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Tom Cruise - Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning
Tom Cruise in 'Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning'
Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning
(In Theaters May 23)
Tom Cruise delivers the thrills in what is claimed to be the final film of this franchise. The convoluted plot is exposition-heavy, with almost none of the satiric dialog that eased the burden of previous installments. Welcome to part two of a tale about an A.I.’s plan to cleanse the earth of humanity. POTUS (Angela Bassett) wants to harness the A.I. on behalf of our nation’s interests, so the government plans to retrieve a device granting its owner control over The Entity. Ethan knows where that device is hidden, but he and his IMF team (Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg and Hayley Atwell) intend to use that device to destroy the all-powerful A.I. Viewers wait over an hour before the derring-do begins in earnest, but the payoffs are huge with Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie delivering nail-biters that are impossible to resist. (Lisa Miller)
Body Odyssey
(IndiePix DVD/Digital))
Mona’s obsession to become Miss Body Universe has taken unhealthy turns. Her physical life has been distorted not only by excessive body building but by eight years of steroids. And her psyche? She’s drilled by a coach, Kurt, who examines her like a prize bull, determined to turn her into some sort of superwoman. The ominous bass tones on the soundtrack signal horror in a 2024 Italian-Swiss coproduction justly compared to the work of David Cronenberg. (David Luhrssen)
The Last Rodeo
(In Theaters May 23)
At just four years old, Angel studios has released 14 faith-based films. This remarkable record finds the main players wearing multiple hats. Here, Neal McDonough stars, co-produces and co-wrote the screenplay along with director Jon Avnet. Rodeo provides the milieu for McDonough’s Joe Wainwright, once a World Champ Bull-Rider two decades hence. Though long since retired, Joe re-enters the sport for a mammoth purse in the ultimate contest between former world championship bull-riders, so he can pay for his young grandson’s brain tumor removal. Undertaking this scheme as a matter of faith, we see Joe train by tossing haystacks and taking frequent turns on a no-nonsense mechanical bull—all while Joe’s skeptical coach (Mykelti Williamson) dispenses sage advice. All and all, few activities get the heart pumping, and the prayers flowing, like an aging rodeo-er climbing aboard a one-ton bull. (Lisa Miller)
Lilo & Stitch
(In Theaters May 23)
Prepare for a cuteness overload in this live-action remake that is largely faithful to Disney’s 2002 animation. In Hawaii, adorable 6-year-old Lilo (Maia Kealoha), adopts an alien she thinks is a dog and names him Stitch. Resembling a mutated blue koala, he’s the very definition of ugly-cute. Having escaped to Earth, Stitch, known on his home planet as experiment 626, is pursued by his creator, Dr. Jumba Jookiba (Zach Galifianakis), along with Agent Pleakley (Billy Magnussen) of the United Galactic Federation. Meanwhile, Lilo’s endless patience, and protective instincts earn her the loyalty of little wrecking-ball Stitch. Director Dean Fleischer Camp returns from the original, while cast members include Sydney Elizebeth Agudong as Lilo’s big sister and co-writer Chris Sanders reprising Stitch’s indecipherable utterances. Originally planned as a streaming release on Disney+, this $100-million-dollar effort should gross at least $120 million over Memorial Day weekend. (Lisa Miller)
