MISSION IMPOSSIBLE Dead Reckoning Breakdown, Ending Explained, & Review!

Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One is supposedly the swan song for Ethan Hunt--so it's fitting that he's about to face Tom Cruise's true arch-enemy: artificial intelligence. In this video we break down the movie's deeper meaning, the ending explained, and point out Easter eggs to the rest of the franchise.

Edited by Harriet Lengel-Enright, Randolf Nombrado, and Brianna McLarty

#MisisonImpossible #EndingExplained #DeadReckoning

As the name would imply, this seventh installment is the beginning of the end for Etahn Hunt and his crew. As the first in a two-part finale, the ending leaves some very intentional loose ends.

Doug: Honestly, after 7 movies, I'm starting to think these missions are actually very much possible. [clip “that's impossible! Search your feelings you know it to be true”]

Now while the final scenes paint a pretty clear picture of what's next for Ethan and his friends, the story itself has broader implications. Not only for the mission-impossible franchise but for the entertainment industry as a whole.

So the film revolves around an invisible villain known as the entity. Its Sentient rogue AI with the capability of integrating itself within anything digitally operated - including top-secret military intelligence and weaponry.

Doug: Soooooooooo Ultron?

Yea pretty much - or Skynet or, honestly a million other AI-based villains. It's a trope we've seen before - that somehow feels more relevant in this film than ever before. More on that later.

It’s so much fun to watch just a regular action movie again with relatable gear and vehicles.

Doug: Oh, you like that kind of stuff?

Dude, I love war games, war tactics, vintage vehicles. [It’s how I got into….]

The Entity’s “ brain” is at the bottom of the ocean aboard a submarine that the entity itself - sank - to protect itself from being destroyed by humans.

Doug: Well, that’s not incredibly confusing

Basically, it hacked the submarine's torpedo guidance system and made it blow itself up so that its brain could stay safe at the bottom of the ocean.

Doug: but wouldn’t it be destroyed by like -the water - or just the sheer pressure at the bottom of the ocean?

Listen buddy, it’s best not to think too hard on these things OK?

Regardless, the only way to shut it off is with a particularly festive cruciform key.

Doug: They kill it with a crucifix? So the entity is a vampire?

No - a cruciform key. - it's basically two house keys smushed together. It looks sort of like a cross - except this one has fancy lights and is capable of shutting down a world-ending AI with nuclear capability.

The entire movie is spent obtaining each half of the key, which, as the film constantly reminds us, is only the first step.

The final narration essentially tells us that the next film is going to center around diving to the bottom of the ocean to shut down the entity from onboard the sunken submarine.

Doug: Are they going to film on a real submarine?

Probably, I mean, it is Tom Cruise.

Now while the ending itself is pretty self-explanatory, it still leaves lots of unanswered questions and lingering implications. While we may know where the franchise is going plot-wise, we certainly don’t know how the story as a whole is going to end.

Honestly, with as long as Tom Cruise has been doing these movies, it seems like he’ll be doing them forever. But on the other hand, he is pushing 60. And at some point in time, you’ve got to throw in the towel.

[jedirayden]

I was born in 1980, so I have been watching Tom Cruise do his thing for over 40 years and I have to say that, no matter what you might think about Tom Cruise the person, there's not many people that are as committed to their craft as he is. Tom Cruise is one of the people who has made watching movies fun over my 40+ years of life.

[joey]

The Ilsa situation is what prevented me from absolutely loving this movie. She was such a perfect character and was the perfect match for Ethan. Fallout's ending implied they had romantic feelings for each other. Even in this one, it was set up a little. And then? She just gets retrofitted by Hayley Atwell's character

[doubleslevin]

2:20 so it’s not that the brains of Entity are in the Sevastopol, it’s that the Sevastopol has some of its source code in it from when the Entity got into their system before going rogue. That source code could potentially be used to shut the Entity down (somehow).

[neOfNne]

Thank God for Tom Cruise. If you're a fan of cinema and just movies in general, Tom Cruise is the most important figure in movies today and it's not even close. He gives us top tier entertainment with every movie he makes. He set a high standard, then he's consistently met or surpassed that standard. That's why this movie will be a huge success because audiences reward quality...plain and simple. Idk why so many of these big movie studios can't grasp that fact lately but we at least have Tom Cruise, we know we can rely on

[versinzero]

I’m so glad people enjoyed this movie, I was part of the test audience with Tom cruise there and it was an amazing experience

[Invincible.gtg.omnifan]

Can we also take a moment to praise the music composer Lorne Balfe ..the music in this movie was top tier, left me witt goosebumps, I haven't heard as good a score since hanz zimmer the dark knight score (in my opinion, subjective of course).

[andrewshandle]

I think we should give Cruise a pass for that audio of him yelling on set. IIRC, a few crew members were intentionally circumventing COVID protocol and risked shutting down the entire production which would have put hundreds of people out of work. It wasn't Christian Bale yelling at the lighting guy being a prick, it was a guy (over dramatically) trying to keep the money rolling in.

[wisethirtyseven]

Any chance Jeremy Renner will return to the franchise in part 2?

[bennyboy]

Seen it last week and was amazing. Can’t wait to watch it 300 more times

[jethrosuhardja]

I just watched Mission Impossible : Dead Reckoning Part 1 & MAN, I LOVED THIS MOVIE SO MUCH... IT DELIVERED & IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT 🔥🔥🔥 10/10

[vultan]

The entity didn’t intend to bury its brain at the bottom of the sea. It’s said several times in the movie the version of the ai that infiltrated the sub was an early iteration that can be used to engineer control or destruction of the main entity. Presumably as it has a less developed defence, but that’s never stated explicitly and may be deliberately misleading. Great video 👍

[adambrown]

Loved the movie as a whole but didn’t understand 2 things
1. why they just replaced Ilsa with Grace with not much of a payoff for Ilsa’s character
2. If the crew of the sun was found why not the sub? How could only one person know where it is? Would the Russians not know where the sun went down? And how did the keys get so separated if they were found together?

[ray]

I remember in in Rouge Nation, Hunley described Hunt like he is the manifestation of destiny, it feels like they're planned for this chapter, based on Hunley description, Ethan Hunt is the natural enemy of The Entity, can The Entity fighting "destiny"?

[kpb]

Going forward, the agents that were chasing Ethan may wind up being the new IMF team, perhaps with Hayley Atwell's Grace joining them, and with Ethan Hunt replacing the morally ambiguous Kittridge as IMF leader.
Telling new, fresh stories, with different actors, would be a way to keep the franchise original, moving into the future.

[paulmaloney]

The only aspect of the movie I didn't enjoy was Elsa's storyline. She was one of my favorite characters in the series, esp due to her connection with Ethan. The fact that they kill her off, and give Ethan another romantic interest with Grace was disappointing.

[Julie]

6:39 you mention that Dead Reckoning 2 will be the last Mission Impossible and it’s not, Tom Cruise recently mentioned that he hopes to keep making Mission Impossible movies until he’s 80.

[thecunninlynguist]

Cant wait to see wheee part 2 takes us. Will this confirm MI is part of the terminator universe and will the entity send arnie to get cruise?

[nickholland]

I feel like Tom cruise's rant to the crew who broke COVID guidelines was completely justified. This movie was incredible - not as good as fallout but on the same level. Part two is going to be the all time best action movie I'm sure of it!

[Froy-cloi]

Woah, I think The Entity just accidentally showed itself briefly at 9:23. See that digital grading texture of that image [of some guy] on top of that image of Paris there? Your speech on AI must have gotten The Entity's attention & made it want to hear it. 😉

[rohithkumarsp]

The entity is basically Samaritan form Person of interest tv show.