Director Brad Bird made a name for himself in the animation game having crafted exceptional efforts like Iron Giant and The Incredibles. With Mission: Impossible--Ghost Protocol, Bird makes the leap to live action with relative ease. As Ghost Protocol opens, Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt engages in an intense Moscow prison break. Shortly thereafter, Hunt and his team are set up and all but forced to go rogue. Then, the adventure really begins. The highlight? A breathtaking (if a tad nauseating) sequence that finds Hunt scaling the outer walls of the Burj Khalifa (the world's tallest building) in Dubai. This is followed by a relentless chase through a blinding sand storm. Ghost Protocol is easily the best installment of the series since the first although it could have used a little tightening of the screws. At two hours and fifteen minutes, the film does feel a little long. No matter though, this is a great time at the movies and you have to hand it to Tom Cruise. He's one of the biggest movie stars in the world and as Ghost Protocol unfolds, you'll see this box office giant earning every penny of his paycheck. Cruise is complimented by an outstanding supporting cast. Included; Jeremy Renner (as an agent with a couple of skeletons in his closet), Paula Patton (as an op with vengeance on her mind), and a hilarious Simon Pegg (his role as office analyst Benji from Part III has been expanded to wise cracking field agent). As is the case with The Adventures of Tintin, see this one in Imax if at all possible.

Grade: B+