Mission: Impossible - Fallout Blu-ray Review: Extras Galore!

By: Lynn Barker

In Mission: Impossible - Fallout, an IMF mission ends badly with terrorist Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) escaping custody and taking along three plutonium cores for bomb-making. Since the world is now threatened with being nuked, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is determined to make up for mission errors and get back the plutonium and Lane. The CIA questions his loyalty and sends their top agent and secret assassin Walker (Henry Cavill) to go along as “help”.  People from Ethan’s past are popping up. Who is a good guy and who bad? Can Hunt and the IMF team make everything right?

Clip - "HALO Jump Stunt Behind The Scenes"

Misfiring Mission

While in a safe house, Ethan Hunt has a bad dream about his wife Julia (Michelle Monaghan) being in danger. He wakes to receive details of an IMF mission. Three plutonium cores have been stolen by a terrorist group called The Apostles, led by mystery man John Lark. The IMF has 72 hours to get the plutonium back. In Berlin, IMF operatives Benji (Simon Pegg) and Luther (Ving Rhames) make a captured nuclear weapons scientist working with the Apostles to build bombs, believe a big nuke attack has started. The man reveals who has the cores and the IMF sets up a meeting to buy them. The mission fails when Ethan makes the choice to save Luther's life and the plutonium is stolen.

Benji and Luther to the rescueCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

Retake the Plutonium

CIA Director Erica Sloane (Angela Bassett), forces the IMF to take along her special agent August Walker to back up Hunt as he attempts to retake the plutonium at a meet with arms dealer/broker The White Widow (Vanessa Kirby) at a big gala in Paris. Hunt and Walker HALO (high altitude, low release) sky-dive jump into Paris, where they infiltrate the gala. Hunt and Walker track Lark to a bathroom where he is killed by British Agent Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson). Hunt then has to pretend to be Lark and meet with The White Widow, who is the daughter of Max, the arms dealer from the last Mission Impossible movie.

The white widow sells armsCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

Attack the Convoy

Posing as Lark, Hunt meets with White Widow who gives him one of the plutonium cores but the price of the others is for Hunt and team to grab Solomon Lane, who is wanted by many counties, from an armored convoy moving through Paris. Agents of the Apostles are also after Lane and the plutonium and Hunt and his team attack the convoy. Ilsa Faust reveals that British MI6 want Lane dead and she needs to kill him. Lane is grabbed by the IMF but a motorcycle and car chase ensues across Paris, with Hunt avoiding the White Widow's forces, the police, Faust and the CIA who have their own agenda.

Ethan (Tom) in the street chaseCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

International Chase

Tracking the plutonium leads the team first to London with Hunt chasing the real John Lark across rooftops and more. The IMF learns that he has escaped to Kashmir, is holding Hunt’s estranged wife Julia at a medical camp there and will detonate the nukes from there. Benji has learned that the two remaining nuclear weapons are synchronized with each other; if one is defused, the other will detonate. They have to be defused while the countdown is running! A fuse must be pulled from the detonator to stop the countdown. Solomon Lane, working with Lark, activates the weapons.

Terrorist Solomon Lane escapes custodyCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

Disaster Averted?

The IMF learn that Lane plans to have the nukes contaminate a huge water supply effecting many nations, one third of the world population. Benji, Ilsa and Luther stay on the ground searching for the two remaining weapons while Hunt must chase the real Lark who has the detonator in flight in a helicopter. Who is the real Lark? Can Hunt secure the detonator and stop the countdown? Can the IMF team plus Julia on the ground find and help defuse the bombs?

Ethan, Benji, Luther and Isla arrive in KashmirCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

Special Extra Features

On Blu-ray disc one you get the film plus:

• Audio Commentary – with Director Christopher McQuarrie and Actor Tom Cruise. This one, with Cruise’s enthusiasm, is most fun.

Tom looks at a scene with director Chris McQuarrieCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

• Audio Commentary – with Director Christopher McQuarrie and Editor Eddie Hamilton is way more technical.
• Audio Commentary:- with Composer Lorne Balfe is kind of unique. We don’t usually hear from a composer on his score for a film.
• Isolated Score Track- for screen music buffs, is the film's music without any dialogue or sound effects. Kinda cool.

On Blu-ray bonus disc two you get:

• Behind the Fallout – a 7-part, making-of feature with:
• Light the Fuse – gives us a big synopsis of the whole series leading up to the movie. The plot is re-capped (needed!). We also get cast and character info and stuff about Cruise’s on-set, building-leaping injury, info on shooting in IMAX and all about how much Cruise is dedicated to his character etc.
• Top of the World- zeros in on the making of the HALO jump sequence which Cruise did himself; how challenging and dangerous it was. How it was shot and more.

Tom doing the HALO jumpCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

• The Big Swing: Deleted Scene Breakdown quickly features stunts shot in Paris’ Grand Palais.
• Rendezvous in Paris –breaks down the complex car stunts, Cruise at the wheel and how the famous city was featured. Fun.
• The Fall –creating the scene where someone falls from a helicopter. Looks scary.
• The Hunt Is On is more on the helicopter chases sequences and just how dangerous it all was. New Zealand locations are featured with info on the ‘copters and Cruise doing more stunts. Amazing.

Tom gets ready for helicopter chase stuntsCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

• Cliffside Clash – the final fight, race against time, scene between hero Hunt and the bad guy, in detail. Exciting.
• More extras include: 
• Deleted Scenes Montage – this Includes optional commentary with Director Christopher McQuarrie and Editor Eddie Hamilton. Interesting. This also includes more on The Big Swing, a scene covered in an extra above.
• Foot Chase Musical Breakdown features composer Lorne Balfe breaks down his composition for a chase on foot action scene. Informative.
• The Ultimate Mission – a “selling” kind of extra in which Cruise tells us about his love for the “Mission” films, how much better it is to use real, practical stunt work, all the challenges that require teamwork etc. Nice.
• Storyboards – you can “thumb through, hand-drawn storyboards for several scenes. With all of the pre-visualization videos done now, it’s nice to see this hand-drawn work.

Wrapping Up

This Blu-ray/DVD/Digital pack for Mission Impossible: Fallout is loaded with extras that, in great part, focus on details about the amazing HALO (High Altitude Low Open) jump accomplished by Cruise and the other exciting chase scenes and stunts. It’s nice that the soundtrack is explored with its composer. We don’t see that a lot on home entertainment offerings.

Tom with crew planning race in ParisCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

The film looks and sounds great although the color isn’t all that bright… same in the theatrical movie, however. Most of the extras are on a separate disc. I always enjoy a goof-up gag/blooper reel. Even Cruise can mess up and I’m sure those goofs were hilarious but we don’t get to see them.

Tom leaps tall buildings in a single boundCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

Mission Impossible: Fallout is a whiz bang, high risk sequel to 2015's Rogue Nation packed with multiple international locales and over-the-top yet real stunts that are the hallmark of all the “Mission” films. Tom Cruise, in his ‘50’s now, is in top form. The story is pretty basic and the movie could be shorter and employ more humor but you can’t beat the stunts and action sequences. Great for collecting and gifting this holiday season.

Walker, Ethan and Ilsa after a fightCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

Extras are very entertaining overall. We can award four stars.

Mission: Impossible - Fallout Blu-ray Rating: 

Mission: Impossible - Fallout Blu-ray CoverCourtesy of Paramount Pictures

Buy Mission: Impossible - Fallout in stores now.

What Do You Think?

Have you followed all of the “Mission Impossible” movies? Are you super entertained by all the real life, not fake stunts? Will you collect and/or gift this movie for the holidays? Share a comment below and engage all of your Kidzworld pals by writing about it on your profile page!