Giving opinions for several years and showing like a fine vintage
Giving opinions for several years and showing like a fine vintage
Member since:11.07.2000
Reviews:625
Members who trust:55
Having read other opinions on this dvd I feel I have to upset the balance of people saying this is a great dvd when really it's very average just like the film.
On release Mission Impossible 2 certainly had some real box office clout and with John Woo directing, Tom Cruise stariing and some trailers that delivered kick ass action you can see why people turned up in droves.
In reality though for the best part of an hour in this movie nothing really happens and thats a big problem. The plot involves Ethan hunt returning to stop a another former agent from holding the world to ransom over a deadly virus that he has in his posession. He is helped by an attractive thief and some more IMF agents including Ving Rhames who is sorely underused. Woo puts in all his trademark slo-mo but unlike Face/Off it actually becomes very annoying and looks like vanity on the part of the makers.It really is quite boring and only picks up at the end with a good motorcycle shoot em up that leads to a silly fist fight on the beach to
wrap things up. but by the time this happens you'll proabably be so bored you won't care.
On the dvd the film is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen and as the film was only a few months between theatrical and dvd release the transfer is of a high quailty. Colours are solid and there's little sign of print blemishes.
Soundwise there is a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix that as you'd expect is very lively throughout. This is what I call a whistles and bells soundtrack with full use of the rears whenever called upon.
Now we come to the extras whihc may seem like a great amount on the packaging but really amount to some real fluff.
John Woo provides an audeio commentary on the film and it's quite informative once you get past his hong kong accent. He still doesn't make any excuses for the boring parts though.
Next is a 'making of' featurette that is made up of scant behind the scenes footage and interviews trying to sell you on the film. It's nothing special and for a film as complex as this you'd want more.
Next is a stunts featurette that merely highlights the stunts in the film with a brief breakdown. One thing that's driven across in this is how great Tom Cruise is. Everyone featured says it so there you go-hes great. It has more love for Cruise than real info.
Following that is 11 segemtns that breakdown stunt sequences with storyboards, behind the scenes footage and final cut footage. This is coupled with interviews. These are very brief segemtns and don't really offer a lot on what must be things that can be displayed in fine detail. One thing that's driven across again though is that Tom Cruise is great-everyone loves him on the set and he's great. Yeah thanks for that now what about the stunts ?
The Metallica music video for 'I Disappear' is also included and featreus the band in some action segements such as driving cars at high speed, a take on 'North By Northwest' and Lars Ulrich jumping out of a building. It's a great track and a great video. It's one of the reasons I have the dvd.
Next up is an alterantive titles sequence that runs for anout 45 seconds and is very pointless. There isn't much difference between this and the final titles. Still it's nice to have a look I suppose.
The real gem on this dvd is an MTV spoof called 'Mission Improbable'. This was done for the MTV Movie Awards and features Ben Stiller as Tom Cruises stunt double. His namje is Tom Crooze and wherever Tom goes so does he. This is very funny stuff as Ben interferes in production meetings with stupid ideas and generally gets on Cruise's nerves. There's also a look back at Crooze's stunt double stints on Cocktail and Risky Business. Even if you hate the film this is worth getting the dvd for alone.
Strangely missing is any sign of theatrical trailers. Perhaps they were part of a failed mission in authoring the dvd ?
Pop the dvd into a dvd-rom drive and you'll get some decent IMF stuf like essays and agent locations with mission dossiers. it's the sort of thing that's nice to play around with but not substantial.
s you can tell I'm not a big fan of the film and some of the extras on this dvd. If it weren't for the MTV spoof and the metallica video then this would self destruct long before it got into my collection. If only less was spent on saying how great Tom Cruise is and more on how they actually made the film then perhaps I'd be more generous.
Your mission should you choose to accept it is to make up your own mind but think about what I've said.
THIS OPINION WILL SELF DESTRUCT IN 5 SECONDS SO RATE IT NOW!
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Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
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Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
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![Mission : Impossible 2 [2000] [DVD]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/76772200.jpg "Mission : Impossible 2 [2000] [DVD]")
May 3rd, 2001
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