Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation

is exactly what it should be:  big, action-packed, frequently dumb, Mission: Impossible-style fun.  It starts fast, stays fast, and does the nice turn of dispensing with the scene its trailers most over-used--Tom Cruise hanging onto the plane--in its first few minutes.

As always, Cruise dominates the action and the film itself, but Simon Pegg, whose role is larger than ever, helps balance the movie.  Rebecca Ferguson did a solid turn as the woman who might be with them or might be an enemy.  The rest of the usual cast all turned in good performances.

Films in this franchise are at their weakest when they slow the pace and examine the inner lives of its characters.  At those moments, the movies typically sag to nearly the breaking point.  Rogue Nation never enters that danger zone and instead just keeps on moving.  It's the right choice for this film.

I had a fine time watching it.

Of course, you can't think too hard about the plot or the stunts, but you know that's the case when you walk into the theater.  No problem.  Some of the lines, particularly a late-in-the-film Alec Baldwin monolog about Ethan Hunt (Cruise), are laughable, but mostly they speed by so quickly that you don't have time to feel the pain.

If you enjoy this kind of movie--and you know I do--go see Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation.