Mission: Impossible 2

Secret agent Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and a sultry jewel thief (Thandie Newton) go after a rogue agent who has stolen a deadly biological weapon. Turning the ‘60s TV series into a James Bond franchise for Cruise may rankle some nostalgic purists, but it’s as good a use as any for the old show. Director John Woo gives it a good polish (despite his penchant for anti-gravity martial arts and stunts that defy the laws of physics), and writer Robert Towne even supplies a reasonably coherent plot. The computer-generated action scenes are impressive, even exciting, but inherently unconvincing, like an elaborate magic act—we gasp, but we know it’s just a trick. In fact, there’s more sense of danger in the hungry glances between Cruise and Newton than in all the explosions, acrobatics, and head-kicks.