Fascinating gadgets, thrilling stunts, exquisite locations and of course Tom Cruise, it was impossible to not love Mission: Impossible. After the release of the first movie in 1996, the Mission: Impossible movie quickly became a franchise. The first movie set the expectations of Tom Cruise fans so high that they diligently waited for the sequels. The movies soon became a pop culture phenomenon.
The American spy action films are based on the television series of the same name. While the series was created by Bruce Geller, the idea of converting it into a movie series was that of Cruise. Produced by and starring the actor, the films follow the story of his character - Ethan Hunt, an agent of the Impossible Missions Force (IMF). The first film was released in 1996 - six years after the events of the TV series - and followed the missions of the IMF's main team which is headed by Hunt. While the movies are focused on Hunt, the tv series had a more ensemble cast structure.
This year we celebrate 25 years of the first movie’s release. One of the most interesting spy movies franchise, the series received a great reception from critics and audiences alike. It is one of the highest-grossing film series of all time.
We love the movies and everything about it and if you are as big a fan like us, maybe you’ll have the fact base, but well, it’s fun to check it out again!
Mission: Movie
Once upon a time, the Mission: Impossible television series – which aired in the 1960s and 70s - had a big fan named Tom Cruise. He was so impressed by the series that he pushed Paramount Pictures to adapt it into a movie. And guess what, they did!
Villian’s cards
In Mission: Impossible III John Musgrave’s reveal as a villain - which was played by actor Billy Crudup - was written on the morning of filming. Since Crudup did not have time to memorize the scene, Cruise helped him with the lines as held up cue cards throughout the scene.
The action followed by the story
If you are an MI fan, you would agree that one of the most fascinating things about a good spy movie is the action scenes. Interestingly, director Brian De Palma understood that and used to design the action sequences before the final, usable screenplay was complete. The writers had to construct and develop the story around the action, as pre-determined by the director. There were even times when writer Robert Towne had to rewrite scenes between takes.
On-spot
Do you remember Agent Zhen Lei blew up a beautiful orange Lamborghini in Mission Impossible III? For the movie, actress Maggie Q – who played IMF Agent Zhen Lei – had to learn how to drive with a Lamborghini. Since then, she said that the driving experience has been downhill.
Balance it out
You remember the famous scene where Cruise drops from the ceiling and dangles above the floor. Well, in that scene Cruise kept hitting his head on the ground. The final take, which we enjoyed very much, only worked when he had put coins in his shoes to balance out his weight (big head?).
Oops!
This one is interesting because it is a combination of our two faves MI series and Superman. Did you think Superman looked weird in Justice League? If yes, you can blame Mission: Impossible. Actor Henry Cavill had to grow a moustache, which he was not allowed to shave during the production, as he played his part in Fallout. He. Couldn’t even shave it off when he was called back for reshoots as Superman. Our superhero’s moustache was digitally removed in post-production.
We suggest, this weekend, you binge on the MI series, because we are definitely going to do just that.
