‘Mission Impossible Final Reckoning’ review: Tom Cruise cheats death, aging, AI with Oscar-worthy tricks

 — Tom Cruise, the credited savior of the film industry post-pandemic, is back as Ethan Hunt possibly for the last time in “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning.”

The franchise’s eighth movie and a direct sequel to 2023’s “Dead Reckoning,” the film sees Hunt and his team do everything possible to prevent the Artificial Intelligence known as “The Entity” from starting nuclear Armageddon.

Cruise’s new title as the posterboy for the theatrical experience is a result of “Top Gun: Maverick” managing to bring people back to the cinemas.

The truth of it is, Cruise has always displayed his action star prowess outside of “Mission: Impossible” — “Edge of Tomorrow,” “Jack Reacher,” and “Oblivion” come to mind.

It should come as no surprise how dedicated Cruise is to this franchise having led the line from the original film back in 1996, and 30 years on, Cruise is still giving what the people want.

“The Final Reckoning” pretty much begins as a refresher of where things were left off, also touching upon the many ridiculous tasks Cruise’s Hunt has done as a member of the Impossible Mission Force that earned him a legendary status among spies.

The first hour can drag a bit especially for fans who are already aware of what the franchise has to offer, but once the action gets going, it hardly takes its foot off the gas pedal.

Cruise has done crazy stunts in the past — climbing the Burj Khalifa, driving a motorcycle off a cliff, helicopter chases, holding his breath for minutes, clinging to a plane — and some of these return here, each as preposterously impossible as the next.

Related: Tom Cruise nearly met his end on ‘Mission Impossible 8’

While it’s hardly an improvement from a storytelling standpoint, it does speak to Cruise’s dedication and the trust that filmmaker Christopher McQuarrie puts in him.

Some credit should go to returning editor Eddie Hamilton who manages to make conversations more riveting than they should be, on top of the amazing action sequences that the cast does.

Speaking of the cast, Cruise has found good company over the years in this franchise especially in Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames.

Pom Klementieff has managed to outshine Hayley Atwell. Angela Bassett is such a welcome and formidable returnee, while newcomers Hannah Waddingham and Tramell Tillman do very well in their limited scenes interacting with Cruise’s Hunt.

Does “Mission: Impossible” end here? We know James Bond constantly gets rebooted and John Wick is coming back, so action franchises are still up for grabs in this new era of movies.

If anything, Cruise and company have built up the legacy of this franchise and cemented it with death-defying set pieces that will be remembered for years to come.

And as for Cruise himself, the filmmaking industry will cherish what “the last true movie star” has given, and look forward to what he’ll surprise us with next.