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sylviajean
Reviews
Mission: Impossible: Memory (1966)
Mr. Memory Saves the Day
Old pro Albert Paulsen, whom you may remember as the humorless Communist agent in the original "Manchurian Candidate," steals this one out from under the regulars. As an alcoholic whose memory somehow remains phenomenal, he is pretty much on his own as a prisoner trying to get the goods on his captors despite beatings and humiliation. Apparently the rather heartless Briggs is going to leave him to his fate until he finds out that his "Mr. Memory" has found and memorized an essential list of enemy agents. The final rescue makes up the climax. But the Brigss character had a couple of these rather nasty hard-boiled moments. I was just as happy when they replaced him with the upright Jim Phelps.
Mission: Impossible: Operation Rogosh (1966)
One of the Best
The earliest and one of the best phony venue episodes, where they convince the target that he is in another place and time. Unlike many that followed, it is actually believable, thanks primarily to a stellar turn by Fritz Weaver and some convincing work by the regulars, notably a dressed-down Barbara Bain. The last minute glitch (Rogosh finds out where he really is before he has completely revealed his plan to spread a deadly plague in Los Angeles) and its solution (locking the villain in a cell with three vials of the plague bacteria set to explode) are especially ingenious and suspenseful. Briggs' role as a stooped, ineffectual attorney leads to an astute observation by Rogosh: "You, the weakest one, you must be the leader." Top-notch example of the IMF at its sharpest.
Mission: Impossible: Encounter (1971)
Elizabeth Ashley: Acting Teacher
The performance by Elizabeth Ashley as the alcoholic wife who may throw a monkey wrench into the IMF's plans for her husband's boss is a little gem and an acting lesson in itself. Her drunken enthusiasm for Jim actually wears off on the staid Peter Graves for a few silly lines that sound improvised. But the main display of her talent is the difference between her performance as the wife and her performance as Lisa playing the wife. Lynda Day George is not bad, but Ashley has her beat hollow. Early on, Lisa's left arm is injured. George never gives it another thought. But Ashley does not lose the injury. She doesn't overplay it, but every time she must use the arm a little pain shows. It is especially obvious in the final scene. Ashley-as-Lisa-as-the wife waves rather painfully to a departing car. Immediately after, George removes her "mask" with her left hand without any trouble. Good acting is all in the details, children, all in the details.
WALL·E (2008)
Drop your preconceptions and SEE IT NOW!
This movie transcends labels. Forget , "I don't like cartoons," "It's just a kids movie," and "Who needs more sci-fi?" Leave behind your expectations and prejudices. Go in to see WALL-E with an open mind and an open heart and you will be rewarded as you never have before. The artistic detail of garbage-strewn earth, the space ship (part Carnival Cruise Line, part Enterprise), and the various workings of every single robot (pivoting heads, jointed legs, detached hands, a different personality and "voice" for each) is a dizzying delight. And WALL-E and EVE are the cutest couple since Lady and the Tramp. As many others have commented, their communication needs no dialogue. WAL-E's huge searchlight eyes and EVE's computer screen baby blues speak volumes not to mention their vastly different, but somehow compatible hands. Their love dance in space will leave you wondering which to cheer, the characters or the animators. And, as always, reliable Pixar sets itself apart from "kid's movies" that depend on sly pop references (touchpoints from "2001," "Star Trek," and "Alien" don't count) and potty humor. A film with genuine imagination doesn't need these things. You would think that the fat, lazy former earthlings would be disgusting, but they are not. They're good, cheerful people who don't know any better. Their awakening to what human beings and their planet should really be is a gratifying part of the plot. Watching the captain get hooked on the facts provided by the computer about what earth was like, you root for him to learn about human joy and duty before his HAL-like robot assistant catches him. Long-distance shots are breathtaking and funny by turns. One of the best visual jokes is when the ship's robots are all moving in an exact geometric pattern, when WALL-E and a bunch of off-kilter 'droids he has freed from their repair shop/asylum come barreling in from all directions and scatter their counterparts like rolling marbles. The only reason I withheld one star is that a couple of sequences go on a little long after they have contributed to the plot. But if you want to expand your artistic and imaginative horizons, go see WALL-E and let yourself be caught up in its visual and auditory wonders.
Mission: Impossible: Mindbend (1971)
Brainwashing plot foreshadows other films
The directing on this one is noticeably better than usual. The lighting speaks volumes in the contrast between the blinding white "trainee's" sleeping quarters and the dark, sinister torture chamber. The scheming doctor is often seen in tight, half-shadowed close-ups that emphasize his wide, too-dark eyes, while his blond, blue-eyed employer shows up at cheerfully lit parties and rendezvous.
And the brainwashing itself,featuring giant, flashing, disconnected images foreshadows later movies like "The Parallax View" and "Conspiracy Theory."
Small visual clues lead to important information about character and plot. We know something is amiss when the usually dapper Barney goes out to fulfill his mission in an ill-fitting suit.
And who knew that distinguished, middle-aged John Mullin was once young and gawkily handsome? All around a fascinating and non-formulaic entry in the series.
Mission: Impossible: The Controllers: Part 2 (1969)
Willie Gets the Girl
As faithful readers will no doubt recall, we left Willie, posing as a prisoner, witnessing trials of the mind-control drug on a beautiful young couple. The man (an impossibly young and gorgeous Stanley Kamel) is killed, while the baddies continue to threaten the woman. As the main plot reaches its climax, tender-hearted Willie can stand it no longer. He makes a break for it and carries off the gorgeous young lady in distress. As the door to the trusty van opens to receive the triumphant IM force, we see that Willie and his lovely prize are safe and sound, she, gazing into his eyes with profound gratitude. It's about time something interesting happened to our favorite strong man.
Mission: Impossible: The Money Machine (1967)
Always Barney
Question: Why can't one of the white guys ever squeeze into a little, tiny space to engineer part of the scam without the bad guys knowing? But noooo, it's always the brilliant and ever patient Barney who has to put up with claustrophobic circumstances. I kept wondering what would happen if he fell asleep inside the darned thing. ("Pardon me while I take a nap in the counterfeiting machine.") Seriously (for the racially sensitive: the above was a joke), I admire trailblazer Greg Morris and the writers of MI for creating a believable and positive black character at a time when racial equality in Hollywood was still a rare occurrence.
Mission: Impossible: Lover's Knot (1970)
A lovely lady spy steals Paris's heart, but he soldiers on.
Despite the pared down crew (no Peter Lupus, no girl-of-the-week), the acting in this one is a cut above the average for both the regulars and the guests, especially lovely Jane Merrow. Peter Graves as Jim as a dashing military man turned obsessed and distraught gambler fills his part in the plot, and has a little fun, as well. Leonard Nimoy, playing determinedly against type, goes all dreamy-eyed for a villainous lady, while the dual personalities of the spy "K" keeps his identity secret for quite some time. And instead of exiting the scene in their trusty old van, our heroes head for Scotland Yard in the villain's own Rolls Royce. Now that's class!