Metascore

Generally favorable reviews - based on 38 Critics What's this?

User Score

Generally favorable reviews- based on 518 Ratings

  • Summary: Blamed for the terrorist bombing of the Kremlin, IMF operative Ethan Hunt is disavowed along with the rest of the agency when the President initiates "Ghost Protocol". Left without any resources or backup, Ethan must find a way to clear his agency's name and prevent another attack. To complicate matters further, Ethan is forced to embark on this mission with a team of fellow IMF fugitives whose personal motives he does not fully know. (Paramount Pictures) Collapse
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 32 out of 38
  2. Negative: 0 out of 38
  1. Reviewed by: Owen Gleiberman
    Dec 16, 2011
    100
    Ghost Protocol brims with scenes that are exciting and amazing at the same time; they're brought off with such casual aplomb that they're funny, too.
  2. Reviewed by: Bill Goodykoontz
    Dec 14, 2011
    80
    Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol is big, it's loud and so relentless in its action that it reminds me of an old joke. Why do you hit yourself in the head with a hammer? Because it feels so good when you stop. In this case, the headache is worth it.
  3. Reviewed by: Dan Kois
    Dec 15, 2011
    80
    Should you see Mission: Impossible-Ghost Protocol? By all means, and in the big, big, biggest theater you can find.
  4. Reviewed by: Richard Corliss
    Dec 19, 2011
    60
    Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol is no "Fast Five."

See all 38 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Negative: 13 out of 182
  1. One of the best action movies of the past few years. Very slickly directed & edited it all works really well together. Easy to follow plot which is still a little mysterious & unsettling. Solid acting from all concerned. Tom Cruise gives his best Ethan Hunt since MI1. Paula Patton is both tough & attractive/sexy. Simon Pegg is slightly annoying but also endearing. Jeremy Renner is both mysterious & yet vague. Lea Seydoux is sexy but lethal in the best spy thriller fashion.

    Brad Bird does an excellent job directing here its so well made & effortlessly edited together. ILM do a stunning job on the VFX work it has around 700 shots & most of those are invisible fake backgrounds,/buildings but look very convincing.

    MI4 just really works as an action adventure/spy thriller & travels to at least 4 exotic locations. The way it all comes together is a tribute to the actors/filmmakers that in 2011 they can all make a coherent shaky cam free cinematic experience which can be followed & enjoyed by movie fans of all ages yet still manage to suck you into the story. Its more like a Pierce Brosnan bond movie at times than a Mission Impossible movie but those exotic elements help to tell the story & stop it from boring you as for the first 75% of the running time the action is wall to wall & the plot twists constant so you never get a chance to relax until the slower paced ending which even then has a few twists & some more excitement to deliver.

    Highly recommened for anyone who is a Tom Cruise fan or just wants a great time at the movies.
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  2. 8
    Ghost Protocol delivers the goods for the Mission Impossible series. MI3 didn't get the credit it was worthy off but MI4 certainly seems to have reignited interest in the franchise. The film is outrageous fun with some incredibly surreal yet exquisite action sequences that are easily on par with Casino Royale, yes that good. The plot up's the ante in terms of the 'impossibility' factor. Ethan Hunt is assigned to lead fellow agents Benji (The awesome Simon Pegg) and Jane Carter (Paula Patton) to infiltrate the Kremlin in Moscow to locate files identifying 'Cobalt' (Michael Nyqvist) who is a Russian consultant aiming to detonate a Nuclear bomb. However, during the mission someone broadcasts across Hunt and co's frequency alerting the Russian's of Ethan and his team which leads to a frantic escape and a bomb detonating in the Kremlin leaving the IMF seemingly responsible for the attack. As a result the Russians believe the act to be an undeclared one of war resulting in the US government initiating Ghost Protocol. Jeremy Renner comes aboard as William Brandt and assists the IMF as they try to stop 'Cobalt' from starting a nuclear war. Straightforward stuff right? Certainly compared to MI3! But the plot is secondary yet it works because the action sequences are handled expertly by Brad Bird. From Ethan climbing Burj Khalifa - the highest building in the world to a car chase amidst a sandstorm they really have gone all out! The new characters introduced are relatively appealing however, personally, Simon Pegg once more is in fantastic form as Benji and really merits all the accolades and plaudits he has been credited with as he is awesome! Paula Patton was a good inclusion as the sexy yet deadly Jane Carter and Jeremy Renner was a decent alternative at times from Cruise although i don't think he is quite ready, if he ever will be, to take the reigns from our Tom just yet. The length of the film is perfectly appropriate aswell it's not as long as MI3 but is timed greatly thus time round. Ghost Protocol is a fine installment in the Mission Impossible franchise. It's an adrenaline filled funfest as a spectacle that delivers some of the the best action in recent memory and definetly takes the franchise to new heights, Brad Bird has handled everything superbly well and one suspects Tom Cruise might be back sooner than we anticpated for a fifth outing! Expand
  3. Having seen all four of the "Mission Impossible" movies, I see no rhyme or reason to the ratings of each, when compared to one another. Each has something different as well as much of the same. That's why we go to see them, certainly why I did. None of the sequels had the depth of the first, plot wise. The second had a musical theme revamped and all around great soundtrack (best), which the following two failed to reuse; the effect of the soundtrack was never so well tailored. The second also started a trend that was unmistakable in all three sequels, the acrophobes know it all too well; Cruise hanging from an overhanging escarpment in The Grand Canyon(just to relax-oh yeah) and jumping from a helicopter into the air shaft of a high rise (II), pendulum swinging from one high-rise to another in Shanghai (III), face climbing the world's tallest building with a sand storm coming towards the building (IV).


    The fourth mission, the one which garnered the highest ratings (various sites) was as good as the ones before, but, in my opinion, lacked the depth of the original, plot wise, lacked the impact of the best soundtrack, but did capture all the thrill and the action the previous ones had; being mildly acrophobic, I found myself trying to catch my breath and closing my eyes for a few seconds, just long enough to muster the strength to resume watching the action.


    I may not agree with the critics and other reviewers as to how well this sequel matches up with the others, but I can say with some certitude that if you liked any of the previous ones, you should like this one.
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  4. After watching this film, I was filled with utter apathy for it. Definitely didn't hate it, but really didn't enjoy it either. Sort of like sitting at a red light waiting for the next great green thing to come along, but really in that moment you are just sitting there doing nothing staring at some red glowing circle. Blah. Expand

See all 182 User Reviews

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