Mission Impossible: Fallout - 4K Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Mission Impossible: Fallout

Movie:
4K Video:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score: ​

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Movie
I have no idea how Cruise is doing it, but the Mission Impossible series has become the series that just won’t die. I liken it to the Fast & Furious series. Both franchises came out with a good (some may say great for the first Mission Impossible, but I’m biased) first film, a botched second film, and a decent third film that financially spelled the end of the series. Somehow they were able to fund a 4th film years later, and suddenly the entire franchise is given new life and has passed 6 films (8 for the Fast & Furious series) and showing no signs of slowing down! Not to mention the fact that they keep getting bigger and better as they go. I loved the first film in this series, and LIKE MI:2 for the goofy John Woo action film for what it was, but giving Brad Bird the reins reinvigorated Cruise’s legacy in ways I didn’t think possible. The addition of a new crew, and an AMAZING stunt sequence out in Dubai made for one of the single best films that had been made. Then when McQuarrie took over for Rogue Nation (a man who had directed one film out in 2000, and then Jack Reacher, before being handed a $100+ million budgeted blockbuster) we saw some of the most complex twists the series had yet to give us.

Then comes Mission Impossible: Fallout. The series that refuses to die actually one ups itself by creating one of the best Mission Impossible films to date, rivaling the first one as well as Ghost Protocol. McQaurrie continues on with his story, and makes Fallout the movie that actually ties directly into multiple previous entries, most importantly Rogue Nation. When we last left the IMF team, Solomon Lane and his rogue syndicate trying to destroy the “old order” had been dismantled. Lane was in custody, and the world was safe, or so it seemed. 2 years later Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF task force are informed that Lane’s syndicate is still alive and well, even though the head of the snake had been cut off. Renaming themselves “The Apostles”, Lane’s cadre of super spies are continuing on with his force, and have actually got their hands on some plutonium cores. Sent to hunt down and get the plutonium before they can complete their mission, Ethan makes an actual mistake. Trying to save his teammate Luthor’s (Ving Rhames) life, he and Benji (Simon Pegg) let The Apostles get access to three plutonium cores.

Bound and determined to fix his mistake, The secretary of the IMF (Alec Baldwin) sends out Ethan’s crew along with a CIA agent named August Walker (Henry Cavill) to hunt down and get the plutonium back before The Apostles can do some SERIOUS worldwide damage. However, upon arriving in France, Ethan learns that things are a bit more serious than he could have ever imagined. The arms dealer that was supplying the plutonium has been meeting with the Apostles and their price is the freedom of their previous leader, Solomon Lane. Now Ethan and the IMF are forced to infiltrate the organization, steal back Solomon Lane from whatever black hole he’s been crammed into, AND evade MI-6 agent Isla Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), who has her own mysterious motives for Lane as well. All while getting the plutonium back, staying alive, and surviving more than a few double crosses.

Fallout is probably the most visceral and raw Mission Impossible film to date. It puts Ethan Hunt at an actual crossroads for once. He’s forced to hold two weights in the balance and figure out which one he has to drop in order to save the others. Not to mention it crosses over multiple plot points from multiple Mission Impossible films. We’re a direct sequel to Rogue Nation, and McQuarrie does an incredible job tying the two films together. We know that Solomon Lane is technically the main villain, but the film throws in so many double crosses from higher ups, and one of the other villains is someone that is right beside them the whole time. I’m not going to come out and spoil it, but needless to say that the mysterious faceless bad guy that wants the plutonium is plenty obvious from the first major action sequence. The film doesn’t try to hide that particular one, but instead focuses on USING that bit of information and the “what happens next?” mentality to push the narrative along.

What’s neat about the tie ins is that we actually get to see elements from several other Mission Impossible films outside of the McQuarrie ones. The trailer spoiled it a while back, but Ethan’s ex wife (Michelle Monaghan) plays an important role for the final act, and there’s a nifty little nod to the first film in the way of the White Widow arms dealer that Ethan has to meet. If you listen to her commemorative speech when you first see her, you hear her going on about her dear mother “Max”, which is something any fan of the original film should pick up on automatically (like mother, like daughter I guess). Luckily it’s a wink and a nod, and those not familiar with the nuances of the first film won’t be left hanging and it acts more like an Easter Egg for the fans.

I really REALLY enjoyed this entry into the Mission Impossible series, and have to say that McQuarrie has really found his niche with this series. His action is excellent (while there’s some quick cuts, he focuses on sustained action sequences, which REALLY pleases me a lot), and Tom Cruise’s enthusiasm for the role is palpable. The motorcycle chase sequence (Tom Cruise is a rabid cyclist, and does his own bike stunts for 99% of the time) is phenomenal, and except for the final act getting ridiculous, the movie is a near perfect action film.




Rating:

Rated PG-13 for violence and intense sequences of action, and for brief strong language




4K Video: Video:

Usually the 4K UHD to 1080p Blu-ray comparison is noticeable, but rarely THIS noticeable. Mission Impossible: Fallout is a bleak and desaturated looking movie by design, and thus won’t be considered traditionally gorgeous by film standards. There are long shots of dim lighting, gray colors and a bleak tone that looks fantastic on 4K UHD, but the Blu-ray itself has a hard time resolving some of the shadows and grim coloring. On the 4K UHD the darkness is deep, dark and inviting, with crisp details, but strongly desaturated color palette that doesn’t really sparkle. The Blu-ray has a problem with crushed shadows, and the grim palette looks almost waxy and smeary by comparsison. It’s not so much a problem with a bad encode, but rather a visual design that REALLY taxes the Blu-ray format, and one that the expanded palette and use of HDR and Dolby Vision really shines with on the 4K disc.

Coming to a head, the HDR and Dolby Vision (I had to take this disc over to a friend’s house to checkout the Dolby Vision, as it was rumored to be excellent) really boosts those problematic areas. Black areas are deep and silky, showing tons of shadow detail all around. Also, the more colorful moments of the film (such as the third act set against the snowy mountains) looks incredible with the advanced and brighter color spectrum. Fine details are abundant, and clear, but the bleak look of the film and long shots in under ground shadowy bunkers did tax even the skills of HDR and DV enabled discs. Some shots showed some minor smearing, and faces tend to look a bit washed out in those shots. However, this is still an excellent disc, and the use of the IMAX shots (the HALO Jump and the helicopter chase in the final act) are a real treat for 4K UHD users, making this one incredible looking 4K UHD disc.







Audio:

The Dolby Atmos track is a BEAST of a track to listen to, and one of the more nuanced Atmos tracks I’ve heard from the recent batch of releases. The mix is just as visceral and powerful as the movie itself, grabbing ahold of the listener from the opening theme song, and not letting go until the very end. Even though it’s wild and kinetic, with some awesome action sequences, the mix is evenly balanced, allowing the vocals to come through cleanly and evenly, while the surrounds are wild with the sound of a helicopter chase, or the screech of motorcycle tires on pavement. LFE is just brutal and punishing, with deep waves of bass pounding the listening position, whether it be from the intense score, or the smashing of fists and bodies through a bathroom brawl. Still, there is judicious use of it though, as gunshots sound powerful, but not overly bloated like most films portray them to be. The bass is punchy, deep and there’s a few times (such as the HALO drop) where the ABSENCE of sound is just as deafening as the actual hits themselves.





Extras:

• Behind the Fallout
- Light the Fuse
- Top of the World
- The Big Swing: Deleted Scene Breakdown
- Rendezvous in Paris
- The Fall
- The Hunt is On
- Cliffside Clash
• Deleted Scenes Montage with Optional Commentary by director Christopher McQuarrie and editor Eddie Hamilton
• Foot Chase Musical Breakdown
• The Ultimate Mission
• Storyboards
• Theatrical Trailer
• Commentary by director Christopher McQuarrie and Tom Cruise
• Commentary by director Christopher McQuarrie and editor Eddie Hamilton
• Commentary by composer Lorne Balfe
• Isolated Score Track

Final Score:
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Mission Impossible: Fallout is a smart action movie, and while it doesn’t reinvent the wheel, it does stick to tried and true spy craft tropes to keep it engaging and fun. Plus, honestly, who doesn’t love seeing Tom Cruise in an action movie? I was enthralled with how they kept up the ludicrous, over the top stunts, while infusing some realism with Cruise’s age. The sequence in the bathroom where both Hunt and Walker get their butts DESTROYED by their target was incredibly awesome, yet hilariously fun to watch Hunt not able to come out on top by himself for once. McQuarrie’s addition to the directorial roster has been a huge boon for the franchise, as he’s serialized it and pushed it forward in ways that has allowed the movies to remain relevant some 23 years past the original film’s release. Paramount also brings the pain with some amazing technical specs for the audio/video and a whole plethora of special features to enjoy. Simply put, this is a great movie, and an absolutely amazing release. Especially when you factor in the 4K UHD video being head and shoulders above the Blu-ray, which has problems resolving some of the more bleak visuals of the film. Highly recommended as a great buy.



Technical Specifications:

Starring: Tom Cruise, Ving Rhames, Henry Cavill, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Alec Baldwin, Sean Harris, Angela Bassett, Vanessa Kirby
Directed by: Christopher McQuarrie
Written by: Christopher McQuarrie
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1, 1.90:1 HEVC
Audio: English: Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 Core), Spanish (Castilian), Spanish, French, French (Canadian), Portuguese DD 5.1
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Flemish, Norwegian, Swedish
Studio: Paramount
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 147 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: December 4th, 2018

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• Michael Scott
• May 11, 2017

Recommendation: Great Buy

 

[bkeeler10]

Cannot. Wait. To. See. This. Must finish theater . . .

 

[Todd Anderson]

Saw this in the theaters and loved it - another great installment in the MI series! This one is going on my Christmas list now!

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. Will check it out.

 

[Asere]

Amazon has it for $19.99 BD and $20.96 4K right now. Might as well get the 4K at that price. Thanks for the review.
Sadly I have only seen MI one and Rogue. I may have to catch up on the MI's.

 

[JBrax]

I also caught this in theaters and thoroughly enjoyed it. I will add for sure. Thanks for the review Mike.

 

[Michael Scott]

*hint, for those wanting to pick this up. You might wanna hold off on your pre-orders, as a giveaway is coming up.

 

[JBrax]

SWEET!

 

[JStewart]

My luck is not as good as JBrax. Pre-order arrives next week!

 

[Jack]

Mine will be here today and I am very excited based on Michael's review. I feel like a school kid.

 

[Todd Anderson]

I thought this was the movie of the year (for me at least). You're in a for a treat!

 

[phillihp23]

I was looking too pick this up the other day...decided too buy the six movie 4K pack for 65$ rather than just purchasing the new one MI6 for $22. I have MI-1 through MI-5 on bluray.

 

[Jack]

I forgot to mention, it was a really good movie with a great presentation.

 

[John Platanitis]

So, I have Fallout on 4K Blu Ray. And on my Panasonic UB820 and my JVC LX-UH1, it looks terrible. Every scene, except the IMAX scenes look terrible grainy. I’m not talking light grain...but I mean unwatchable. Clarity is terrible because there is so much grain/noise.
But as soon as it scene switches to the IMAX Shots, the pic quality is spectacular.
Do I have a dud of a disc? Or is this how the movie actually looks in 4K on a big screen?

 

[Michael Scott]

that's strange. I jut popped in my disc and it's NOT an overly grainy film. It''s grim and slightly gray, but not noisy or obnoxiously grainy. The fact that it vanishes when the IMAX scenes come up suggests that your display might have some tweaked setting that's exasperating the grain level artificially..

 

[John Platanitis]

You my be right. Most reviews I’ve read talk about its picture quality. But I have found a few that describe the same visuals I’m describing.
Here is a link to one of them - https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnar...blu-ray-review-double-standards/#562dcfd174c8.
Here is a quote “ Unfortunately, though, its picture quality is a major disappointment. Or to be more precise, most of its picture quality is a major disappointment. Other parts are actually among the best I’ve seen. To explain…
The only problem with Fallout’s magnificent IMAX moments, in fact, is that they throw an even harsher light on the disappointing look of the rest of the film.
“These 2.35:1 sections - filmed on 35mm celluloid - fail to fly in almost every way. For starters they tend to look quite soft and hazy - worlds away from the detail and clarity of the IMAX sections. There’s also often a lot of noise in the image, especially during dark scenes. And to be clear, I’m not talking here about natural film grain. Rather the image often suffers with fizzing color noise that’s made all the more distracting by the way its obviousness ebbs and flows from shot to shot...
“The thing is, though, I don’t remember feeling quite so aware of the picture's slightly grubby look when I saw the film at the cinema. Also, if the uninspiring visual quality really is deliberate or somehow technically unavoidable, it’s unfortunate to just how much the fidelity gap between the IMAX and non-IMAX sections are exposed by the unforgiving spotlight of a 4K HDR master.”

This describes my viewing experience perfectly. The IMAX Shots are spectacular...but the rest, is blah. The grain/noise, especially in the underground scene at the beginning is terrible.
I haven’t a clue where to begin on my Player or projector’s settings to minimize those scenes.

 

[Michael Scott]

hmmm, could be a mixture of things. Perspective (meaning your perception of the grain vs. mine etc) mixed with settings in the projector ..... I sadly can't sit in your living room and compare with you what I see vs. what you see so sadly I'm at an impasse. especially since I don't have your projector to compare against.

a good option to pin this down might be if you have the ability to post screenshots and post in the projector display subsection and we can get more opinions voices in on this.