Ex-CIA Agent Rates All The 'Mission: Impossible' Movies | How Real Is It? | Insider

Former CIA intelligence officer Andrew Bustamante rates all the "Mission: Impossible" movies, starring Tom Cruise, for realism.

Bustamante looks at field-operation scenes in "Mission: Impossible" (1996), with Ving Rhames and Jon Voight; and "Mission: Impossible 2" (2000), with Thandiwe Newton. He breaks down spy gadgets and disguises in "Mission: Impossible III" (2006), with Philip Seymour Hoffman and Simon Pegg; and "Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol" (2011), with Jeremy Renner and Léa Seydoux. He compares Cruise's physical skills to real-life CIA training in "Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation" (2015), with Rebecca Ferguson; "Mission: Impossible — Fallout" (2018), with Henry Cavill; and "Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One" (2023).

Bustamante was a CIA covert intelligence officer for seven years. He worked in the National Clandestine Service, now-called the Directorate of Operations. He is the founder of EverydaySpy, an education and training platform that teaches espionage tactics for everyday life. He is also the host of "Everyday Espionage Podcast."

Dead Reckoning Part One, starring Tom Cruise, is in theaters July 12.

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Ex-CIA Agent Rates All The 'Mission: Impossible' Movies | How Real Is It? | Insider

[vanessal]

Glad he confirmed "a spy is just a thief with a government paycheck". 😂

[monpetitcharlot]

For the motorcycle base jump scene, I thought for a moment he'd say : "We don't discard our equipment on the field because it leaves a trail of evidence."

[ja]

I love that, unlike most other videos, he finds the similarities instead of the differences. It makes it so much more entertaining

[RowdiesFan]

"I was rooting for the bad guy."

SAME. That interrogation is probably the most intense and frightening thing I've ever seen. So freaking well performed by all the actors involved. It gives me chills watching it.

[DjShadowsound]

The fact that this guy looks nothing like what you’d expect a CIA agent to look like makes him the PERFECT CIA agent.

[nategar]

Great stuff, but I can't believe he rated the Henry Cavill fight without discussing how realistic it is to reload your arms during a fight.

[doit]

I like that this guy chooses to focus on the real stuff as opposed to just pointing out the inaccuracies. Makes the video a lot more fun

[mr.iguessso]

"We've talked about this Tom. We dont discard equipment." 😂

[rebel_diamonds]

What I get from this video is that Mission: Impossible movies are actually quite more realistic than I thought they were.

[mrquirky]

I can't believe a CIA agent would ever have hair like that, but of course that's what they want me to believe. Well played CIA.

[sambafreak]

Great video and analysis! For what it's worth, I felt the point of the interrogation scene was to show that Ethan devolving into pure emotion (and losing the ability to access his training) at the sight of his wife being threatened. I don't think it was a mistake that we watch him handle that extremely poorly.

[ZedsDeadZD]

The most unrealistic thing about the bathroom fight scene is, that kt is completely empty and outside is a huge crowd partying. Youd have to wait in a line to get to the urinal even in the mens room.

[justaguy]

That mission impossible scene with him hovering in that room has to be one of the most iconic scenes in movie history. Its like the matrix bullet time shot.

[LukeC]

“Could an assassination take place in an opera?”

Pretty sure a pretty famous assassination took place in a theater. 😂

[butwhataboutdragons]

Right about 13:00 or so, that point about how it's far more effective to use a PIT maneuver, is such a good one. I remember a specialist in police PIT talking about how if you do it right, the most damage you'll get to your vehicle is maybe some spider-web cracking on the front bumper. It's surprisingly easy to wreck even a heavier truck in front of you if you're practiced in it and a motorcycle wouldn't stand a chance.

[InvertedFreeSolo]

This was fantastic. Definitely want to see a part 2.

[ginsan]

I love that many unrealistic parts about Mission Impossible has to do with how human Ethan Hunt is. Even as an agent who is supposed to prioritize his mission above everything else, Ethan still tries his best to save anyone he could (even a policewoman he never knew) at the same time as completing his mission. He begged and almost gave up when his wife was being threatened. He could throw away everything he has been taught and break the rules when the situation touches on his human side, and that is still pretty realistic when you think about it. I believe that is what the filmmakers are actually going for; not to make the most realistic spy movie, but to show a man with moral dealing with spy life. So in a way, it may be unrealistic, but it is kind of not impossible to happen in real life.

[KingSerenade]

This guy was very informative, I'd like to see him back again in the future... assuming with all the information he did give, he'll be available for future appearances.

[paramitch]

This is one of the best and most informative videos this series has put out, and I found it really fascinating! (And his admiration of Ethan Hunt really endearing.) I'd love to see more videos or interviews with Andrew on this topic -- kudos!

[petedavid]

As someone who has been trained in quite a few of these situations and has a reasonable understanding of the others, Andrew B is as solidly dead on with his analysis as anyone possibly could be. Andrew is not only extremely well educated and trained but, also very well versed in expressing his position and views. Two big thumbs up!!👍🏼 👍🏼