Monday May 8, 2006 arts.michigandaily.com artspage@michigandaily.com Ale TidSigan tilg NEVER SAY NEVER THIRD IMPOSSIBLE MISSION TURNS OUT MILDLY PLAUSIBLE By Chris Gaerig that you shell out $9 to see every Associate Arts Editor time he releases another wallet- bursting blockbuster. And he's had F rLM _EV _W_ his fair share of them. Cruise is one of the better actors Let's get something out of the way: of this generation. He can play nearly It doesn't matter what you think about any role and does so frequently: sci- Tom Cruise and fi thrillers ("War of the Worlds"), his personal life, romantic comedies ("Jerry Magu- because it's his Mission: ire"), action films ("Top Gun"), acting you pay Impossible III mind-boggling dramas ("Vanilla to see. Cruise At the Showcase Sky") and even the occasional bad has faced an and Quality 16 guy ("Collateral"). The list of films unthinkable Paramount goes on, and his performances never amount of criti- waver. Besides, Cruise might be the cism for a wave greatest movie star (not to be con- of questionable decisions and out- fused with actor) of this generation: landish remarks. the flashy, hard-working hero that Did he get on top of Oprah's everyone loves - or at least until his couch on national television, jump recent outbursts. up and down like a three-year-old And now as he returns to his and scream about how in love he movie dynasty, "Mission: Impos- was? Sure, but he is marrying a sible," another stellar performance gorgeous woman nearly 20 years is on display in J.J. Abrams's "Mis- younger than him. This puts Cruise sion: Impossible III." It's not only in the running for hero of middle the best in the series but also one of aged men everywhere. It looks like his best films in years. he's in the clear on this one. Ethan Hunt (Cruise), the brash, Did he go on the "Today" show with die-hard IMF (Impossible Mission Matt Lauer and say he knew the effects Force) agent from the first two films, (or lack thereof) of chemical-balanc- has settled down and found himself ing drugs like Ritalin and the history a wife and a white picket fence (it of psychology (a science his religion, should be noted that Hunt's wife, Julia Scientology, doesn't recognize)? Yes. Hunt [Michelle Monaghan, "Mr. And But really, who cares? Celebrities say Mrs. Smith"] looks eerily like Katie dumb shit all the time. Holmes). Hunt has chosen to train In any case, it's Cruise's acting incoming agents until his star pupil is Oprah's couch had more spring than Tom anticipated. caught tracking Owen Davian (Phil- ip Seymour Hoffman, "Capote"), an international arms dealer. Hunt is forced to go back into the field to recover the lost agent. But things go awry. Davian gets free after a remarkable capture, it surfaces that there's a mole in the IMF - Hunt seems to get accused of this a lot (see: "M:I")- and Julia is captured. Impossible mis- sion, right? Not for Hunt, who goes on a love-fueled mission to save his wife and set things right in the IMF. Sure, it's the same storyline made a third time, but "M:I-3" is much more accessible, easy to follow and thoughtful than its predecessors. What might be most interesting about "M:I-3" is that the antagonist doesn't have an accent: In other words, he's American. In a society flooded with xenophobia and contempt for for- eigners, it's easy and all too common to find a foreigner and create a convincing bad guy. But Hoffman plays one of the most sadistic enemies in recent memory without this crutch. His calm, maniacal character chills spines with slow speech and composed thoughts. His casual, everyman feel - his "Americanness" if you will-is terrifying. Aside from Cruise and Hoffman's monumental performances, the other characters are simply role-players dish- ing out witty humor and fast answers to the point where the plot seems rushed and solutions are brought around much too quickly by the supporting cast. But even with the oft-too-fast speed of the film and Cruise's declining public image, "M:I-3" is this summer's first great popcorn movie: a spot Cruise is anything but stranger to. 'Felicity' star returns to big screen in 'M:I-3' By Imran Syed Daily Arts Writer What is it like to do all those electrifying stunts in a big summer blockbuster like "Mis- sion: Impossible III?" Keri Russell - best known for her work on TV's "Felicity" - recently got to find out along- side none other than Tom Cruise, and she makes no attempt to hide the fact that, above all else, it's hard work. "This is literally the way they explain it: 'OK, we're going to harness you into Tom. You're going to jump out of this window, land on a van and, as soon as the van gets six inches away from the building, it's going to explode. So listen, if your hair catches on fire, don't let go of the van because you will fall off,"' she said. "And I think, OK, great, thank you so much. Should I call anyone and tell them I love them before that happens?" Luckily for Russell, not only did she survive her jump, she also loved the entire experience of working on the film. "When you think of a big Hollywood movie, it doesn't get much bigger than this - as far as budget and stunts and craziness going on." Growing up in Mesa, Ariz. and then Boulder, Col., Russell said she didn't always plan on being an actress - she thought she would be a dancer. But after getting her start on TV's "The Mickey Mouse Club," Russell went on to act and, after making a number of guest appear- ances on television, landed the celebrated role of Felicity Porter. At the helm of "Felicity" was J.J. Abrams (TV's "Alias"), who makes his directorial debut with "Mission: Impossible Ill" and is cited by Russell as most responsible for draw- ing her into the film. "I'm so kind of like a kindred spirit with him," she said. "I just get his voice ... He's just so good at writing people as real and funny and heartbreaking." In the film, Russell -- whose screen cred- its also include "We Were Soldiers" alongside Mel Gibson and "The Upside of Anger" with Joan Allen and Kevin Costner - plays Agent Lindsey Ferris, a promising novice who trained under Ethan Hunt (Cruise). Of the experience of working with accomplished stars like Cruise, recent Academy Award winner Philip Seymour Hoffman ("Capote") and Laurence Fishburne ("The Matrix"), Russell has only the fondest memories. "They were so welcoming," she said. "Phil is like the greatest guy ever, and Tom is so gener- ous and included everyone. It was an amazing experience, once in a lifetime," she said. But was it challenging for an ex-WB girl to make the transition to an all-out action film? "Oh, there are so many," Russell said of her most difficult stunt. "I would say the training segments were the hardest. Having to assemble a machine gun blindfolded within 30 seconds - (for) which my best time was 13, by the way." But why do all the stunts'? Russell says it was her co-star's influence. "Tom does all his own stunts and loves doing them - if the close-up is on him, then I have to be there too when he's jumping off of buildings or whatever," she said. "But that was part of the fun - that's why you want to do a movie like this." And Russell's verdict on the film? While "You heard Katie and I broke up, right?" avoiding comparisons to the first two, she said she believes it is spectacular. "This is the first movie that I've been a part of that I actually saw for the first time and thought it was awesome," she said. "I was like 'This is the coolest thing ever, and I can't believe I'm in it.' So if that's any indication."