The third time's the charm for Tom Cruise in this excellent action flick which blows all the rubbishy memories of WAR OF THE WORLDS away and proves that he's still rightfully the world's biggest star. Easily eclipsing the previous two movies in the series (with the first one's over confusing plot and the second's lack of it), this movie delivers one blistering action sequence after another, getting better and better as it goes along, before finishing with a powerhouse climax that'll have you pounding on the arms of your chair!

Cruise slips into his character of the hero (after his hit-man role in COLLATERAL) with ease and is goofily likable. It's good to see that the charismatic Ving Rhames is back as Luther, while there's a whole new cast list full of kick-ass female characters, a sinister Laurence Fishburne, a funny Simon Pegg, and a truly evil Philip Seymour Hoffman as the villain. The action set-pieces are superbly handled by J.J. Abrams, especially the attack on the bridge (shades of TRUE LIES) which is phenomenal and takes special effects to new levels. The other shoot-outs and various infiltrations are great, the tension off set by genuinely funny one-liners (the humpty-dumpty line still cracks me up) and to say more is to spoil it. All I can say is that MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE III is one of my favourite action thrillers of the 2000s, is undoubtedly the film of the year, and everybody should make an effort to see it!

Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is trying to live a normal life with his girlfriend Julia (Michelle Monaghan) who doesn't know his secret life. Ethan is now a trainer, but when his protégé Lindsey Farris (Keri Russell) is captured by weapons dealer Owen Davian (Philip Seymour Hoffman), he goes back into the field to rescue her.

I really find it weird to see J.J. Abrams use Felicity as a secret agent. It looks silly, and I can't buy it. On top of that, PSH is not the most threatening villain. Nevertheless, the action is great. The big scene on the bridge with the drone is done quite well. The action scene of Cruise getting slammed into the car by the explosion is done beautifully. I still had high hopes for this, but then comes the twist.

It's telegraphed a mile away. It starts with agency head (Laurence Fishburne) over reacting by imprisoning Ethan. It makes no sense since Ethan was the guy who caught Davian in the first place. There's obviously a mole, and Ethan is the last guy on the suspect list. Whoever the mole is would want Ethan to be out there getting the Rabbit's Foot. So when that guy helped Ethan escaped, he's the obvious mole. And him not knowing the capture plan for Davian just seals the case for moleship.

The third act is just too silly. With all the action in the movie, the climax should be rocking action but it goes smaller. It's as if the movie just runs out of energy. We're supposed to be shocked by the reveal, but the twist was already obvious 15 minutes before. This movie had its moments, but it's not the best.

I am 17, and although Mission Impossible 3 was enjoyable on the most part, there were other parts that were uneven. The film itself is overlong and does drag in a number of long scenes, but it is also explosive and well performed. I don't care for Tom Cruise that much, (he is slightly overrated) but I found his portrayal of Ethan Hunt quite likable. Phillip Seymour Hoffmann is superb as the villain, there are some times when he is very sinister, and he made the most of it. Other than the two leads, both of which added a lot to the movie, the remainder of the characters sadly seemed cardboard, but I don't think the uneven script and sometimes confusing plot helped that much. still, it does have jaw-dropping special effects, and some detailed direction. In conclusion, a slightly disappointing film, though fun to watch. 6/10 Bethany Cox.