as well as writing credits on Ghost Protocol – has been vastly improved from the mixed reception of the films from the early and mid 2000s that saw the films turn into run-of-the-mill action flicks. The care with which the action has been filmed since the has seen audiences returning in their droves, and critics love them too. Fallout is widely considered one of the finest action films in history, with set pieces like Cruise HALO jumping from 25,000 feet over 100 times, and even breaking his foot on camera but continuing the scene, will ensure the movie goes down in history.

Image via Paramount

RELATED: ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ Gets Special Early Screening

Dead Reckoning Part One brings back Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Vanessa Kirby, and Henry Czerny from previous Mission films, while Shea Whigham, Hayley Atwell, Pom Klementieff, and Esai Morales are among the new additions to the cast of characters. Czerny returns to the franchise for the first time in 27 years as Eugene Kittridge, the former director of the Impossible Mission Force, who was last seen in 1996’s Mission: Impossible.

What Are Critics and Fans Saying About Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One?
Dead Reckoning Part One is set to hit theaters on July 12, but what are the critics saying? Have Cruise and McQuarrie done it again, or was following up Fallout truly an impossible mission for the franchise? Check out the first reactions to Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One down below.

Collider’s own Perri Nemiroff says the film is yet “another winner” for the long-running franchise, with amazing production value, while Steve Weintraub agrees that it demands to be seen on the big screen:

Others are calling it a “behemoth-sized spectacle,” one that meditates on the dangers of artifical intelligence and shows off director McQuarrie’s ambition:

Many also say that, as the first part of a two part story, it tells a complete tale, without leaving audiences on a massive cliffhanger:

Overall, critics agree that Cruise has done it again, marking his second year in a row as king of the action movie, with additional nods to Hayley Atwell’s performance: