"Mr. Hunt, this isn't mission difficult, it's mission impossible. "Difficult" should be a walk in the park for you."
The best line in the entire franchise. The over the top action, excessive explosions, motorcycles races, Tom Cruise's karate skills, the overuse of mask and voice changers; it has it all. Tom Cruise and Thandie Newton have great chemistry together. Look it's not great and hasn't aged the best but hey, it's cheesy and fun and sometimes entertaining. Plus Tom Cruise's hair looks great.
A great big action film. If you like 80's Schwarzenegger or Die Hard you'll be into this. Big explosions, cheesy lines and yes, lots of hair-flicking against a fan. But the action is so well-staged I forgive it a lot.
After this the series turned soapy in part 3, then overly comedic with the introduction of Simon Pegg. It depends what you are into, but if you enjoy films like Con Air, Under Siege, The Rock and Air Force One, you should like this.
I'm not going to spend much time writing what I thought about "Mission: Impossible II. I've seen a lot of movies lately and I'm a completist driven to writing at least something about every movie I see. This movie is not worth spending a lot of time on.
I've not seen many other John Woo-directed films, but if "M:I II" is typical of his output, count me out. The action is way over-the-top and these scenes go on forever. Ethan Hunt is basically a superhero here and this is all about the star power of Tom Cruise. The villain is entirely forgettable and the action scenes are not exciting. I don't remember anything about the plot, which means it was weak, too.
This is one of the most disappointing sequels I can ever recall seeing.
It's kind of amazing how much worse this has aged compared to the first one.
This is the most Y2K movie in existence. The excessive slow-mo, the drum ‘n bass influenced soundtrack, the dumb nu metal cover of the theme song, give me a break. It’s trying way too hard to be cool, and watching it now (or as someone with good taste in 2000, I’d imagine) you can’t help but laugh at these choices. The charm of the man who made Hard Boiled and Face Off is completely missing here, instead it feels like a film directed by a meathead. The action’s forgettable and poorly edited (e.g. why the cross fading during the opening car chase?), the plot and characters are disposable (also, why the love triangle?), there’s too much of a 007 influence creatively and it doesn’t even use its location to the fullest extent (why does so much of this take place in the suburbs?). I only really like some individual moments, for example the rock climbing scene is pretty memorable (despite being superfluous to the story) and there are some good stunts during the motorcycle chase. The cinematography is also decent, and some of the better actors in the cast elevate the material at least a little bit, but this is overall a complete misfire.
3.5/10
DOUBLE THUMBS-DOWN
AND THAT'S BEING GENEROUS
Agree with all other reviewers that this is not the best MI film. For me the plots are predictable and Cruse comes across too "theatrical" for his character but that's my opinion as one who was never a Cruise fan to begin with anyway. Still, the movie does take you for a ride and there is some suspension of reality in watching it. Like others, I say if you want a mindless action flick this can be one...not the best one however. #ShiftvW8
Well... the movie is OK. But its prequel and sequel are better and I would recommend watching those (M:I 1 and M:I 3) instead of M:I 2.
Lots of stunts, lots of slowmotion and very little story. Good thing I already expected this; now I could enjoy this as a mindless action movie. Wouldn't recommend it however, there are way better action movies out there. Best part of the movie is the great soundtrack!
Rollercoaster ride where the only impossible feat is trying to keep a straight face through the cringe-worthy slow-mo hair flips and over-the-top dialogues. Overall, it's a masterclass in how not to make a spy flick, leaving you wondering if 'Mission: Impossible 2 Watch' would have been a more fitting title.
Watching this, omg .. knowing it’s a John whoo movie before watching is helpful. Yes, it’s baaaad
Like a clown convention: there are so many people wearing masks, it's hard to take it seriously.
How is it that in Mission Impossible Land, the first thing people do when they meet isn't pull at each other's faces?
Unpopular opinion: Sean Ambrose loved Nyah way more than Ethan Hunt and it's not even close.
In retrospective this seriously risked to kill the whole franchise. That is how bad MI2 is, even as mindless action movie.
Only for Woo die hard fans.
In my opinion, "Mission: Impossible II" is the only bad film in the series, which is probably due to director John Woo. His distinct style does not fit in here at all. Really, everything is silly—the action, the dialogue, the plot. In the end, it's still quite entertaining, but probably not for the intended reasons. Overall, the iconic action sequences that define the quality of the series for me are also missing. There are a few good moments, like the opening in an airplane, as well as the silly but at least spectacular finale. In contrast, however, you are constantly pulled out by questionable decisions, such as the excessive use of the iconic face masks. It's a miracle that the second installment didn't kill the franchise. In retrospect, I'm really glad about that.
Every good about the first movie they dropped in this one.
The helicopter scene at the end of part 1 was awesome, so they decided to put 50min of ridiculous, stupid racing-shooting-kungfu action in the second that doesnt fit the franchise at all.
This is not a spy thriller (part 1 was a very good one), but a Michael Bay action flick for the drunk.
"This transponder chip is completely untraceable. It transmits your location to a satellite, which can be read only by this computer. We can then track you within 3 feet, anywhere."
Doesn't anyone else think this is maybe a bit misleadingly phrased? A tracking device that is untraceable? :person_facepalming_tone2:♀
You think it will be difficult?
Very.
Well, this is not Mission: Difficult, Mr. Hunt. It's Mission: Impossible.
This one is terrible. The worst in the franchise, I’m sure of it. What were they thinking?
First of all. There are too many slow motion scenes! Like, seriously, every four seconds there’s one. It’s so bad. Which reminds me of the action scenes, they’re boring and nothing happens. In the ending, the fight between Ethan and Sean Ambrose had me rolling my eyes.
The script is awful. There’s some random generic evil threat going on. We get to a point where the use of masks becomes waaay too much. The romance between Tom Cruise and Thandie Newton has zero chemistry. For God’s sake, what is that scene where they’re chasing each other?
This movie is so cringe. There are a lot of meaningless scenes that you’’ll want to look away. Definitely the lowest point in the franchise. At least we have a cool line by Anthony Hopkins - that appears for two minutes in the whole movie.
Why does Mission: Impossible have to be so sexy? And so extra?
The cinematography is all over the place with hammy transitions and over-the-top zooms and pulls along with a ton of unnecessary slo-mo, and the dialogue can get pretty cheesy at times. I'm not saying these are bad things in general; these (and more of the absolutely crazy things we see in this movie) have their place, but that place is not in the Mission: Impossible franchise.
It may work for Woo's gangster films, but it feels out of place in this time when Mission: Impossible wanted people to take it more seriously. In fact, it was hard to watch this with a straight face at some points. The plot was hard to follow, and it gave up a plot-relevant climax for an extended action scene (it was a cool action scene, but the plot was basically sidelined in its favour).
I'm thankful that J.J. Abrams managed to save this series from dying and bring it to where it is now, because I don't think the franchise could have survived if they made each sequel an experimental film like this one.
I scoffed hard at the over the top actions scenes, face swaps, bad acting, dove explosions, and poorly choreographed flip kicks, but by the end of the motorcycle chase scene I was cheering at the anime style stunts. M:I-2 cranks it up to 11 and its hard not to appreciate it for at least that. I changed my rating from 2.5 to 3 stars due to the inclusion of the Limp Bizkit song during the end credits.
Does what it says in the tin. It's a film very much of its age so you can't judge the style too harshly.
Back in the day I watched this SO many times. I thought it was the coolest. Now I'm working through all the MI films with my other half and still enjoyed this one. Thandie Newton was great, the action was entertaining and the music was spot on.
What's not to enjoy.
This is a decent enough mindless action movie with a lot of over the top action but it is not really a Mission Impossible movie. The movie starts of reasonably well being somewhat intelligent with a bit of Mission Impossible feel to it. It is actually almost a bit slow at times. However, for the second half of the movie it really degrades into a classical John Woo, over the top, action feast with all pretense of intelligence and any true Mission Impossible feel gone. John Woo is not the right person to make a Mission Impossible movie.
As with the first movie if it would not have been labelled Mission Impossible I would probably have given it a higher rating since it is a decent enough, mostly braindead though, Hollywood action movie. However, I have higher expectations from a movie labelled Mission Impossible.
Tom Cruise is quite okay as Ethan Hunt. Dougray Scott is okayish as the bad guy. Sometimes he projects the right big bad and mad bad-guy attitude but sometimes he is just silly and just as over the top as the action scenes. He is supposed to be a mastermind but he comes out as a thug a’ la a not so intelligent drug baron in many scenes.
The action scenes? Well, they are classical John Woo material. Fast paced with a lot of stunts and things that go boom. They are also, as expected, hugely over the top and unbelievable. They provide a enjoyable visual experience but, as I wrote above, they are not really what I would expect from a Mission Impossible movie.
The romance between Hunt and Nyah is the typical Hollywood, let’s throw in a sexy girl and some superficial attraction, which develops from get lost to I love you in the matter of a few hours of contact, between the lead character and the girl. Meh!
I get the impression that the people that have created these movies so far have not really watched a single full season of Mission Impossible.
A great watch,Tom Cruise is great as Ethan Hunt was the best choice,I gave this a 10 because of the great backdrop of Australia as U don't get to see it much in big budget movies....
This was not such a bad film as others are making it out to be. Perhaps not as memorable with iconic scenes like the others, but it flows with explosive action and slow-mo scenes are used well here for a change. Tom Cruise shows off some amazing karate moves and we get to see more of what he can perform stunt wise. You’d be daft to miss this film.
The first sequel to the Mission: Impossible film series turns up the heat on the action and romance, and chills the story line way down. The second Mission: Impossible felt like it has a lot missing and the weakest film in the whole series thus far. With its flaws, Mission: Impossible II still kept me entertained enough with the ramped up action scenes until the credits started to roll. Overall, it wasn't that bad; just wasn't great either.
HAD TO KEEP SPLASHING
WATER ON MY FACE EVERY
HALF HOUR JUST TO KEEP
MYSELF AWAKE I WAS
THAT BOARD. THIS PEACE OF
TRASH IS FOR TO LONG ,
NO WAY IT SHOULD BE
2H 14M NEVER HAD TO GRIND SO MUCH TO GET TO THE END OF A MOVIE, FELT MORE LIKE
A 5H MOVIE IF I'M HONEST
COMPLETE SNOOZE FEST
From the moment Mission: Impossible 2 begins, with that mountain climb, you know what this movie's about. Plots revolving around money and explosives, outsmarting ethnic bad guys, robbing with/teasing hot chicks, "how does he do that" stunts, you name it.
But this movie doesn't stand out. It doesn't go beyond the Mission: Impossible tropes. It's just tropes and plot. I don't remember much from it. The movie's job is to entertain you and get you to the edge of your seat. It didn't achieve that. That beginning, rock-climbing scene did, and then came the title card intro with those lousy special effects, fire and all. From then onward, I was like "nah, I'm not gonna take this movie seriously". Mission: Impossible 2 lacked the elements that would make it serious, impressive, and stand out. I didn't feel emotionally invested in any of the characters or relationships. The plot was same old, same old.
Case and point, I wasn't particularly impressed by this movie.
Worst in the series, by far.
Not nearly as good as the first one, just felt kinda wrong the entire time
The chase sequence never gets old!!
I love this idc first one blew my mind this one blew it even more (watched it back to back). Not sure about the romantic aspect though didn't like that too much, but the action? Crazy. the fight scenes? Insane.
My dad owned the cd soundtrack so a year or two back I was fucking around with the collection and found it, didn't even bother to watch the actual movie until today. Funny. good soundtrack
The only scene that’s made me thrilled and sweated is the cliff climbing scene at the beginning. The rest of it was just cheesy dialogue, excessively slow-motioned fighting scenes and predictable plots. If I play this movie at 1.5-2.0x speed with all the slow-motioned scenes, I would have finished around 1.40 hr. I think it’s not utilized acting capability of Thandiwe Newton at all and she kinda disappeared in the middle of the film. I confused, why did Ethan throw the knife away and continue to punch Sean in their last fight? Is he tried to save his life? ♀
No where near as good as the first one. Some good action scenes but the fight scenes were dreadful. I am watching all of them in order for the first time. I imagine this was filmed before “wire harness stunts” were perfected because it’s bluntly obvious. Slow and disjointed story as well, typical sophomore slump.
I want to like this one because of its full embrace of corniness but this just isn't good. Even viewing it as a standalone John Woo flick (since none of the other MI films are even remotely similar to this) doesn't save it since the story isn't the least bit interesting.
It's a great showcase of Tom Cruise though, cementing him as one of the greatest action-stars to ever do it before it was obvious.
Even more over the top action scenes. The face swaps was just ridiculous.
I think the people that hate this entry are in denial of how formative it is for the current state of the franchise. Also Anthony Hopkins in this movie is only two years older than present day Tom Cruise
To understand the saga's significant tonal change from this second installment, you only need to know that “De Palma→Woo” and “Elfman→Zimmer”. While personally having a soft spot for John Woo’s direction of the action sequences, characterized by an overemphatic flair and youthful sentimentality (particularly striking in the flawlessly executed final forty minutes), the build-up in the initial half of the film proves to be overwhelmingly tedious. Ultimately, a mediocre action feature only partially redeemed by a climactic ending.
this is movie is full of cheese, and I loved all those cheesy scenes lmao
Mission: Difficult II
There are things in this that were an improvement over the first film, and others... not so much. Overall, I think I enjoyed it less.
The overall plot is basic and something we've seen a million times, but it's still more interesting than the first one - I'm into the simplicity of knowing the villain plan early and just seeing it unfold without too many twists and turns. The action, especially towards the end, is wayyyy over the top, but I can appreciate the bold choices they went with (such as the collision after jumping from the bikes). It feels like it's an anime movie far more than most anime adaptations, lol.
The whole romance with Nyah is what makes the film lose a lot of points with me. I'm not even that opposed to a basic romance plot, but I feel all those scenes were so cheesy and slow, I can't help but lose immersion into the story. Add to that the cartoonish villain with random misogynistic lines in the middle of dramatic moments, and the film just becomes extremely dated - which sucks, as I was actually fine with the effects and overall look of the movie.
As a fan of the Mission Impossible series, I would say that Mission Impossible II is the most underwhelming movie of the franchise. Despite its impressive action sequences and stunts, the movie falls short in a number of key areas. The plot lacks the depth and complexity of the other films in the series. While the action scenes are impressive, they often feel over-the-top and gratuitous, lacking the tension and realism of the other films in the franchise. Overall, Mission Impossible II is a disappointing entry in the series that fails to live up to the standards set by its predecessors. While it's still an entertaining action movie, it doesn't hold up when compared to the other films in the franchise.
I know that "dumb summer blockbuster" movies are supposed to be dumb, but are they supposed to be this dumb?
While the leads continue to benefit from great acting, too much of this is laughable for me to pay too much to the positive aspects we get with this film. While it's fun, it certainly isn't good. If the first film is a Missuon Impossible parody made by 24 fans, the second film is a parody of the first by Walker: Texas Ranger fans.
Much better than the first one, IMO. Although these ( Mission Impossible franchise) have been out for a number of years, this is my first time to watch all of them. Sure, there are some eyeroll-worthy moments, but come on: It's a action/espionage movie and it's fun! I was never a big Tom Cruise fan but some of his more recent stuff (particularly the Jack Reacher movies) have made me decide to give some of his older action films a look. While the first Mission Impossible film seemed (to me, at least) to be pretty tame, this one definitely upped the action and fight sequences enough to make this a very fun, watchable action movie.
I was still in the university when this movie originally came out. I'm re-watching this in late 2022. For me, the year 2000 Mission: Impossible II Tom Cruise will always be peak Tom Cruise. The man was killing it. We all wanted to grow out our hair like that, and the girls were obsessed with the dude.
Thandi Newton is a baby in this movie. Great chemistry between the two. I think the movie looks better remastered in 1080p HD with 5.1 surround sound. Great soundtrack too, which includes Take a Look Around by Limp Bizkit. This movie has aged well, in my opinion.
Also, I completely forgot that Sir Anthony Hopkins was in this movie. It was an added bonus when he showed up on screen.
If you had Nic Cage in the lead and dialed up the chessiness to 11. Then it would have been a good movie. Too bad John Woo forgot he was directing a Mission Impossible movie.
dumb and silly but also fun
If you want to watch something sexy and loud that looks good on your tv. Then that’s the best reason to watch this movie.
It’s the sort of unrealistic cartoonish action movie that the kid from Last Action Hero would get stuck in.
A handful of bullets caused a car to explode. But a bike is good even after taking an entire clip? WTF?
Complete garbage. It's even worse than I remember it being. Makes me wonder how we got a third movie out of the series.
The plot and action are out of place, annoying, and boring. The fake martial arts are horrific. The spycraft aspects are non-existent, resulting in a very vanilla action movie. The extremely predictable overuse of masks as an excuse for lazy scriptwriting is really inexcusable for this franchise. And what is up with the romance storyline? This is not a James Bond movie. Wrong franchise asshats.
Who thought it would be a good idea to have John Woo direct this? It's abysmal!
Though Thandie Newton is a treat. And Ving Rhames is always a pleasure. I wish we could have had more Rade Serbedzija scenes. And definitely wish Anthony Hopkins was in more of the movie.
I hated Tom Cruise's hair in 2000 when this came out and it looks even crappier now. Not a good look for him. Not in the slightest.
"You know, that was the hardest part about having to portray you, grinning like an idiot every fifteen minutes."
You know what I would love to see? The 3,5 hour cut of this one! It would mean more John Woo action, more Doves, more slow-motion shots, more stunts, maybe a longer motorcycle-chase and more Ms. Newton.
Mission: Impossible II is my least favorite entry in this franchise and by far not John Woo's best work but I still have a good time watching it. I don't mind the plotholes, it always makes Fred Durst his voice appear in my head, Tom Cruise's hair is amazing and that final fight is amazing.
You either love it or hate it but Mission: Impossible II is one of the pieces in the brilliant work that is yet to come.
This movie was made by someone who either clearly didn't understand, or outright didn't care why people liked the first Mission Impossible so much.
It's like they looked at everything people enjoyed about the first film and went "nah, what if we just made it a stupid generic action movie instead?"
If that's what you're looking for then this is a decent film despite how bad the cinematography is at times, it even has a pretty good story. But as a sequel to Mission Impossible it is outstandingly poor.
Slow motion!!! Air kicks!!! Doves!!!! Bust be John Woo
To be honest: The drama of the moment when Nyah gives herself the injection, Tom Cruise's reaction, the music. Tears came to my eyes. No, the film is not great, but it has some great moments.
Mission Impossible 2 is the least like Mission Impossible. It is entertaining and sexy stunt show though.
1/10
Weak Source
and just plain
SUCKED.
THIS WAS SO BORING, ABSOLUTELY RUBBISH AND THE WORST ONE OF THE FRANCHISE.
NOTHING HAPPENED FOR
95 PERCENT OF THE MOVIE
AND BY THE END WHEN THINGS WENT DOWN
I JUST DIDN'T GIVE A SHIT
AND WHATS WITH ALL THE SLOW MO
CRAP SHOVED IN FOR NO GOOD REASON
IT WAS SO OUT OF PLACE.
I JUST WANTED IT OVER AND DONE WITH.
IT TOOK ME A STRAIGHT 2 DAYS TO GRIND
MY WAY THROUGH THIS COMPLETE AND UTTER GARBAGE. IT'S LIKE THEY RUN OUT OF IDEAS FOR A SECOND MOVIE, SO THEY STRUNG TOGETHER THIS
CASH GRAB. THE STORY WAS SO GENERIC AND SLOW TO THE POINT IT LIMPED OVER THE FINISH LINE AT THE END. SPEAKING OF, THAT END FIGHT WAS
SO DRAGGED OUT AND BORING AND MADE
NO SENSE WITH CONVENIENT STUFF
JUST HAPPENS TO HAPPEN,
TOTAL CRAP AND I EXPECT FAR MORE AND BETTER.
IN THE END I WAS JUST ROOTING FOR THE BAD GUYS BECAUSE I KNEW THEY WOULD GIVE ME SOMETHING
ANYTHING. ONCE AGAIN ANOTHER
CONVOLUTED STORY THIS TIME AROUND
WITHOUT THE FUN AND ENTERTAINING QUALITIES.
THIS CRAP DEFINITELY OVERSTAYED IT'S
WELCOME.
HOW CAN THEY GET IT SO WRONG
WHEN THEY GOT IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME,
BECAUSE THIS WAS BAD AND I MEAN
REALLY BAD.
THIS WAS VERY NEARLY A
"MISSION IMPOSSIBLE"
To Sit Through And Complete.
(I did not choose to accept
being bored out of my mind
with this mission,
my brain nearly self destructed).
Action was better than mi1. The plot wasn't great but you can tell they were learning what works well for a mission impossible movie.
Mission: Impossible gets Wooed in this second installment of the franchise. Director John Woo takes the helm and ups the action to the point of nauseum. And, there's so much identity switching and uses of masks that this might as well have been called Face/Off 2. Tom Cruise is also a problem, as he makes it all about his character and showing off his action moves (to the detriment of the film). The style over substance focus even extends to Limp Bizkit's cover of the Mission: Impossible Theme, which is just noise. Still, a lot of the action sequences are impressive and shot well. For a mindless action film, Mission: Impossible II is alright, but it's a disappointing entry into the series.
I can tell you this...Mission: Impossible II is not as good as the first one. It hasn't got the same twists and turns that made the first one what it was. It doesn't make it bad but makes it somewhat less Mission: Impossible.
What it has got, is action. Most of the stunts and action is totally badass, and John Woo manages to make a movie that is even more John Woo-ish than most of his US outings as a director. I thoroughly enjoy action for action's sake, and you get that here.
Even though its farther from the TV-series than the first one, Mission: Impossible II is recommended viewing for any action fans.
Probably not the best of the MI movies, but being a John Woo fan since I saw his Hong Kong movies A Better Tomorrow (1986) and The Killer (1989) both in 1991, I've been a fan ever since. This time out the movie is mainly focused on Woo's stylised action sequences, the car chase with Thandie Newton, the motorbike stunts, the gun play. The problem lies in the way the movie plays out and with the homage it pays to Alfred Hitchock's 1946 film Notorious starrring the late great Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman, the core story, some scenes and even some of MI:2's dialogue even are directly taken from the Hitchcock classic. But all in all, as I don't think this is up there with Mission Impossible and Ghost Protocol it is darker and more stylised and in truth, little OTT but if your looking for 2hrs of leave brain at door (as we do with any Michael Bay movie, lol), then you should sit back and enjoy the ride, then watch Ghost Protocol for a more real MI experience.
Shout by benoliver999BlockedParent2017-05-16T16:57:03Z
In for a penny in for a pound.
Easily the worst of the franchise, John Woo’s take on the spy thriller is so bad at times that I am genuinely surprised they made a third one six years later.
The plot is much simpler than the first film but the headaches come from elsewhere. Noise, fire, cars, explosions, guns, kung-fu… it’s relentless and eventually tedious.
The locations are weird too. What sort of international pharma company is based in Australia? These people have no regard for logistics! Their operational costs must be huge! Sack the board! I’m guessing there was some sort of regional fund up for grabs when they shot the film.
Get that yak off the top of Tom Cruise’s head and bring on the third film please.
benoliver999.com/film/2017/05/12/missionimpossible2/