Tom Cruise started the Mission: Impossible franchise 10 years ago as a director’s showcase. (Cruise has probably worked with more A-list directors than any star in history.) Brian De Palma (The Untouchables) helmed the first film and turned out one of the great suspense set pieces of his career: an elaborate break-in to an impenetrable room with Cruise suspended on wires. John Woo (Hard-Boiled) directed the second installment with tons of slow motion and none of the brio he brought to his Hong Kong action masterpieces.

It took a while to find a director for the third film. David Fincher (Fight Club) was attached to the project at one point, as was Joe Carnahan, based on his ludicrously over-rated film Narc. But Cruise finally settled on J. J. Abrams, the creator of the Lost and Alias TV series. Abrams is hardly a visual stylist on the level of De Palma or Woo, but he manages his story and his cast more deftly than either of his predecessors.

Mission: Impossible III has the same pacing, the same engaging-yet-predictable plot twists, and the same sense of humor as Alias. Not surprising, since Abrams brought along his writers and editor from the show as well as composer Michael Giacchino, who wrote the superb, Bond-inspired score for The Incredibles. Unlike Alias, the film doesn’t have to pretend that LA looks just like Berlin and Shanghai; it shows us the real thing. And cinematographer Dan Mindel brings the same rough-edged slickness we saw on display in The Bourne Identity.

None of the action set pieces have the punch that Steven Spielberg or Michael Mann, or even Doug Liman, can bring. One scene that unfolds on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge echoes James Cameron’s superb bridge chase from True Lies and clearly demonstrates the difference between solid craftsmanship and inspired artistry. But each of the big action beats tells part of the story, so we’re spared the kind of loud, gaudy, and perfectly superfluous displays that litter the films of Michael Bay and all his ilk.

It’s the attention to the story—to keeping the narrative brisk, clear, and engaging—that sets the film apart from the standard, formulaic Hollywood action orgy. The clever way the film deals with its McGuffin, for instance, minimizes needless exposition and maximizes the time we spend on thrills. (Ronin pulled a similar trick, with similarly good results.)

Driving the story is super spy Ethan Hunt, played by Cruise. Mr. Cruise may be a Scientologist and a nut case (isn’t that redundant?), but he’s got considerable talent as an actor. Very few actors can hold the center of a big action movie; just look at any of Nicholas Cage’s failed attempts. Cruise, like Sean Connery and Harrison Ford and virtually no one else, keeps you focused on the character rather than the pyrotechnic set pieces. That’s particularly impressive since Ethan Hunt is an even thinner character than James Bond or Indiana Jones.

While the movie is undeniably a star vehicle we get top-notch actors in every single supporting role, which gives the film an amazing energy. This is the first Mission: Impossible movie to make the IMF team a genuine part of the story. Particularly delightful is Simon Peg (Shaun of the Dead) as a lab technician who talks Cruise through the back streets of Shanghai over the phone. And with Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Maggie Q, Billy Crudup, and Keri Russell on hand, there’s not only tons of acting talent, but eye candy aplenty for every taste, gender, and orientation.

Best of all, on the acting talent front, is Philip Seymour Hoffman as the villain Owen Davian. Hoffman deliciously underplays his role, which makes him much scarier than a bombastic, larger-than-life villain could be. When Davian starts quietly and matter-of-factly threatening Hunt and his girlfriend, the effect is monstrous and chilling.

Michelle Monaghan, as Hunt’s fiancé Julia, is good too, but her role is so slight she never make much of an impression. Since so much of the plot revolves around her, that’s a serious weakness. We know Hunt cares deeply about her, but we never get a chance to share those feelings.

While it’s hardly the best this genre has to offer, Mission: Impossible III gets the job done with style. It’s exactly what Cruise’s career needs right now and exactly what we want for the summer.

Mission: Impossible III (2006)
Grade: B